February 18, 2025
By Chip Patterson, CBS Sports: Once Ohio State and Notre Dame had won their semifinal matchups in the College Football Playoff, there were plenty of pointed observations about the matchup and what it might have said about the sport in the modern era. But to get caught up in conversations of conference strength and what leagues may or may not have been as represented is to miss another unique thread that tied Ohio State and Notre Dame to each other in opposition from many of the other powers in college football.
While modern transfer rules and NIL have created more roster fluidity than the sport has ever seen, the two teams that played for the national championship did not — especially in comparison to their peers — build their roster through the transfer portal. That might catch some by surprise since the Buckeyes had a high-profile transfer at quarterback (Will Howard), running back (Quinshon Judkins) and safety (Caleb Downs), while Notre Dame had former Duke star Riley Leonard under center along with multiple other starters from the portal. But in terms of transfer volume, Ohio State and Notre Dame are on the lower end of power-conference teams competing at the highest levels.
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