College football transfer portal window, explained: What to know about new rules eliminating spring period

More changes are coming to the college football calendar.

Between recruiting, the transfer portal, the new-look College Football Playoff and more, there have been some sweeping changes made to the calendar in recent years, resulting some particularly busy windows for coaches. But as of Wednesday, the NCAA Division I Administration Committee reportedly approved some new dates and rules that may make things slightly less complicated.

According to On3, the spring transfer portal in college football is being eliminated, with the intention of having just one portal window for players to make moves to new squads.

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Here's what to know about the reported changes coming to college football's transfer portal.

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New college football transfer portal window, explained

Previously, there were two windows for a college football player to transfer: One was a 20-day period in December, and the other was a 10-day period in April. Those 30 days typically resulted in the biggest-name players being on the move in December, even if their teams were still in playoff contention, while there were fewer "star" players on the move in the spring.

Under the new reported changes, the spring window would be no longer, partially with the goal to have more team stability in the spring and less to worry about in that time frame.

The NCAA Division I Administration Committee reportedly approved the elimination of the spring transfer portal Wednesday and will be moving to a single transfer portal window. 

The new window's intention is to "allow schools to finish their season with their entire team before the transfer portal opens," per On3. 

Additionally, under the proposed changes, players on teams that are still playing in the postseason beyond Jan. 7 "may provide written transfer notification during a consecutive-five-day period beginning the day after their team's final postseason contest."

According to the NCAA, another part of the potential changes is making December a "recruiting dead period," meaning coaches cannot have "on- or off-campus recruiting contacts or evaluations" but are permitted to be in contact with recruits.

There have been both supporters and critics of a potential one-time portal, with the Big Ten being "the lone Power Four conference to not support the move," per On3.

Washington head coach Jedd Fisch recently spoke on why he's against a Jan. 2-11 portal, saying that it results in preparations for negotiations starting in December.

Washington #Huskies coach Jedd Fisch had a lot to say about the new transfer portal window, which will run from Jan. 2-11. Said it hurts quarter schools and speeds up the revenue share negotiations in a way the impacts teams’ postseason prep. pic.twitter.com/R0l3ClJ4Dc

— Aaron Coe (@Coe_Aaron) September 15, 2025

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When will the college football transfer portal be?

There has not yet been an official decision on when the new, lone college football transfer portal will be.

While the Division I Football Oversight Committee voted in September to approve a 10-day portal, that was not approved Wednesday, according to On3. It remains "undetermined" when the new one-time portal will be, but the current recommendation is for Jan. 2-11.

“In response to student-athlete feedback, football oversight committees will consider modifications to the proposed single January window, including the length of the window and corresponding dates,” the NCAA said in a statement, per On3.

Ross Dellenger also reported that a decision on the official timing of the new one-time portal is "expected within the month."

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Can players still transfer after a coach is fired?

There is another key distinction in the new transfer portal window rules: if a head coach is fired, players will still have a 30-day window to transfer regardless of the timing.

That means for teams like Virginia Tech and UCLA, which both fired their head coaches just a few weeks into the 2025 season, the calendar changes will not affect players' ability to transfer away in the immediate future.

— Pete Nakos (@PeteNakos_) September 14, 2025