Lane Kiffin has leaned into the NCAA Transfer Portal, selectively fortifying his Ole Miss roster with key additions -- from Southeastern Conference rivals and programs throughout college football.
It's the backdrop of the unprecedented success Ole Miss has had on the gridiron in each of the past two seasons under Kiffin, and it's similarly part of why Ole Miss brass has worked to secure Kiffin long term with an extended contract.
247Sports tabbed the 2024 Ole Miss transfer portal class, a 15-man haul, as the best in college football. The Rebels landed players from three of the four College Football Playoff participants last season: Alabama, Michigan, Washington.
But Kiffin, who wears many labels and might have self-ascribed the 'Portal King' moniker, is no hypocrite.
So, while he readily acknowledges his Rebels roster is replete with Portal additions, Kiffin doesn't ignore a system that, well, to quote Ron White has "run amok."
Look no further than talented offensive tackle Kadyn Proctor, the 2023 Freshman All-America who started every game for Alabama in Nick Saban's final year.
Saban retired, Proctor transferred to Iowa, received from NIL compensation in the process, and has now been widely reported to have planned his return to Alabama, which several sources also have indicated to FootballScoop.
"Obviously, because (student-athletes) can transfer multiple times and, I mean here again, just a really stupid system, but hey, good for the players -- maybe," Kiffin said Tuesday after an Ole Miss spring practice session. "I mean it’s good for them financially.
"I don’t know that it’s really good for them that they can leave anytime and whenever something goes wrong [decide], '‘I’m just going to run no matter what.'”
Kiffin did not specifically mention Proctor, but he left little doubt who he referenced in additional comments.
"Maybe it just happened with a high-profile player [who might have decided] 'I'm going to go somewhere in January. I'm going to get their money. I'm going to have never played a down as a transfer, and I'm going to go back in right after spring ball into the portal and go somewhere else and get their money,'" Kiffin posed. "So, I mean, you can say yeah, good for the players, but is it?"
Kiffin believes there's an opportunity to strike balance in the system but also not preclude a player from transferring -- after a full year at an institution.
Multiple personnel sources throughout college football told FootballScoop in recent weeks that discussions are underway to have players who commit to a program from the NCAA Transfer Portal sign binding paperwork for at least one year.
"I brought (having a binding agreement) up in meetings when they first went down this second (Portal calendar opening)," Kiffin told reporters. "I’m like, ‘You better make something where they've got to sign for a year’ so all these portal players that after last season go in, at least they’re signed for one year. Not one semester without playing in the offseason.
"Would that happen in the NFL? Go sign in the offseason, get a contract, get paid and before you ever play go somewhere else. I have these rants on this thing, but because it’s really a (crappy) system. We’re going to utilize it just like the players. I’m not mad at the players, they’re going to utilize it. We’re going to make the best roster that we can, but it’s not good.”
The NCAA has stipulated that the next portal window for FBS football will open Tuesday, April 16 and remain open for two weeks.