The Colorado Buffaloes have seen 15 players exit their program in the transfer portal over the last two seasons. For a recruiter and player developer like coach Tad Boyle, that formula isn’t conducive to success with his coaching style.
When building a program, it’s difficult to build out long-term success as a player-developer when over half of your roster is abandoning ship after each season. While Boyle has never played the victim in this new system, he has desires for reform. In an exclusive interview, he shared his vision for the new era of college athletics and where Colorado lies within that mix.
How Building a Program Has Changed for Tad Boyle in NIL Era
When asked whether the NIL era or the transfer portal has changed his mindset around building Colorado’s program, Boyle turned down the notion. But he didn’t deny that the manner in which he is forced to build the program has.
“We haven’t changed our mindset. The marketplace has changed,” Boyle said. “You’ve got a budget that you have to deal with within the marketplace. For the first 28 years of my career, we had room and board, tuition fees and books. And that’s what everyone else had, unless they were cheating, and we know people were cheating. But the ones that weren’t, you were on a level playing field. Now, there is no level playing field.”
Tad Boyle on Marketplace of NIL, Transfer Portal
That new marketplace has arguably made college athletes like professional players. The NIL money they are paid has turned the transfer portal into a wild-west free agency period, and college basketball has been heavily impacted. For Boyle, this new marketplace has changed the way he evaluates which players he’ll be bringing in, as they all now carry monetary implications with them.
“Every decision you make, whether it’s with a high school kid or a transfer portal kid, it’s a value proposition,” Boyle said. “Money becomes involved with that decision. So that has been an adjustment, for sure, but it’s not one I’m afraid to make; it’s just that everybody’s got a budget.”
Tad Boyle’s Vision for Change in the NIL Era
Most people believe that this type of chaos isn’t sustainable, as there have already been a number of consequences that are sure to worsen over time. Boyle believes that one of the biggest problems with this landscape is the lack of transparency between programs, the NCAA and the fans.
“I wish the budgets were public and transparent,” Boyle said. “I think that would help everybody, but I’m obviously alone in that feeling. At least, I haven’t heard anybody else say that that’s what they want. From athletic directors to presidents, to the NCAA, conference commissioners, anybody.”
He has good reasons for these concerns, as the lack of transparency impacts the public perception of him and his players.
“I wish we had more transparency because that way, I could truly be judged and our players could truly be judged based upon what they’re getting paid,” Boyle said. “NIL is not used correctly. We’re paying these kids to play; that’s the bottom line. You can say what you want … but they’re getting paid to play. That’s okay. I just wish we’d come out and say it, get some rules around it and some transparency.”
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