On Wednesday, the NCAA officially eliminated the spring transfer portal window in college football. Earlier this month, the NCAA Football Oversight Committee voted to eliminate the dual-transfer window system. However, the change had to be approved by the NCAA Division I Administration Committee. While there will only be one window moving forward, it’s unclear when that window will be. The Division I Football Oversight Committee initially recommended a 10-day portal between Jan. 2 and Jan. 11. Said Nebraska Head Coach Matt Rhule, "“It needed to go to one,” Rhule said, “You would negotiate with a player — and all power to the players — but you would negotiate with a player in December/January, and then have to renegotiate three months later when you haven’t done anything. That doesn’t happen in the NFL. It should be once a year, you make a decision, and then you play that year out."

This article comes from a friend of mine, Rick Allen, who offers a pay-for-service for guidance on all things related to NCAA student-athlete compliance. (check it out @ Informed Athlete) _ _ _ _ _ I thought it might be helpful if I share with you a review of the other redshirt rules that apply for Fall sports at the various college levels: NCAA Division I sports other than Football and Wrestling An athlete who enters a regular season contest (at the varsity or JV level) during the season in their Fall sport, even if only for one or two minutes or for one or two plays, will be using one of their four seasons of competitive eligibility. There is an exception for all Fall sports for participation in preseason scrimmages or exhibitions, BUT how such scrimmages or exhibitions are counted can vary from one sport to another. For that reason, it is best to communicate with the NCAA compliance director at your university to inquire whether appearing in an exhibition contest or preseason scrimmage for your team will count as using one of your four seasons of competition. NCAA Division I Football Any athlete on a Division I football team can compete in up to four games without being charged with a season of competition. NCAA Division I Wrestling A freshman athlete on a Division I wrestling team can compete in up to five dates of competition (other than a season-ending championship event at the conference or national level) without being charged with a season of competition. NCAA Division II Sports An athlete other than a true freshman who enters a regular season contest (at the varsity or JV level) during the season in their Fall sport, even if only for one or two minutes or for one or two plays, will be using one of their four seasons of competitive eligibility. Freshman athletes at a D2 university may compete in up to 30 percent of the games or dates of competition in their sport without being charged with a season of competition.

Many of you "earned" your starting spot back in 5th grade. You were the only one on the team who could kick. The job most likely has been yours your entire football career. But kicking in college... which I believe ALL of you could accomplish — will require you to truly earn the starting job. It might be as a kickoff specialist, or just short field goals, perhaps as the punter? Maybe even the guy who's the backup to everyone. Strange things happen throughout the course of the season, much less an entire collegiate career. This Fall, I'm the "special" Special Teams Coach at Wisconsin Lutheran College in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. (I'm helping train kickers, punters, snappers and coaches). And this is Devon Loehr, a freshman from Texas who's competing with a senior kicker who started last season. It's non-scholarship D3 football. Devon can kickoff into the end zone (65+) and made a 52 yd. FG with room to spare in practice last week (with the full team). He's a good kicker. So is the senior. They are competing and the first game of the season is this Saturday. Will Devon be our starter? If he is, he'll have earned it. If he isn't, he gets to continue to battle next week and throughout the entire season. What should he do either way? Stay positive. Learn what your strengths and weaknesses are. Keep working on the process of improvement. Be a good teammate — help those you are competing with — as well as being active with the entire team and coaching staff. It's a mindset that says, "I can't control what the coaching staff thinks about my ability, but I WILL CONTINUE TO IMPROVE, and trust that it'll be good enough." And when your name DOES gets called to kick — take a deep breath, relax and let the tension you feel inside energize you to think, "this is why I've worked so hard to get here... I'll make the most of it!" Drop your fear and become "excited" for the opportunity — BECAUSE IT IS EXCITING! Love it! ❤️ 🏈

Take a closer look at this extra point in a recent NFL game. Seems normal enough, right? Huh??

For the past few years, MEGA camps have come into the forefront because it allows DI, II & III coaches to effectively watch (and recruit) kids who come to showcase their talents. Mega camps are NOT skills camps. They are "I want college coaches to see me and ask me to play for their team" camps. It's all merit based. I have been asked by Coach Matt Walker to run the kicking portion of a camp at UW-River Falls that attracted more than 1,000 kids last year. This year will be bigger. Linemen in the morning, specialists midday and skilled positions in the afternoon. The coaches actually watch the specialists (in many camps like this, they skip it). If you are a high school kicker, punter or snapper, and you can make the trip to River Falls, Wisconsin — and you've wondered the best way to attract interest — this is your opportunity! Cost is $125 > HERE'S THE LINK TO SIGN UP