Press Box: Transfers will continue to be new normal in college football

In this Dec. 19, 2018, file photo, Broken Arrow football player Zach Marcheselli, with his dad Vincent, mom Rayvonne and coach David Alexander, smile as he signs with TCU during a national signing day event in Broken Arrow, Okla.
In this Dec. 19, 2018, file photo, Broken Arrow football player Zach Marcheselli, with his dad Vincent, mom Rayvonne and coach David Alexander, smile as he signs with TCU during a national signing day event in Broken Arrow, Okla.

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AP

Workers walk Friday through the rubble of the garment factory building that collapsed last week outside Dhaka, Bangladesh, killing hundreds of people.

National football signing day is a special occasion for high school seniors.

Friends and family gather to celebrate a student-athlete taking the next step in his life. There are hugs, handshakes, smiles and usually some cake.

The family, while donning shirts and hats with the colors and mascot of the chosen school, surrounds the athlete as he signs his name to a new home. The next four years of his life are set with that signature. At least, that's how it used to be.

Now those colors are more likely to change after a year or two. Maybe the family should just wear white shirts with "College" on them and have "Congrats on your first college choice" written on the cake. I guess that wouldn't be quite as special, though.

Then after that player is relegated to a backup role, he can redshirt and have another signing ceremony. Then everyone can wear the colors of that school. And they certainly won't complain about getting more cake.

The traditional approach of waiting in the wings, learning the system, working with the experienced players and coaches to improve skills is quickly vanishing in college football.

Running backs, receivers, defensive backs, and most notably quarterbacks, are not waiting their turn to play. If the line is too long, find where there isn't a line.

The quickest route to the pros is simple in college basketball. Sign with a big-time program, show off your skills for a year and then head to the NBA.

With players needing to be three years removed from high school to declare for the NFL draft, the path is quite different in football.

The goal is to put together a quality highlight reel in those three years in order to make it to the league. Spending any of those years on the bench is viewed as a waste.

Take future Missouri Tiger Kelly Bryant for example.

Bryant waited his turn behind current Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson at Clemson.

Clemson made it to the College Football Playoff with Bryant at QB, but Bryant struggled in a 24-6 loss to Alabama.

Then Trevor Lawrence took over as a freshman this season, leading to a redshirt for Bryant and a new home with the Tigers in Columbia.

Playing at Missouri helped Drew Lock's draft stock. Now it's Bryant's turn to show if he's worth a high draft pick.

Just think if Bryant would have won the starting job at Clemson. Would Lawrence be the one transferring? There are always plenty of programs in the market for a quarterback.

Joe Burrow traded an Ohio State Buckeye for an LSU Tiger, Will Grier escaped the Swamp in Florida to become a Mountaineer in West Virginia and Bryant is hoping his new tiger stripes are in fashion.

Coaches might not want to fill up on high school recruits. They've got to save room for cake.