As a life-long WVU fan, this basketball season has surely been a roller coaster ride, having been ranked near the top-10 for most of the season, only to have the dreams of a possible No. 1 or 2 seed in the upcoming NCAA tournament tumble, to at last check, a seven seed.

Point blank, the team is as talented on paper as any team in the nation. Led by freshman Oscar Tshibwe and sophomore Derek Culver, the Mountaineers have on of the best front courts in the nation. But this same talented roster has went on a skid that is shaking the very foundations of what coach Bob Huggins has built this season.

This team can’t score, can’t rebound and can’t even make a free throw line. Point blank, they stink.

In conference play, WVU has won just one road game all season.

Now I know what you’re thinking—what does this have to do with a readership in Tennessee?

I got to thinking after the most recent loss— an inexcusable loss to a Texas team that was all but down and out of the NCAA tournament two weeks ago. If this trend of a downward spiral continues, what’s in place to keep these kids together and suffer through the growing pains?

Literally nothing.

The NCAA’s transfer portal has created a culture that’s conducive to tucking and running when things get tough.

For the talented players, one year of college ball is all that’s needed before a ticket to the NBA or overseas professional leagues come calling.

This has essentially created a free agency within college sports— and is sending the absolute wrong message to athletes of every sport and every level of competition.

I’ve been around basketball long enough to know this team can compete at a very high level.

As a fan, I know that we have to weather our down years to get to the “up” years. With the culture created by the NCAA that allows players to hang it up and go elsewhere without repercussions, I fear that this team could very well blow up and we’ll be back to scratch at the beginning of next season. This is just one example of what could happen to any team, anywhere.

I understand that athletes need to find the place that’s best for them and make the decision that’s best for them.

Maybe, just maybe, tucking and running to greener pastures isn’t the answer. Maybe putting your nose down, getting back to work and building a program is. Hopefully one day soon the landscape of college athletics will look more like it once did and less of a professional environment.

As for my Mountaineers, it’s anyone’s best guess as to what happens.

I suspect a few will fall off, but it’s possible we’re back to square one next year.

If the mindset of college athletics can shift back to working through the troubled times, we might just save the integrity of sports in general.

— Chris Siers is sports editor of the TimesGazette. Email him at sports@t-g.com.