Alabama football and its unique relationship with the transfer portal

Few have capitalized on the introduction of the NCAA transfer portal like Alabama football head coach Nick Saban. In the past two offseasons, Saban has utilized the portal to handpick impact players at positions of need, effectively plugging holes and reinforcing relative weaknesses on his already stacked roster.

Due to the culture of Alabama football under Coach Saban, the Crimson Tide also tend to lose a lot of players to the portal. Coach Saban builds his program on competition, stockpiling as much talent as possible at every position. These pieces then engage in heated competition, honing their skills and sharpening their proverbial swords. The cream rises to the top, the weak fall by the wayside, and the depth chart essentially constructs itself.

When a roster is made up almost entirely of blue chip talent, there simply aren’t enough available snaps to go around. Former 4-star and even 5-star recruits are forced to seek greener pastures when they are beat out by better players.

As a result, Alabama football typically sees an offseason exodus of transfers. This has always been the case under Coach Saban, and the emergence of the transfer portal has only accelerated the process of weeding out those that aren’t destined to finish their careers in Tuscaloosa.

Alabama Football: The new normal

Alabama lost over 20 players to the transfer portal this offseason, most of which were former 4-star recruits.

Alabama football fans should resist the urge to panic when this occurs. While it can be anxiety-inducing to watch so much talent leave the program without ever seeing its potential come to fruition, this comes with the territory of building a championship caliber roster.

Most of the time, these transfers are players who could not get on the field and never really worked out at Alabama. Rarely, they are high quality players who, understandably, were forced to transfer due to circumstance. This was the case for outside linebacker Drew Sanders, who found himself in an incredibly deep position group and relocated to Arkansas.

On occasion, Alabama will lose a player that is talented enough to contribute but did not mentally buy into the program. Blue chip pass catchers Agiye Hall and Jahleel Billingsley, now teammates at Texas, fall into this unfortunate category.

On the surface, these are two very skilled players leaving the Alabama program. But what is the net value of a talented athlete that is a detriment to the team’s culture?

I would point vexed Alabama fans to Billingsley’s lack of effort in the 2021 loss at Texas A&M, or Hall’s lack of preparation in the national championship game loss to Georgia. While Billingsley and Hall were far from being the sole reason Alabama lost these games, most would agree that the pair blew several opportunities to move the program forward and endear themselves to the fanbase.

When John Metchie and Jameson Williams were lost with serious injuries at the most critical juncture of the season, the chance to become an Alabama legend was on the table for the rest of the Tide’s receivers. None were able to capitalize, and Billingsley and Hall were the most glaring offenders largely due to their poor attitudes throughout their Alabama careers. It was hardly surprising when the two departed after the championship defeat.

Coach Nick Saban and Alabama football are once again lighting up the recruiting world in the 2023 cycle, continuing to stack nearly unprecedented classes on top of one another.

Do not be surprised when Alabama begins to see promising players transfer out of the program throughout and immediately following the 2022 season. There is no reason for hysteria; it is all a part of the championship process.