Alabama receiver Isaiah Bond has filed the paperwork and entered the transfer portal to explore his options, sources tell The Tuscaloosa News.
With Nick Saban retiring, Alabama football players have a 30-day window to enter the transfer portal. When a player enters the portal, it allows other teams to contact him, but it does not preclude from returning to his current school.
Bond is the first big name to explore his options in the portal in the wake of Saban's retirement.
Bond is heading into his junior season. He's fresh off a year in which he caught 48 passes for 668 yards and four touchdowns. The most noteworthy of those touchdowns was on the iconic fourth-and-31 play in which quarterback Jalen Milroe hit Bond in the back of the end zone to beat Auburn in the final minute of the Iron Bowl.
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The loss of Bond would be significant. Alabama already lost one starting receiver to the portal in Malik Benson , and another starter, Jermaine Burton , declared for the NFL Draft.
That would mean the Crimson Tide would have to replace all of its starting receivers in 2024.
As of noon Friday, Alabama has not yet announced the hiring of a coach to replace Saban, but ESPN has reported Washington 's Kalen DeBoer is the hire.
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This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: Isaiah Bond: Alabama football receiver enters portal
