College football is one step closer to a single transfer portal window.
Sources told Yahoo Sports Ross Dellenger that the NCAAs Football Oversight Committee voted in favor of a single 10-day transfer portal window following the 2025 season. If approved, the transfer portal would open on Jan. 2.
The move still needs to be officially passed by the NCAA’s Division I Administrative Committee by Oct. 1 to go into effect after the upcoming football season.
There were two transfer portal windows after the 2024 college football season. The first happened in December and the second happened in April. The December window meant that coaches were both trying to recruit players from other teams and also prevent their own players from leaving before bowl games.
The portal timing also meant that numerous transferring players didn’t participate in bowl games. Marshall was unable to play in the Independence Bowl against Army and cited a lack of players after the departure of coach Charles Huff to Southern Miss. The Thundering Herd were fined $100,000 by the Sun Belt for being unable to play.
With a Jan. 2 portal start date, all but three bowl games would be played before the transfer window opens.
Removing the spring transfer portal window could also hasten the return of traditional spring football games on some campuses. Nebraska coach Matt Rhule said the spring transfer window was a reason why Nebraska changed its spring game format in 2025.