There’s been a fair share of drama for college athletes in the Mountain West Conference this year. San Jose State University (SJSU) sparked a nationwide controversy when the school not only allowed a biological male on its female volleyball team but refused to heed players’ and coaches’ concerns. The country watched as a series of teams forfeited games over SJSU’s insistence that trans-identifying Blaire Fleming compete alongside the women. Now, over half of the SJSU athletes have had enough and are looking to transfer schools.

While the team currently has 19 players on the roster, six of them are seniors and will not be returning next season, according to the Idaho Dispatch. After the season, at least seven of the female SJSU volleyball players have entered the transfer portal in protest. As Fox News reported, “The seven players who are transferring will be leaving the team after a season that included eight forfeited matches, regular police protection, national scrutiny and internal turmoil between players and coaches. One player even received threats of physical harm amid the controversy.”

SJSU acknowledged what some have described as a “mass exodus” of players. The school shared in a statement, “Student athletes have the ability to make decisions about their college athletic careers, and we have the utmost respect for that.” Todd Kress, the team’s head coach, also responded to the news by acknowledging how hard this season has been for him. He told Fox News Digital, “This has been one of the most difficult seasons I’ve ever experienced, and I know this is true as well for many of our players and the staff who have been supporting us all along.”

Kress added, “Maintaining our focus on the court and ensuring the overall safety and well-being of my players amid the external noise have been my priorities.” As The Washington Stand previously reported, SJSU officials made the decision to initially hide the true identity of Fleming. But it didn’t take long for the secret to come out.

In response, Southern Utah University (SUU) became the first school to forfeit competition because of Fleming. After that, others followed, including Boise State University (BSU), the University of Wyoming (UW), Utah State University (USU), and the University of Nevada Reno (UNR). From there, the situation only escalated. Out of concern for her players, SJSU’s Assistant Coach Melissa Batie-Smoose made the decision to file a Title IX complaint against Fleming. Shortly after, the university suspended her indefinitely.

The women on SJSU’s team expressed their outrage publicly. Team captain Brook Slusser told OutKick that “everyone on the team appreciated [what Batie-Smoose did], and a lot of the girls in the locker room said how happy they were that she finally was able to speak out [on a situation] that we all knew needed to be talked about.” She added, “Melissa was that person that we felt like as long as she was there, we had someone that would stand up for us. And now there’s no one there that will. … We aren’t happy, and we don’t feel safe anymore.”

In the weeks that followed, the fight turned into a legal battle. By mid-November, a dozen concerned women filed a lawsuit against the Mountain West for what they called “violations of Title IX and of their First Amendment rights.” In particular, the players and coaches took aim at the conference’s “Transgender Participation Policy” which they claimed was designed to “chill and suppress the free speech rights of women athletes.” As Macy Petty, the legislative strategist at Concerned Women for America (CWA), previously told TWS, “The dominos are falling, and they must answer for their actions.”

Considering all that occurred during the 2024 volleyball season, many are unsurprised that members of the team are now looking for a school that will better protect them. As the Dispatch concluded, “At some point, the NCAA and/or Mountain West Conference will have to make decisions about protecting women’s sports, or these types of situations will continue, and the controversy will grow.”