Rivals rankings director and national transfer portal analyst Adam Friedman is joined by Paul Strelow of TigerIllustrated.com, Dub Jellison of BoilerUpload.com and Justin Rowland of CatsIllustrated.com to tackle three topics and determine whether they believe each statement is FACT or FICTION.
RIVALS ROUNDTABLE: Big visits and even bigger games on deck for Week 2
MORE TRANSFER PORTAL: Latest news | Transfer search | Transfer Team Ranking | Football Player Ranking | Basketball Player Ranking
1. Regardless of how the rest of the season turns out, Dabo Swinney has to change his stance on using the transfer portal.
Friedman: FACT. This whole situation was pretty predictable. Clemson had obvious holes on its team at the end of last season and didn’t add any meaningful players, in the transfer portal or from the high school ranks, who could contribute right away. That meant the players already on Clemson’s roster would need to improve in a big way in the offseason. Clearly, that didn’t happen.
There is a long season still ahead and players certainly can get better during the year but Dabo Swinney and his coaching staff will need to take a hard look at their roster and adjust their roster building strategies accordingly.
Strelow: FICTION. How the rest of the season shakes out will have considerable bearing on the direction Clemson should take, at least subjectively.
The portal is a solution. It's not the solution. It lends a different avenue by which to get better and get better in a hurry. But taking transfer in and of itself offers zero guaranteed benefits other than changing the national narrative.
If Clemson would have landed one of the portal offensive linemen it went after this past offseason -- a fact that remains overlooked -- that doesn't change the Georgia outcome.
The Tigers have to get more from their quarterback position. They've got to play the young receivers in order to have a chance at more playmaking. And depth has to come from better recruiting in the back half of their classes, not via transfer filler.
Circumstances the rest of the way could lead the portal to be the only answer. But we don't know that yet.
2. After Hudson Card's impressive performance against Indiana State, Purdue fans should expect to make a bowl game this season
Friedman: FICTION. A 49-0 win and completing 96-percent of his passes is a heck of a way to start a season. Hudson Card, who transferred from Texas before last season, was the sixth-highest graded passer from week one according to PFF and, with a bye this week, he’s hoping to repeat that type of performance in week three when Notre Dame comes to town.
As for reaching the six-win mark and making a bowl game, Purdue still faces an uphill climb. A game at Oregon State follows the Notre Dame matchup and then the Boilermakers begin their Big Ten schedule. How many wins can Purdue find among opponents like Nebraska, Wisconsin, Illinois, Oregon, Northwestern, Ohio State, Penn State, Michigan State and Indiana? Card will have to shoulder the bulk of the weight if the Boilermakers are to make a bowl game this year.
Jellison: FICTION. I’m going to have to go fiction as of right now. Card was immaculate in his first start of 2024, picking up right where he left off to close 2023 on a high note. Over his last three starts dating back to last season, Card is completing 73 percent of his passes for 799 yards, with 10 touchdowns and no interceptions. That is the type of quarterback Ryan Walters and Graham Harrell were hoping for out of the portal.
While Card has seemingly improved and looks like the version Purdue expects, there are many question marks around the rest of the roster. The offensive line and receiving corps are improved, which helps the redshirt senior signal caller, but have not been tested against a Big Ten defense yet.
The same can be said for the worst scoring defense in the conference a year ago. We will learn a lot regarding whether the unit will be improved in 2024 and begin to resemble the success that Walters had in Champaign.
The week one showing by Card and the Boilermakers was encouraging, but there are still too many questions surrounding this team to be sold that they will make it to a bowl game come this winter.
3. With his first conference start on Saturday, it’s time for Brock Vandagriff to show he can be a quality starter in the SEC.
Friedman: FACT. Brock Vandagriff showed some good and some not-so-good in Kentucky’s week one game against Southern Miss but this weekend’s game against South Carolina is a big one for the Georgia transfer. The former five-star high school prospect and top-100 transfer prospect has this season and next season to live up to the hype. South Carolina is as good an opponent Vandagriff could hope for in his first SEC start. Now is his chance to show he can be the high-end quarterback many expected him to be.
Rowland: FACT. He looked very intriguing against Southern Miss with his ability to extend plays, keep eyes downfield, and throw accurately on the run. We saw the inexperience on a couple of plays that can't happen. South Carolina is a great start to SEC play for Vandagriff. It's not a top league foe and it's at home so you should want to see him play well. But South Carolina does have an athletic front seven so it's a much bigger test than USM.
