Richard Pitino might as well be the transfer king after what he pulled off in this late college basketball signing period.
Three starting spots open. Three transfers committed to fill them. All of that happened within a span of three months, ending with Utah transfer Both Gach picking his home state Gophers on Monday.
If the waiver gods bless the Gophers in the next several months, then Gach will be in the starting lineup for the season opener in November. Same goes for fellow junior and Drake transfer Liam Robbins. Western Michigan's Brandon Johnson is already a projected U starter as a graduate transfer.
College basketball recruiting classes led more by transfers than high schoolers could become the new norm in the not-so-distant future. Instead of having to sit out a year under NCAA transfer rules, increasing numbers of players have been granted waivers, with further relaxation of that rule on the way.
Transfers were already the next big thing. For teams such as the Gophers, it has become critical for turning around a program.
"It really has changed the recruiting landscape," 247Sports.com recruiting director Evan Daniels said. "Coaches can wait until the offseason to snag a graduate transfer or get [an eligibility waiver] right away. And it changes the course of their season."
The trend now is for college coaches to have multiple scholarships to recruit transfers in the spring. Every coach would love to stay older by adding experience each year. The transfer portal has both quality and quantity these days.
It used to be grad transfers looking to move up a level were the hot commodity. But now underclass transfers from Power Five schools are fleeing for different opportunities, too. Much of that started earlier in the spring with speculation about a one-time transfer rule for immediate eligibility being close.
"I talked to some coaches who only planned to recruit transfers," Daniels said.
But on May 20, the NCAA Division I Council stuck to its earlier position not to look at passing a one-time transfer rule until next year. Based on current bylaws, Robbins and Gach would have to sit out the 2020-21 season, unless waivers are granted by the NCAA to play right away.
The 6-7 Gach, who is from Austin, Minn., is transferring to be closer to his mother and five siblings, who he said are having a difficult time during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Gophers are working on a waiver on his behalf. He hopes the NCAA wouldn't force him to sit out in his situation.
"During the pandemic, with all of the [social injustice] things going on and some family-related issues, one of things I looked at is what I could do that was best for my family and myself as well," Gach said.
Gach was testing the waters in the NBA draft, but he expects to return to school.
The 7-foot Robbins is from Davenport, Iowa, but he will be closer to family as well. Gophers associate head coach Ed Conroy and walk-on Hunt Conroy are Robbins' uncle and cousin on his mother's side. The waiver for Robbins already has been sent and awaits approval from the NCAA.
"I don't know when that will be," Pitino said recently. "There is a process for both schools to go through. Like I said, we're really, really confident in this one. We feel like he should be playing basketball next year. We feel like that will happen."
Pitino struck gold on impact transfers during the 2016-17 season when he made his first NCAA tournament with help from Reggie Lynch and Akeem Springs. Lynch was the Big Ten's defensive player of the year and set the school single-season blocks record. Springs led the team in three-point shooting.
Last season, transfers Marcus Carr, Payton Willis and Alihan Demir weren't able to help the Gophers finish better than 15-16. In particular, Carr would have made a bigger impact if his waiver wasn't denied the year before after transferring from Pittsburgh.
Robbins and Gach were not top-100 recruits out of high school. They were, however, two of the top transfers available with dozens of perennial top-25 programs recruiting them to bolster their rosters this spring.
Pitino's 2020 recruiting class ranks at the lower end of the top 50 nationally based on landing four-star recruits Jamal Mashburn Jr., Martice Mitchell and David Mutaf from Turkey.
But if there were transfer class rankings, the Gophers likely would be one of the best in the country. That means you might continue to see Pitino rely on the quick-fix option for recruiting.
"Coming down the line, we're going to be in an era where there's no fighting for waivers," Rivals.com recruiting expert Eric Bossi said. "You'll have to sustain being successful getting [transfers] for only one or two years."
