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Kirby Smart Says Most Important Item In College Football Isn’t NIL Or Settlement

DESTIN, Fla. – There’s a new voice that has taken over for Nick Saban in these spring meetings that take place every year in Florida, and it’s Georgia head coach Kirby Smart.  While there are plenty of coaches who can control a room, like Saban did during his time in the SEC, it’s become abundantly […]

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DESTIN, Fla. – There’s a new voice that has taken over for Nick Saban in these spring meetings that take place every year in Florida, and it’s Georgia head coach Kirby Smart. 

While there are plenty of coaches who can control a room, like Saban did during his time in the SEC, it’s become abundantly clear that Kirby feels much more comfortable talking about the key issues that are plaguing the sport of college football. 

And sure, there are plenty of voices to go around, but being the tenured head coach of a conference as big as the SEC, the need for one guy to be the voice was up for grabs the day Nick Saban announced his retirement. Now, with all the talk being centered around how much money a player will be making, or how college athletics is headed for massive change if the House settlement is approved, Smart is pointing his attention towards another hot-button issue. 

If you’ve been living under a rock for the past few years, you have missed a lot when it comes to how long players are sticking around at one school. And, it’s not just about an athlete chasing a paycheck with the current NIL system. There is a contentious conversation ongoing inside meeting rooms across the country about how college leaders can control the transfer portal. 

For Kirby Smart, this is the biggest issue in college athletics that is not being talked about enough in his eyes. To be honest, I tend to agree with Kirby Smart, though there are plenty of subjects that have college administrators scrambling towards the July 1 deadline of when these new rules under the House settlement would begin. 

But, speaking inside the Hilton theater room on Tuesday, there was a sense of urgency in the voice of Kirby Smart while discussing what he thought was the biggest problem in college athletics, with so many coaches having differing opinions. 

“I am so glad you asked that question,” Kirby Smart started. “The biggest decision that has to be made in college football right now, by far, is when the portal window is, and is there one or two. That’s not being decided by us today. A lot of people don’t even know how it’s getting decided, and who’s deciding it. We had an AFCA (coaches) meeting … we unanimously decided there needed to be one portal window, whatever that is, is what it is. It needs to happen sometime in January.”

“I think it’s really important in football to have your team your team at whatever date in January, whatever we decide that is, and then you work those guys out,” he said. “You train those guys, you lift, you prepare, you do meetings and all this preparation, and then that’s your team.”

Transfer Portal Moves Need To Be Made. 9-Game SEC Schedule?

If there ever was a time when coaches needed to come together to decide on how to approach the rules committee, that time is right now. But, until there is a ‘College Sports Commission’, decisions about the portal will not be made, at least according to Texas A&M AD Trev Alberts. 

There are so many problems with the transfer portal currently, and keeping the two different windows is only leading to further chaos in the sport. 

Does Kirby Smart have a case for bringing it down to just one period? Sure he does. But, getting coaches across the country to agree on when that period should be is a different story. 

Everyone has an agenda, and moving the portal window to sometime in late spring would obviously cause further chaos at the moment. Now that players can leave during the spring, and some coaches are advocating for NFL-style workouts in the summer, it seems as though we are at an impasse. 

Oklahoma AD Joe Castiglione says a vote on a 9-game conference schedule this week would surprise him. The CFP format needs to be decided, but he makes it clear that the powers that be need to make the regular season a priority as they head towards an expanded playoff. 

“We’ll get the postseason figured out, but it’s paramount to make sure to keep the regular season relevant.”

This had more to do with fan engagement, while making sure not to diminish the regular season, which then affects the fans who are buying tickets. 

Obviously, there will be some type of change down the road. But, there are schools out there that load their rosters up during the spring in hopes of finding a hidden gem from the portal. But, the noise is starting to get louder when it comes to the transfer portal, and those that participate in the CFP are paying a price. 

In other news, most coaches speaking on Tuesday pointed out that it would be in the sport’s best interest if the college football playoff selected the best 16 teams in college football. So, if that were the case, how many would have made decisions based off seeding alone? That’s a rhetorical question, by the way. 

While we wait on the House settlement to be either approved or denied, Kirby Smart is making sure we know about the bigger problems in college athletics. Whether you agree with him is up to you. 

But, one thing we can agree on is that Kirby Smart is filling the shoes that Nick Saban once wore during these meetings, and is becoming a voice of reason for college athletics. 





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Nick Mingione Shares Process for Finding Right Transfer Portal Players

Finding the right players within the chaos of the transfer portal is the key to success in almost every college sports program. It has fueled Nick Mingione’s turnaround at Kentucky, where the baseball program appeared to be in a rut, only to be rejuvenated with unprecedented success over the past three seasons. Kentucky won back-to-back […]

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June 21, 2025

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Finding the right players within the chaos of the transfer portal is the key to success in almost every college sports program. It has fueled Nick Mingione’s turnaround at Kentucky, where the baseball program appeared to be in a rut, only to be rejuvenated with unprecedented success over the past three seasons.

Kentucky won back-to-back regional championships, culminating with a run to the 2024 College World Series. The Wildcats followed that up with an appearance in the 2025 Regional Championship, the first time the program has ever advanced to three straight NCAA Tournaments.

Advanced Metrics in the Transfer Portal

Kentucky is looking to build on that momentum this offseason by adding talented players from the transfer portal. It’s a vast space with over 5,000 players. The Bat Cats’ 2026 roster is not a finished product, but they currently have a top-five transfer portal class, according to 64Analytics. Mingione shared with BBN Tonight how his staff navigates the talent pool in the transfer portal.

“There is so much video. There’s also so much data that we can capture,” said Mingione. “We’ve created our own little system that we just plug in and crunch the numbers and see how these people do against all of these different things and metrics that we feel are important.”

Kentucky isn’t just looking for players with a good batting average. They’re examining how well players hit the ball against the fastest pitches they faced and how well they hit against certain types of pitches. Additionally, they are just looking at the highlights. They want to see where mistakes were made and if they’re correctable.

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How Players Fit In at Kentucky

That’s just one part of the equation. You heard Mark Stoops talk about finding “the right fit.” Mingione wants players who fit the Kentucky baseball culture and are willing to buy in.

“We put a ton of stock into the phone conversations. It’s one thing to be able to watch the video, to be able to see that they meet the metrics, but are they who we are? Are they going to thrive in this environment? And do they value the things we value, like being a family? Are they committed to winning in all areas of life? Are they into the development piece? There’s so many levels to this, so we put a lot of stock into phone calls. If things go well, then the background checks.”

This isn’t a background check where they run a name through a system. Mingione and his staff are calling coaches and scouts who have been around these players to get a feel for how they are in the clubhouse.

“It takes a lot of phone calls, because it’s one thing to figure out what someone can do skill-wise, but it’s hard to find out what’s in their heart. How do we find that? That’s where I feel like we’ve done a good job of not only having talented players, but the right players,” said the Kentucky baseball coach.

Kentucky Baseball 2026 Transfer Class



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Mississippi State baseball lands South Carolina pitcher Tyler Pitzer in transfer portal

STARKVILLE — Mississippi State baseball landed a pitcher from an SEC school in the transfer portal on June 21. Tyler Pitzer, a sophomore from South Carolina, committed to the Bulldogs. He announced the news with a post on X. “Thank you to the University of South Carolina for the past 2 years,” he wrote in […]

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June 21, 2025

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Mississippi State baseball lands South Carolina pitcher Tyler Pitzer in transfer portal


STARKVILLE — Mississippi State baseball landed a pitcher from an SEC school in the transfer portal on June 21.

Tyler Pitzer, a sophomore from South Carolina, committed to the Bulldogs. He announced the news with a post on X.

“Thank you to the University of South Carolina for the past 2 years,” he wrote in the post. “With that being said, I will be committing to Mississippi State University. Go Bulldogs.”

Pitzer, a right-handed pitcher from McDonald, Pennsylvania, had a 6.99 ERA in 19 appearances and two starts this season. However, 10 of his 22 earned runs came in 1.1 innings against Auburn on May 8, his last appearance of the season. The Gamecocks lost that game 24-2.

His two starts came in midweek games against Presbyterian and USC Upstate where Pitzer combined for three shutout innings.

As a freshman, Pitzer recorded a 4.74 ERA in 19 appearances and six starts. He holds an 8-1 record as a college pitcher and is not eligible for July’s MLB draft.

He did not pitch in any of the three games against Mississippi State this season.

Pitzer is the 10th player to commit to the Bulldogs and new coach Brian O’Connor in the transfer portal. He joins pitchers Tomas Valincius (Virginia), Maddox Webb (The Citadel) and Jackson Logar (James Madison). MSU also flipped freshman Jack Bauer from Virginia, but he’s ranked as the No. 37 prospect in the 2025 MLB draft, so he’s not guaranteed to join the team.

The transfer portal opened on June 2 and closes on July 1.

Sam Sklar is the Mississippi State beat reporter for the Clarion Ledger. Email him at ssklar@gannett.com and follow him on X @sklarsam_.

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Urban Meyer believes the death sentence in college football no longer serves a purpose

The death penalty in college athletics refers to the NCAA’s power to ban a school from a specific sport for one or more years. There have been multiple instances of this occurring throughout the NCAA’s history. In 1952, the Kentucky men’s basketball team was handed down the death penalty for allegedly shaving points. Southwestern Louisiana […]

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June 21, 2025

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The death penalty in college athletics refers to the NCAA’s power to ban a school from a specific sport for one or more years. There have been multiple instances of this occurring throughout the NCAA’s history.

In 1952, the Kentucky men’s basketball team was handed down the death penalty for allegedly shaving points. Southwestern Louisiana was slapped with it in 1973. While several other instances have taking place over the years, the death penalty is most often connected to SMU‘s football program and how in 1987 the program was found out to have been paying its players.

Decades later, institutes may now pay their athletes directly and outside NIL earnings can help compensate them even further. With this in mind, former college football coach Urban Meyer explained the death penalty would be hard to impose within the current state of college athletics.

“No, not with the litigation, the amount of money that’s — think about the 70s. Now, you didn’t litigate back then,” Meyer said. “I don’t believe you did. Once again, I’m not an expert. I wasn’t around much, certainly not to the level of now. Back in the 70s, I mean, team could barely, you didn’t have a training table. Now, you’re talking about NIL and budgets and coaches making millions of dollars, players making money. So it was a much different animal back then.”

While Meyer believes it is much more difficult for imposing a death penalty in the modern age, it’s not impossible. Over 70 years later, the 1952 UK basketball team’s point shaving scandal is still worthy of such a punishment. With gambling becoming a commonplace among sports fans in recent years, there have been several instances of college and professional athletes getting suspended, dismissed or released due to their ties to gambling.

So far, there has been one instance of the death penalty being handed down to a school in the NIL era. In 2024, Notre Dame suspended its men’s swimming team for the entire athletic year for allegedly placing wagers among themselves regarding the results from their competitions. Athletes only bet in-house and only during their swimming meets. In addition, a group chat containing derogatory messages saw members fail to “treat one another with dignity and respect.”

There has been speculation that college athletics may move away from the NCAA in favor of adopting a governing body more equipped to handle its current landscape. What that means for the death penalty in college athletics, just like almost everything else in the ever-changing industry, remains to be seen.



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NIL Gold Rush? College-Style Revenue Sharing and Direct Payments Are Still Off Limits for High School Athletes

Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) rights for athletes are on the rise and have forever blurred the lines between amateurism and professionalism in sports. What began as a fight to compensate college athletes for their contributions to the enormous revenues their schools and conferences were generating from massive media rights and sponsorship deals, merchandise sales […]

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June 21, 2025

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Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) rights for athletes are on the rise and have forever blurred the lines between amateurism and professionalism in sports.

What began as a fight to compensate college athletes for their contributions to the enormous revenues their schools and conferences were generating from massive media rights and sponsorship deals, merchandise sales and licensing agreements, and sold out venues, has evolved into direct payments to athletes, fueled by all-out bidding wars for recruits and transfers who enjoy virtual and perpetual free agency.

How NIL will be administered on the college level has been resolved, at least for now, following the final approval of a settlement, earlier this month, between the NCAA and lawyers representing members of three different class action lawsuits. The settlement allows schools to share as much as $20.5 million of their revenue with athletes and offer unlimited scholarships. It even set aside $2.8 billion to compensate eligible former college athletes, who did not have the benefit of NIL during their days as a student-athlete.

NIL rights have not stopped at the college level. The last four years have seen a steady movement towards NIL rights for high school athletes with 38 states and the District of Columbia establishing guidelines for high school athletes to benefit financially from their name, image and likeness. Four states – Indiana, Michigan, Montana and Ohio – are actively considering adopting similar guidelines, while only seven states prohibit NIL deals on the high school level.

Those states include Alabama, Hawaii, South Carolina, Texas, West Virginia, Wisconsin and Wyoming. Texas, however, recently enacted legislation that would allow high school athletes as young as 17 to sign NIL deals with colleges recruiting their services, but those benefits cannot begin until after the athlete completes his/her high school career.

Some envision a day when financial rights, similar to those granted in the NCAA settlement, will reach the high school level.

Former California high school athlete Dominik Calhoun — now at Boise State — filed a federal class-action lawsuit (Calhoun v. CIF) in Northern California, late last month. He alleges that the California Interscholastic Federation and several media companies, including SBLive Sports, have unlawfully restricted high school athletes from profiting off their name, image, and likeness. The lawsuit claims CIF’s policies violate antitrust laws by barring athletes from receiving compensation tied to broadcast rights, sponsorships, and ticket sales. It also challenges CIF’s transfer rules, which limit athlete mobility and earning potential.

One could never say never in the realm of sports and money, but it is unlikely high school athletes will ever receive the same NIL rewards of their college counterparts. For sure, some prep stars have inked endorsement deals for themselves but not one state has yet come close to allowing student-athletes to be paid directly by high schools or even be compensated for agreeing to attend a specific school.

In a recent article for the National Law Review, Professor Robert J. Romano, JD, LL.M explained some of the restrictions that are generally part of guidelines in every state where NIL benefits for high school athletes are allowed.

“With no national standards regarding NIL, most of the states that do allow for monetization rest upon their high school athletics governing bodies to formulate any and all rules and regulations,” wrote Professor Romano, who is an Associate Professor in the Division of Legal Studies at St. John’s University, where he has taught courses in Sport Law, Sport History, Current Topics in Sport, and Public Policy Issues in the Sport Industry.. “This leads to a variation of standards between states, but there are a few key restrictions present in most of these rules that high school athletes should be aware of.”

Romano cited the following points as being most common:

“In those states where NIL opportunities are allowed, high school athletes have a chance for a significant financial windfall,” added Romano, who played college football at Springfield College and, as a contract attorney, has negotiated employment contracts, public appearances, endorsement and sponsorship agreements for U.S. and international coaches, professional athletes, entertainers, broadcasters, and front office personnel. “However, athletes, their parents, and those advising them must ensure that any NIL agreement is in accordance with the applicable rules of their state, since non-compliance could lead to loss of eligibility to participate in athletic competition, which will certainly jeopardize any future athletic and financial opportunities.”



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Kentucky baseball adds another high-profile transfer prospect

Nick Mingione has landed another high-profile prospect out of the transfer portal. On Thursday afternoon, On3’s Pete Nakos reported USC Upstate transfer outfielder Scott Campbell has committed to play for the Bat Cats. Campbell, who was named First-Team Big South in 2025, becomes the 10th portal addition — and third position player — for Kentucky […]

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June 21, 2025

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Nick Mingione has landed another high-profile prospect out of the transfer portal.

On Thursday afternoon, On3’s Pete Nakos reported USC Upstate transfer outfielder Scott Campbell has committed to play for the Bat Cats. Campbell, who was named First-Team Big South in 2025, becomes the 10th portal addition — and third position player — for Kentucky so far this offseason as Mingione reloads his roster ahead of the 2026 campaign.

“I think Kentucky plays a very gritty, fast-paced style of baseball,” Campbell told Derek Terry of Bat Cats Central. “They like guys that can do it all, whether that’s speed, defense, little bit of power, but that’s right up my alley. I think it gives me the best opportunity to not only fit in a program, but a program and coaching staff that kinda fits to what I need to be coached to.”

Campbell began his post-high school career at Chattanooga State Community College (2022-23) before moving to Charleston Southern in 2024 and then USC Upstate in 2025. The Macon, GA native started 45 games for the Spartans this past season, hitting for a .388 batting average with 11 doubles, 11 home runs, 54 RBI, a .622 SLG%, and a .498 OBP%.

Campbell is familiar with the Wildcats, having faced Kentucky during USC Upstate’s two-game run in the 2025 Clemson Regional earlier this month. He hit just 1-8 across his pair of NCAA tournament games, but the lone hit did come against UK in USC Upstate’s season-ending 7-3 loss. Campbell will have one year of college eligibility remaining.

Kentucky baseball’s 2026 transfer class

Despite losing 14 players to the portal from last season’s team (only one being ranked among 64Analytics’ top 250 transfers), Mingione is bringing in a 13-man high school class and still returns a key group of core pieces from 2025, headlined by Freshman All-American Tyler Bell. The likes of RF Ryan Schwartz, RHP Nate Harris, and LHP Ben Cleaver will also come back to Lexington for next season. Several more Wildcats, such as 2B Luke Lawrence and OF Carson Hansen, are eligible for the 2025 MLB Draft but can return for another college season.

Join KSR Plus! With a KSR Plus membership, you get access to bonus content and KSBoard, KSR’s message board, to chat with fellow Cats fans and get exclusive scoop.



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Olympic Gold Medalist Ahmed Hafnaoui Transfers To Florida, Returning To College Swimming

Ahmed Hafnaoui, the 2020 Olympic gold medalist in the 400 freestyle, is set to return to collegiate swimming. The 22-year-old, who entered the transfer portal in early December, confirmed to SwimSwam early this morning that he will transfer from Indiana to Florida and hopes to begin competing next season. Hafnaoui shared that he chose Florida […]

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Olympic Gold Medalist Ahmed Hafnaoui Transfers To Florida, Returning To College Swimming

Ahmed Hafnaoui, the 2020 Olympic gold medalist in the 400 freestyle, is set to return to collegiate swimming. The 22-year-old, who entered the transfer portal in early December, confirmed to SwimSwam early this morning that he will transfer from Indiana to Florida and hopes to begin competing next season.

Hafnaoui shared that he chose Florida because “they hold both world records in the men’s and women’s distance events,” referring to Katie Ledecky, who holds the women’s 800 and 1500 world records, and Bobby Finke, who holds the men’s 1500 standard.

The future Gator is in the midst of serving a 21-month suspension for an anti-doping violation issued by the International Testing Agency (ITA). The suspension is effective from April 11, 2024, until January 10, 2026, and stems from missing three out-of-competition drug tests within a 12-month period.

Sources told SwimSwam last December that two of the missed tests occurred while Hafnaoui was training in the United States, and the third after he returned to Tunisia due to visa complications.

Because the NCAA is not a signatory to the World Anti-Doping Code, it follows its own testing policies and is not necessarily bound by suspensions issued by the ITA or World Aquatics. In the past, athletes suspended by international bodies have been allowed to continue competing at the collegiate level. However, NCAA coaches who are also USA Swimming members face restrictions on working with suspended athletes, which could present administrative challenges.

Hafnaoui’s Best Times:

  • 200 SCY free: 1:38.69
  • 500 SCY free: 4:18.62
  • 1000 SCY free: 8:55.74
  • 400 LCM free: 3:40.70
  • 800 LCM free: 7:37.00
  • 1500 LCM free: 14:31.54

Hafnaoui swam part of the 2023-24 season at Indiana, after sitting out the 2022-2023 season due to eligibility issues, but he only competed in two meets in October for the Hoosiers before moving to California to train with The Swim Team (TST) and Mark Schubert. He ended up going back to Tunisia due to visa issues and went on to compete at the World Championships in February of last year.

At those Worlds in Doha, he didn’t final in any of his events, placing 17th in the 400 and 1500 and 18th in the 800.

Hafnaoui also swam the 400, 800, and 1500 at the 2023 World Championships in Fukuoka in July, where he won world titles in the 800 and 1500 while training with Indiana. His performances at that meet, reflected in his best times listed above, rank him third all-time in the 800 and 1500 and sixth all-time in the 400.

He said he decided not to compete at the 2024 Olympic Games due to his disappointing performance in Qatar and ongoing struggles with an undisclosed injury.

Between February and December of last year, before being handed the suspension, Hafnaoui began training under the guidance of Phillipe Lucas’ storied distance squad in France, where Lucas also coaches rising stars Ahmed Jaouadi and Rami Rahmouni. Hafnaoui told SwimSwam that he is currently training alone at a public pool in Tunisia.

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