Back in 1981, Video Killed the Radio Star was the very first music video ever played on MTV. It represented a big change in the way media was absorbed and signaled a huge shift in the music industry.
The transfer portal has done the same to college football regarding how teams acquire players. Even Mr. FishDuck had to take a break from his fun at top-rated offshore gambling websites to weigh in on this with me.
Oregon recently landed, and then lost 5-Star Edge Rusher Richard Wesley. In the pre-transfer portal days, this would have set off a firestorm of excitement in the Oregon football community. Fans would be madly exchanging texts with all of their Duck buddies in elation over landing a stud recruit. Not just any recruit, but a coveted defensive lineman who would usually only go to an SEC school or Ohio State.
But nowadays, the reaction is initial jubilation, followed by contentment, followed by a few moments of pondering, which quickly devolves into a shrugging of the shoulders and a barely audible mumbling to oneself, “meh.”
At least, that is how it was for me, anyway.
Do not get me wrong, I want the Ducks to tear it up on the recruiting trail. But with the advent of the transfer portal, the once glamorous achievement of landing blue-chip recruits has lost much of its luster. The whole risk/reward paradigm is lessened.
I find myself asking: Would he have transferred away in a year or two anyway? Or would the Ducks have kicked him to the curb at some point? If he stayed, could have competed with the studs the Ducks land in the portal? Etc., etc., etc….
It used to be so fun landing a player other teams coveted. “Ha! We got something you wanted!”
But now, if you get something somebody else wants, they might get that player in no time. (Like Wesley) So, there’s no rubbing it in the face of other teams. UCLA snagged Dante Moore away from the Ducks in 2023, and in 2025 Oregon’s starting quarterback is…
See what I mean?
Remember 15 years ago when at the last minute the Ducks stole De’Anthony Thomas away from USC? It was a glorious “get” by the Ducks and represented a shifting of power from USC to Oregon. Today, it would be nice but no big deal. If the portal was around back then there’s probably a good chance Thomas, an LA native, would have transferred to USC at some point to play for his hometown team.
It used to be “recruit, recruit, recruit.” Now it is “recruit, portal, keep from leaving.”
“Keep from leaving,” that is, if they are any good.
Darren Perkins
Spokane, WA
Top photo credit: Max Unkrich
Andrew Mueller, the FishDuck.com Volunteer Editor for this article, works in higher education in Chicago, Illinois.
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Darren Perkins is a sales professional and 1997 Oregon graduate. After finishing school, he escaped the rain and moved to sunny Southern California where he studied screenwriting for two years at UCLA. Darren grew up in Eugene and in 1980, at the tender age of five, he attended his first Oregon football game. His lasting memory from that experience was an enthusiastic Don Essig announcing to the crowd: “Reggie Ogburn, completes a pass to… Reggie Ogburn.” Captivated by such a thrilling play, Darren’s been hooked on Oregon football ever since. Currently living in Spokane, Darren enjoys flaunting his yellow and green superiority complex over friends and family in Cougar country.