Chemistry lessons: Roster overhauls make offseason bonding activities more critical in portal era

Establishing team chemistry in college football is tougher than ever with so many players not staying at the same school for four years. But it’s still doable. New Mexico provides perhaps the clearest example. With 75 newcomers last year — the second-most of any Football Bowl Subdivision team – New Mexico went 9-4 for its first winning season since 2016. Succeeding in this transfer portal era requires altering offseason objectives. Players aren’t just getting to know the playbook. They're getting to know one another. “The spirit of the team and the connection of the team, I think that kind of trumps X’s and O’s,” New Mexico coach Jason Eck said. That prioritizing is evident from the offseason approach at New Mexico and other programs adapting to annual roster overhauls. The Lobos hold what they label “non-football meetings” every week. In these meetings, players break into small groups and discuss various questions. Some are lighthearted: What actor would play you in a movie? Others are thought-provoking: Where do you see yourself in 10 years? The idea is to make sure all the players know each other well once the season starts. “When you really care about each other, you don’t want to let each other down,” Eck said.

Modeling after Patriots' strategy

San Diego State conducts similar meetings, and coach Sean Lewis believes that helped the Aztecs improve from 3-9 in 2024 to 9-4 in 2025. This year the Aztecs are borrowing a strategy the New England Patriots used during their Super Bowl run by focusing on the “Four H’s,” with each player telling teammates about his personal history, heroes, heartbreaks and hopes. Lewis said he asks parents to supply family photos that are displayed as each player talks about himself. “It’s an honor to hear these guys’ stories — a lot of incredible warriors who’ve gone through a lot to come here,” San Diego State edge rusher Brady Nassar said. These types of offseason exercises have been going on for years, but they’re more critical in the transfer portal era. Players often don’t even know everyone in their own position groups when the offseason begins. “In order to be unified, you have to care about each other, and in order to care about each other, you have to know each other,” Tennessee cornerbacks coach Derek Jones said. “My first week here, my very first meeting, those kids in the room didn’t even have each other’s phone numbers, so we had a long way to go in that regard.” Building these relationships is particularly critical at programs often raided by Power Four teams during the portal window. “We’re going to be constantly changing over at least a third of our roster, easily, every single year,” Kennesaw State coach Jerry Mack said. “I signed almost 40 new players. That’s almost half the roster. We signed 50-60 last year. That’s the new norm at this level.” (Ohio) coach Chuck Martin has noticed one benefit to this new norm. Martin enjoys when a transfer newcomer with multiple years of experience elsewhere starts working alongside an underclassman entering his second year. Each can learn from the other. “We’re in the weight room, and the older kid — the transfer — is the leader,” Martin said. “Then five minutes later, we’re on the field doing football stuff, and the young kid’s the leader. Even though he’s newer to the weight room, he isn’t newer to our offense.”