The Transfer Portal Problem

[PagePirates44]

Many people have been saying it for years and many are now starting to see it because its been a solid 4-5 years now that its been happening. The 4A playoffs are starting to get very boring and its because its so so top heavy and predictable. Some rules need to be put into place from a state level that is for all school boards/districts. Something has to give, its killing the competitiveness of our sport. NIL will be the final nail in the coffin. Let kids be kids.

 

[fitguync30]

Many people have been saying it for years and many are now starting to see it because its been a solid 4-5 years now that its been happening. The 4A playoffs are starting to get very boring and its because its so so top heavy and predictable. Some rules need to be put into place from a state level that is for all school boards/districts. Something has to give, its killing the competitiveness of our sport. NIL will be the final nail in the coffin. Let kids be kids.

Mainly, I agree with you. Transferring and open enrollment needs to stop. Open enrollment in Forsyth County needs to stop. What has happened to Carver HS football since the early 2000s is a travesty. Pretty much all due to open enrollment and kids wanting to go to Walkertown or East Forsyth. I have said it 100 times and I will say it again. It is 2024 and social media rules the day. If you are a very good player at W. or S. Guilford and your team is lousy, college recruiters will still find you and woo you. Play at the school that is in your district. If they are not good, then work hard, hit the weight room and do all you can to make them better. Of course, I realize there can be exceptions. Take Garinger HS in Charlotte. Just an awful, awful football program that doesn't seem to have much interest in getting better. If the school, administration and coaches don't want to put in the effort to get better, I can sort of see why a talented football player at Garinger may want to go to another school. Facilities can also come in to play. Carver HS in Winston has been around forever and is old. Atkins and Walkertown are newer, nicer, more modern schools. It is understandable why some kids would want to go to a shinier more modern HS as opposed to a place like Carver. PagePirates44, I know you have mentioned how Grimsley was just a ho hum program for the most part before their current dominant run. I wonder how much of that is due to transfers and kids that should have played at other schools?

 

[New3ra]

Mainly, I agree with you. Transferring and open enrollment needs to stop. Open enrollment in Forsyth County needs to stop. What has happened to Carver HS football since the early 2000s is a travesty. Pretty much all due to open enrollment and kids wanting to go to Walkertown or East Forsyth. I have said it 100 times and I will say it again. It is 2024 and social media rules the day. If you are a very good player at W. or S. Guilford and your team is lousy, college recruiters will still find you and woo you. Play at the school that is in your district. If they are not good, then work hard, hit the weight room and do all you can to make them better. Of course, I realize there can be exceptions. Take Garinger HS in Charlotte. Just an awful, awful football program that doesn't seem to have much interest in getting better. If the school, administration and coaches don't want to put in the effort to get better, I can sort of see why a talented football player at Garinger may want to go to another school. Facilities can also come in to play. Carver HS in Winston has been around forever and is old. Atkins and Walkertown are newer, nicer, more modern schools. It is understandable why some kids would want to go to a shinier more modern HS as opposed to a place like Carver. PagePirates44, I know you have mentioned how Grimsley was just a ho hum program for the most part before their current dominant run. I wonder how much of that is due to transfers and kids that should have played at other schools?

Page is back doing the same thing Grimsley is doing which is why they will be good again soon. Page did the same things prior to Grimsley being good. They fell off due to coaching changes so now we have to hear this this same stuff get repeated every year from fans of teams who aren’t title contenders at the moment. Transfers and recruiting has always happened in NC and it will not change, honestly it will only get worse.
I do think there should be a system put in place so that it’s even across the board. Either everyone has open enrollment or nobody should. You can’t stop transfers and people finding loop holes in the system though.

 

[PagePirates44]

Page is back doing the same thing Grimsley is doing which is why they will be good again soon. Page did the same things prior to Grimsley being good. They fell off due to coaching changes so now we have to hear this this same stuff get repeated every year from fans of teams who aren’t title contenders at the moment. Transfers and recruiting has always happened in NC and it will not change, honestly it will only get worse.

Yes, Transfers have always been a thing, but it used to be more spread out and random for different reasons. Now its just blatant and is concentrated and funneled to a handful of schools, this is not good for the health of HS ball.

The past week has been people talking about Weddington, Hough, Grimsley (and maybe East Forsyth) and no other games even matter. Is that how it should be? No, I don't think so. Anyone remember the DARK HORSE conversation? There was always a team or two who people thought had a outside chance to win it all. that conversation is DEAD.

Also, Page did not do the same thing prior to Grimsley being good. Gillespie did not run his program like that. There may have been some guys come over here and there, but it was not near the same level of volume of how its happening these days. Its apples to oranges.

 

[XOPlan57]

Many people have been saying it for years and many are now starting to see it because its been a solid 4-5 years now that its been happening. The 4A playoffs are starting to get very boring and its because its so so top heavy and predictable. Some rules need to be put into place from a state level that is for all school boards/districts. Something has to give, its killing the competitiveness of our sport. NIL will be the final nail in the coffin. Let kids be kids.

Looking at recent playoff results, it’s clear that certain programs have established such a stronghold that it feels like they're practically guaranteed a spot in the finals. This not only discourages teams from smaller districts but also impacts the overall development of young athletes who may feel that their hard work won’t be enough to compete. The essence of high school sports should be about teamwork, growth, and fair competition, not just a few elite programs pulling ahead financially and athletically.

 

[New3ra]

Yes, Transfers have always been a thing, but it used to be more spread out and random for different reasons. Now its just blatant and is concentrated and funneled to a handful of schools, this is not good for the health of HS ball.

The past week has been people talking about Weddington, Hough, Grimsley (and maybe East Forsyth) and no other games even matter. Is that how it should be? No, I don't think so. Anyone remember the DARK HORSE conversation? There was always a team or two who people thought had a outside chance to win it all. that conversation is DEAD.

Also, Page did not do the same thing prior to Grimsley being good. Gillespie did not run his program like that. There may have been some guys come over here and there, but it was not near the same level of volume of how its happening these days. Its apples to oranges.

When Page is competing for titles again soon I hope you keep this same energy.

 

[InfoMan25]

Main problem with the "transfer portal" is the lack of regulation. Either you can or can't do it, and there are coaches angry that Forsyth County can legally and no one else cannot legally.

I honestly feel like it should be open enrollment and once a school is full, you can't transfer there unless it meets a true hardship situation across the board. Rules are best enforced when there are less blurred lines, and right now lines are blurry as hell for the vast majority of the state.

 

[CPC4LIFE]

I like the transfer portal and there is no reason to do away with it.... kids should be able to pick the school that they would like to attend, East Forsyth has a lot of Walkertown players, it's like a farm team and they get noticed, more scouts at East Forsyth and it's "4A" ...the highest level of North Carolina HS football. Can't blame any kid who transfers.
West Forsyth has a lot of transfers too including there star QB. Everybody is on the same level of playing field. It's the same rules for all....if not, that's on the county you play in...change your county policy if your serious about football.

 

[InfoMan25]

I like the transfer portal and there is no reason to do away with it.... kids should be able to pick the school that they would like to attend, East Forsyth has a lot of Walkertown players, it's like a farm team and they get noticed, more scouts at East Forsyth and it's "4A" ...the highest level of North Carolina HS football. Can't blame any kid who transfers.
West Forsyth has a lot of transfers too including there star QB. Everybody is on the same level of playing field. It's the same rules for all....if not, that's on the county you play in...change your county policy if your serious about football.

It's not the same rules for everyone! Lol

 

[nepsy7]

Implement open enrollment across the state and keep it moving. They'll never be able to crack down fairly, across the State. Some areas are more aggressive about movement amongst kids, other have bigger fires to put out and don't care. There is definitely noteworthy treatment in Charlotte. They'll do home visits at school A in Charlotte, the school that has over 35% of their team that live out of school area. Business as usual. Just let kids go where they want to go and move on.

 

[PagePirates44]

Implement open enrollment across the state and keep it moving. They'll never be able to crack down fairly, across the State. Some areas are more aggressive about movement amongst kids, other have bigger fires to put out and don't care. There is definitely noteworthy treatment in Charlotte. They'll do home visits at school A in Charlotte, the school that has over 35% of their team that live out of school area. Business as usual. Just let kids go where they want to go and move on.

At the end of the day, it needs to be an even playing field. Some districts are very strict, and some are wide open.