Basketball <\/p>\n
In the span of 56 days, Gracie Merkle transferred from Penn State to Maryland and back to Penn State.<\/p>\n
Yes, really.<\/p>\n
Well, sort of.<\/p>\n
Merkle, a 6-foot-6 redshirt junior center, entered the transfer portal on March 25 with a do-not-contact tag. Despite playing for the worst team in the Big Ten \u2014 the Nittany Lions went 1-17 in conference play last season \u2014 Merkle was a highly sought-after transfer after averaging 15.5 points and 8.6 rebounds per game. She was fourth-nationally in field goal percentage, making 67 percent of her shots with her soft touch around the rim.<\/p>\n
On April 5, she announced on her Instagram that she was committing to Maryland, complete with a graphic featuring her in a Terrapins\u2019 jersey with the caption \u201cGO TERPS.\u201d Merkle became a key building block of one of the strongest transfer portal classes <\/a>assembled this offseason, as Terps coach Brenda Frese also landed commitments from ACC Tournament<\/a> MVP Oluchi Okananwa from Duke and Indiana\u2019s Yarden Garzon, an All-Big Ten selection and 3-and-D specialist.<\/p>\n Merkle even recorded a video<\/a> for the Terps\u2019 social channels, saying how \u201cexcited\u201d she was to join the team. She added in a statement issued by Maryland on April 8 that said: \u201cI chose Maryland because of the winning culture. I developed a belief in the coaching staff and a relationship with the players as soon as I stepped on campus. The development I\u2019m looking for is proven with Coach Frese.\u201d<\/p>\n As it turns out, the statement, the news release, the video, the graphic, the photo shoot, the social media posts \u2014 it was all a waste of time.<\/p>\n Because Merkle is not going to play basketball at the University of Maryland.<\/p>\n She backpedaled on Monday night and announced that, indeed, she\u2019s staying at Penn State.<\/p>\n \u201cPlot twist! After much thought, prayer and communication with my family, I have been released from UMD per my request,\u201d Merkle wrote on Instagram<\/a>. \u201cI am very thankful for the opportunity but I have decided to return to Penn State University!!!! As always, I appreciate all the love and support.\u201d<\/p>\n So, how did this happen? How did a player transfer to a new school and then back out of it a month later?<\/p>\n SB Nation spoke to a few coaches, agents and other sources around women\u2019s college basketball to better understand the system and the circumstances.<\/p>\n She\u2019s a pretty good collegiate center from Mount Washington, Kentucky. She began her college career at the mid-major level at Bellarmine where she averaged 14.6 points and 10.6 rebounds as a true freshman and ranked second nationally in shooting percentage with a 70.1 percent mark. She was also 16th nationally in rebounds per game and won the ASUN Rookie of the Year award.<\/p>\n After sitting out her sophomore season due to an injury, Merkle transferred to Penn State where she continued to put up similar numbers against stiff competition in the Big Ten. While the Nittany Lions struggled, going 10-19, Merkle had a solid season and was an All-Big Ten honorable mention selection.<\/p>\n There weren\u2019t many true post players in the portal this year<\/a>, so Merkle was coveted as someone who could score in the paint, rebound and protect the rim at a high level.<\/p>\n In early April she signed with Maryland.<\/p>\n Merkle signed something commonly referred to as a financial agreement, a source confirmed, which is what all transfers are asked to sign when they go to a new school.<\/p>\n The thing is, these financial agreements are a bit different from what high school recruits used to sign when they committed to colleges \u2014 a National Letter of Intent. NLIs don\u2019t exist anymore though after the NCAA eliminated them in October<\/a>, ending the program that began in 1964.<\/p>\n An NLI was a formal and binding agreement between a player and the program they were choosing to attend. They were hard to get out of.<\/p>\n The new financial agreements are anything but that. The loopholes are easy to exploit.<\/p>\n One Power 4 assistant coach put it this way: \u201cYou can get out of a financial agreement anytime now as long as you haven\u2019t stepped on campus and started getting aid\u2026 These are basically verbal commitments.\u201d<\/p>\n The NLI was eliminated as the NCAA anticipates more changes from the House settlement, which will pave the way for schools to share revenue directly with players.<\/p>\n One agent referred to the financial agreements as \u201cjust MOUs\u201d or memorandums of understanding, another form of a non-binding agreement.<\/p>\n \u201cFinancial aid agreement basically means nothing until you physically attend a class,\u201d another Power 4 assistant coach said.<\/p>\n A source familiar with Merkle\u2019s situation confirmed to SB Nation that, aside from her visit during her recruitment, she never stepped on campus and never enrolled in classes in College Park.<\/p>\n Once a player signs a financial agreement with a school, other programs are supposed to be prohibited from communicating with them about recruiting, according to NCAA guidelines.<\/p>\n Indeed, the transfer portal is closed. But Merkle never had to reenter the portal because she never exited it. She didn\u2019t start working out with Maryland, she didn\u2019t attend classes there and didn\u2019t receive financial aid.<\/p>\n And once a player enters the transfer portal, they\u2019re technically in it for the season. When a player signs a financial agreement with a new school, the portal will show that, but the player will still exist in the portal.<\/p>\n One veteran coach summed it up this way: \u201cSince she went in for the 2024-25 season, even if she signed and it signified as much in the portal, she\u2019s still in there\u2026 If I open up the portal right now and look up (MiLaysia) Fulwiley, I\u2019ll see that she\u2019s signed to LSU<\/a>, but she\u2019s still listed. So, does that still count as being in there?\u201d<\/p>\n This actually already happened in women\u2019s college basketball during this portal cycle. Auburn\u2019s Kaitlyn Duhon, a solid defender who has averaged 4.9 points per game for her career, signed with Texas A&M on April 1<\/a>. Weeks later, she announced she was going back to Auburn<\/a>.<\/p>\n Last year, football player Kadyn Proctor transferred<\/a> from Alabama to Iowa, but less than two months later returned to Alabama before ever participating in a practice with the Hawkeyes.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s so weird how it all works,\u201d another coach told SB Nation.<\/p>\n Merkle likely would\u2019ve been the Terps\u2019 starting center next season, especially following the departure of Allie Kubek \u2014 a 6-foot-2 forward who entered the portal and transferred to Florida State<\/a> after the arrivals of Merkle, Garzon and Okananwa were announced.<\/p>\n The Terps still have a solid roster capable of making a deep March Madness run, but Garzon is now their tallest listed player at 6-foot-3, and she\u2019s at her best when she can play along the wings instead of spending the majority of her time down in the paint. Brenda Frese has played small-ball lineups over the past few years, but having a true formidable post like Merkle would\u2019ve been a luxury.<\/p>\n In addition to Merkle\u2019s return, Penn State added dynamic Rutgers<\/a> guard Kiyomi McMiller through the portal. A former Jordan Brand All-American, she averaged 18.7 points as a true freshman for the Scarlet Knights. Because of various benchings, suspensions and other circumstances, McMiller only played in 21 of 33 games for Rutgers this season.<\/p>\n The Big Ten has yet to set its women\u2019s basketball schedule for the 2025-26 season, but the meeting between Maryland and Penn State will be one to circle on the calendar.<\/p>\n<\/div>\nSo, who is Gracie Merkle?<\/h2>\n
What did Merkle sign?<\/h2>\n
But isn\u2019t the transfer portal closed? How did Merkle go back to Penn State?<\/h2>\n
What does this mean for Maryland and Penn State?<\/h2>\n