Penn State University head coach James Franklin has said the NCAA needs to reform its transfer rules, saying the rules create an untenable situation where players have to decide to leave teams during the College Football Playoffs.
Franklin began his comments by lauding Pribula for being a “phenomenal teammate,” a “man’s man,” and a major factor in Penn State’s success this season. “Being a backup quarterback is not an easy thing to do, and he never approached it that way,” Franklin said. “[Pribula] had so much confidence in our team, based on how he went about his business and prepared like a starter, again, which is something we talk about all the time but is easier said than done.”
“But we’ve got problems in college football,” Franklin continued. “And I can give you my word; Beau Pribula did not want to leave our program and he did not want to leave our program until the end of the season. But the way the portal is and the timing of it and the way our team is playing; and when you play the position of quarterback and there’s only one spot and those spots are filling up, he felt like he was put in a no-win situation, and I agree with him.”
“Beau grew up wanting to come to Penn State his whole life,” he said of the York, Pennsylvania, native. “This is his dream school. And had a phenomenal career here. And I just want everybody to understand that, most importantly. Why have we created a system where this guy couldn’t finish this season with his team?”
The NCAA fall transfer windows were shortened from 30 days to 20. The 2024–25 transfer window opened on Dec. 9, shortly after the conference championships began; it will last until Dec. 28, which is before the quarterfinal matchups are even played.
Pribula played in 12 of 13 games for Penn State in relief of starting quarterback Drew Allar. He completed 26 of 35 passes for 275 yards and five touchdowns with one interception. He also rushed 38 times for 242 yards and four TDs. Franklin noted that Allar announced his intent to stay at Penn State on Monday, which contributed to Pribula’s decision to transfer out.
“Beau should not be put in this position,” Franklin added. “Whether we don’t play as many games during the season, whether we don’t play conference championship games, which could equal things out for teams not playing them anyway; finish this season so it aligns more with the academic calendar for most institutions because that’s part of this pressure as well. To have a transfer portal/free agency going on right in the middle of the playoffs, there’s just a lot of things that don’t really make sense.”
Franklin proposed a possible solution. “We need somebody running college football,” he said. “We need somebody that is not biased based on a conference and that is out of the financial impacts of it as well, because if you’re just making the decisions which are in the best interests of the student-athletes and college football, then I think you can do it. But if you’re biased by a specific conference or if you’re impacted by making all your decisions based on revenue and earnings, then we’re never going to get to a good place.
“So I’m concerned for college football right now, in general, to be honest with you. And I think a lot of people are.”
