THE FRONT ROW with MARK NELKE: Vandal coach Ford on transfer portal, agents ... and other things (part 2)

The Idaho Vandals football program lost some 16 players to the portal this past offseason, after losing nearly two dozen after the previous two seasons.  

"I think this year we’re in a lot better shape,” Ford said recently, touching on several topics in a visit to Coeur d’Alene for a recruiting function at The Coeur d’Alene Resort. “Last year’s group lost 20 kids that went to FBS schools, and really only four of these kids that went in this year went to FBS schools. 

“A lot of the guys who went into the portal this year were guys that wanted to play more, and really went down a level. We had a lot of guys that we love, and wish they could stay, but if they’re not going to play, I understand.” 

RECRUITING WITH THE NEW REALITY THAT MANY PLAYERS WONT STAY 4-5 YEARS ANYMORE 

“You still try to recruit the highest-level high school kids that you can,” Ford said. “Maybe it changes a little bit, where you can take a couple guys, maybe in-state guys, who are maybe a little under-developed. And you feel these guys might take a little longer but can be really good players, especially if they have the measurables we’re looking for — length, speed, all those things. From that standpoint, you want to try to find some guys that can help you right away, knowing that those guys might not be there, so making sure that you’re taking guys that you know are going to take 2 or 3 years to develop.  

GETTING USED TO LOSING PLAYERS EARLY 

"I think it’s just part of the business now, so from that perspective, we know it’s going to happen,” Ford said. “Caleb Ricks (cornerback) was another prime example. He was with us for 6 months. He played as a true freshman, he was a freshman All-American, and now he’s at San Diego State. That’s still taking some getting used to, knowing that you may not have some of your really talented young players, but also the reality of the business.” 

DEALING WITH PLAYER ‘AGENTS,’ IN THE NEW ERA OF NIL 

“We haven’t experienced that too much, but I’m sure it will happen eventually,” Ford said. “We don’t have too many guys who are on the roster right now, even if they have agents, we’re not speaking to the agents, but certainly something I know could definitely happen. It’s happening at other places in our league — certainly something that’s going to take a little getting used to. I’m kind of in that sweet spot now where I’m old enough to know better, but young enough to learn new things.” 

WHY AGENTS HAVEN’T BEEN PREVALENT ON THE VANDAL TEAM 

“Maybe the guys on our roster aren’t getting agents,” Ford said. “We’ve done a really good job with education ... we had my brother (Tracy, a former Vandal player) come out last winter and talk to the players about the realities. Some of the stuff that the media portrays in terms of pay, that is not true. He came in and gave everyone a true landscape of what this looks like. Because he’s in it; he represents a ton of kids, across Power-4 to FCS. He knows what the contracts actually look like; what the money actually looks like for some of these guys.  

“So part of it is education, our guys know that hey, you don’t really NEED an agent until you NEED an agent," Fprd added. "And you don’t really need one until you start. Matyus McLain (the former Priest River High star who transferred to Washington State after a strong redshirt sophomore season at Idaho) probably needed an agent, just to make sure he could sift through all the contracts. I think we’ve done a really nice job of educating the guys to what this really is, and I’ll tell them the truth — I don’t think anyone NEEDS an agent, but if you think you may need some help, not necessarily negotiating the contracts but just understanding them and making sure you don’t lose a ton of money, I think that’s the time when you’d really need one.

“It’s gonna happen; we’re going to lose players, that’s part of the deal. But really, to me, it’s a good problem to have. If you’re losing a ton of players, you were probably pretty dang good. That’s the reality, the better you are and the better your players play, the more exposure you’re going to get.” 

Mark Nelke is sports editor of The Press. He can be reached at 208-664-8176, Ext. 1205, or via email at [email protected]. Follow him on X (formerly Twitter) @CdAPressSports.