Signed by Bobby Bowden in 1987, incoming quarterbacks Brad Johnson and Casey Weldon knew they’d have the chance to “be the guy” at Florida State by their junior or senior seasons. Backup quarterbacks in Bowden’s system had opportunities to watch, learn and wait their turn prior to competing for the starter’s role. “Casey and I […]
Signed by Bobby Bowden in 1987, incoming quarterbacks Brad Johnson and Casey Weldon knew they’d have the chance to “be the guy” at Florida State by their junior or senior seasons.
Backup quarterbacks in Bowden’s system had opportunities to watch, learn and wait their turn prior to competing for the starter’s role.
“Casey and I asked to be redshirted,” Johnson recalled.
“What do you do now? You may sign with a team and they will bring in a portal kid on top of you. Back then, you had to earn your way to the top (depth chart). And you couldn’t just transfer out. I think there’s way more transition now.”
College football’s landscape, of course, has changed dramatically since Johnson signed with the Seminoles 37 years ago. Johnson, who won a Super Bowl with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, has also experienced the adjustments from the outside looking in as a parent of two sons at North Carolina. The Tar Heels recently fired coach Mack Brown.
Building immediate and future rosters for coaches across the country started last week with the Early Signing Period for high school and junior-college recruits. FSU coach Mike Norvell signed 20 players and has the nation’s 20th-ranked class after the Seminoles opened the three-day period in the high 50s, according to 247Sports.
Norvell, players and parents can’t exhale, however. It was more closure than celebration.
Now the attention turns to the NCAA winter transfer portal that opens for 20 days starting Monday.
College players can can explore potential moves in the transfer portal
The transfer portal gives current college players time to seek out new opportunities without sitting out a year – sometimes to the highest bidder, thanks to Name, Image and Likeness (NIL). NIL rights give players the chance to earn money from endorsements and sponsorships.
When Bobby Butler signed with FSU out of Delray Beach during his senior year in 1977, there wasn’t an early signing period (instituted in 2017), transfer portal (2018) and NIL (2021). Neither Butler nor the school hosted a news conference to celebrate and discuss Butler’s signing.
“My Dad worked at IBM in the manufacturing department, so coach Steve Hardin (FSU graduate assistant) and I went there to take a photograph with my Dad. That was it,” Butler said and laughed. “Honestly, I would have been too embarrassed to do what they do now (ceremonies).”Even though Butler also experienced new-age recruiting with his sons – Brice played several seasons in the NFL and Brenton played professional basketball in Europe after college – he’s not fond of the changes.”When I committed to Florida State, that’s where I wanted to play and my heart was there,” said Butler, who resides in Atlanta and will soon earn his Master of Ministry. “And thank God we didn’t have a portal back then because Jack Stanton (FSU assistant) wouldn’t have had any players,” he added and laughed. “I just have a hard time with everything going on in the game today.”The game is getting wicked.”‘Money talks, money plays:’ NIL opportunities can provide big money
Receiver Herb Gainer signed with FSU in 1983 out of Sarasota, selecting the Seminoles over Ohio State. Gainer, a longtime Tallahassee resident, has also experienced the vastly different recruiting worlds. His son Amari, now with the Las Vegas Raiders, signed and played with the Seminoles from 2018-2022 out of Chiles High and finished his last season of eligibility at North Carolina.
“It’s kind of a blessing and a curse,” Gainer said, pointing to new opportunities for players and the challenges of learning how to manage money related to NIL. Gainer added with a laugh “I had a little NIL money, too, back then (but not from FSU). It’s just that the price has gone way up.”
Gainer is especially fearful current players are not being educated properly on how to manage earnings, understand contracts, and identify long-term planning. Gainer said it’s vital for players to avoid pitfalls related to this era’s unprecedented financial landscape.
“You have to be careful because it’s so short-lived,” Gainer said. “They start making big purchases and won’t be able to sustain it. We haven’t seen the consequences of not being able to manage that (NIL) money. We’ve just seen them getting the money. We won’t see some of the results three, four or five years down the line.
“This can be opening a whole new set of problems.”
At the moment, however, coaches and teams like Norvell and the Seminoles are focused on the moment and roster management with help from the portal and NIL.
“I think it’s way harder (to navigate) and I don’t think there’s anything fun about it,” said Johnson, who resides in Athens, Georgia. “You used to build relationships. … now coaches have to deal with handlers, agents, collectives. And if you are on a team where this player makes more money than this one, that could be a problem.
“Money talks, money plays.”
