As Four Players Exit, Coach Horn Weighs in on Life in the Transfer Portal Era

The transfer portal is officially open for the next 30 days, and Northern Kentucky has seen three more players enter. I wasn’t surprised by any of them choosing to leave, given how few minutes they played down the stretch last season. In today’s world of college basketball, players are increasingly seeking new opportunities with other programs. Over 1,800 student-athletes entered the portal last year, and I suspect we’ll see a similar number this year. Keeyan Itejere was the first to enter the portal and now Randall Pettus II, Jeramiah Israel and Cesar Tchilombo follow him.

Head Coach Darrin Horn offered Norse Illustrated readers some perspective on the current state of college basketball and the realities programs face each offseason.

“It's such a unique time now in college basketball. I think everyone involved — players, coaches and fans — is still adjusting to the new model. The days of building with a long-term plan in mind are over. Watching these young men mature and grow as players and people for four years in one place is becoming rare. With all of the roster movement, we are all focused on putting together the best team we can one year at a time."

He also expressed gratitude to the departing players and acknowledged the motivations behind some of the decisions.

“Every year guys will move on to pursue greater roles or playing time. We thank them for all they have done for Norse basketball and wish them well, offering to help with their transition in any way we can. We’ve been fortunate that our turnover has actually been less than most. And the two guys that have moved on to utilize their fifth year at a higher level for more NIL money — Keeyan and Marques — leave with a degree from NKU.”

Player Movement

Randall Pettus II

After two seasons with the Norse, Randall Pettus has entered the transfer portal. He averaged: 6.2 PPG, 2.7 REB, 1.5 AST. After a promising second half to his freshman year in 2023–24 — including a game-tying offensive rebound putback against Wright State in the quarterfinals — Pettus’ production and end of season minutes both declined.

He played 211 more total minutes in his sophomore campaign than as a freshman, but his field goal and three-point percentages both dropped by over 5%, even as he took 106 more shots. He closed out his freshman campaign by starting the last five games and playing over 25 minutes in all of them, and despite a slower start to this past season, he scored a season-high 20 points in the win against Bellarmine. Soon after he found himself in the starting lineup again where he was there for a 14 game stretch where he averaged over 10 points a game on 38.1% shooting.

Coincidence or not, the first game he was removed from the starting lineup was at Oakland — where NKU ended its six-game conference losing streak. Pettus still produced in this game, but his minutes severely dipped moving forward. Randall ended his NKU career as a late-game defensive substitute against Cleveland State, where he played only two minutes and recorded two fouls.

This overall dip in minutes, especially late in the season, lead me to believe that he would not be on the roster next year and that has come true as he has entered his name in the portal per the post below.

Jeramiah Israel

After two seasons with NKU, Jeramiah Israel has also entered the transfer portal. Jeramiah showed promise as a bench player during his freshman season, averaging 3.9 PPG and 2.1 REB and a career high 15 points at Eastern Kentucky. This season, an injury limited his action in some games, but even when he was available he rarely played as Coach Horn had tightened the rotation as the push for the tournament was in full swing.

Israel tweeted a thank you to his coaches, teammates, and fans (see below).

Cesar Tchilombo

Tchilombo was another name that I was not surprised to see enter the transfer portal. This past season was his third with the team and second season he played in after redshirting his freshman year. He never broke out of the emergency backup center role as he played behind Itejere and sometimes the freshman Rapolis this past season.

Cesar went 7-for-17 from the field in his career and played 19 fewer minutes this past season than in 2023–24. He was often a defensive liability and rarely found offensive production.