College Football Transfer Portal: QBs to watch ahead of April 15 window
The second transfer portal window opens on April 15 and the college football world will once again be focused on which players decide to enter their name in the list. With spring practice wrapping up across the country many quarterback battles — for spots Nos. 1 and 2 — are shaping up. As we all know, the quarterbacks that don't like where they sit on the depth chart can enter their name in the portal, or stick it out and be a backup and weigh their options again when the portal opens next in December of 2023.
Let's take a look at some of the quarterback battles across the country and which quarterbacks we wouldn't be surprised to see in the transfer portal next week. It's a fascinating year for QB battles as bluebloods like Alabama, Georgia and Ohio State are changing quarterbacks. We've listed player classifications as a projection to this fall.
Maalik Murphy (Texas, Redshirt Fr., No. 9 QB in 2022)
All eyes are on the Texas quarterback battle in Austin with returning starter Quinn Ewers and incoming freshman phenom Arch Manning. However, it's second-year quarterback Maalik Murphy who is currently getting reps with the 2s per insiders. All reports say Murphy has looked good after shaking off an injury to start the spring. But if you polled Longhorn fans, they'd say the QB succession plan goes Ewers in 2023 and then hopefully Manning in 2024 (we say hopefully because the hope is Ewers plays well enough to go the NFL, which has been the plan, and because Texas fans don't want to risk losing Manning in one year's time).
Murphy, a former four-star out of California in the 2022 class, is a 6-foot-5, 235-pound quarterback that can see the field and make strong throws. Sarkisian loves him, by all accounts. But if Murphy doesn't like where he stands at the end of spring practice after getting a look at Manning and forecasting the next few seasons, he could enter the transfer portal and perhaps be somebody's QB1 in 2023.
Brock Vandagriff (Georgia, Redshirt Soph., No. 5 QB in 2021)
It's crazy to think thatBrock Vandagriff is on track to be a third-year Bulldog this fall; his flip from Lincoln Riley's Oklahoma Sooners to Kirby Smart's Georgia Bulldogs feels like yesterday. Vandagriff is in a three-way battle for the starting job in Athens with Carson Beck and Gunner Stocktonto replace Stetson Bennett.Beck was the backup last year behind Bennett and could be the favorite to win the job. There's also plenty of good buzz going around about second-year quarterback Gunner Stockton and what he brings to the table. Vandagriff by all means still has a chance to win the job at Georgia but it's not very likely.
As a former five-star, Vandagriff would likely have many options if he decided to enter the portal. He's a big, strong quarterback with nice mobility and arm power.
Devin Brown (Ohio State, Redshirt Fr., No. 5 QB in 2022)
Second-year quarterback Devin Brown is in a battle with Kyle McCord for the starting job in after the position was vacated by C.J. Stroud. The smart money is on McCord to win the job because he has a little bit more experience and Brown is out with injury for the spring game, though that obviously won't eliminate him from the battle long-term. Ohio State has a great supporting cast for the quarterback, especially at wide receiver, so whoever wins the job will be in a great spot, especially with a few weeks to get comfortable before a trip to Notre Dame in Week 4.
Brown came to Ohio State as the No. 5 quarterback in the 2022 class after throwing for nearly 8,000 yards and 85 touchdowns in high school. He has all the ability to win the job at Ohio State, but if he doesn't he will of course have the option to transfer.
Casey Thompson (Nebraska, Super Senior, No. 16 transfer QB in 2022)
At Nebraska with first-year head coach Matt Rhule, all eyes will be on the quarterback position with a battle between Casey Thompson and Jeff Sims. The Cornhuskers starter last season, Thompson had some decent moments and threw 17 touchdowns compared to 10 interceptions. Thompson will miss spring practice which could really put him behind in the quarterback battle. That said, Thompson has a whole lot of experience and can be very serviceable as a starter. He threw 30 touchdowns at Texas before transferring to Nebraska. Jeff Sims is one of the other side of the spectrum as far as quarterback play. He's an immensely talented player in terms of physical attributes and mobility. Sims transferred in from Georgia Tech where he struggled as a whole, but flashed big time ability during parts of his career.
Thompson could be a nice one-year rental for a team in need if he decides to transfer. Really curious to see how this plays out.
Ethan Garbers (UCLA, Redshirt Jr., No. 3 transfer QB in 2021)
UCLA has a nice quarterback room with Kent State transfer Colin Schlee, five-star freshman Dante Moore, redshirt junior Ethan Garbers, senior Chase Griffin, and talented second-year quarterback Justyn Martin. Many believe the starter to begin the season will be the highly-regarded transfer Schlee, who brings much experience as a starter and has savvy passing ability and can extend plays. Incoming freshman and the nation's No. 4 overall player, Dante Moore will be tough to keep off the field. This could make it hard for Ethan Garbers to get playing time, as well as Justyn Martin. It wouldn't be a surprise to see either Garbers or Martin opt for the transfer portal depending on where they are on he depth chart after spring practice.
Tanner Bailey (South Carolina, Redshirt Fr., No. 23 QB in 2022)
Spencer Rattler returns for his second season as the Gamecocks starter at quarterback and Luke Doty appears to have the backup job locked down and the Gamecocks still see Doty as the future. True freshman LaNorris Sellers has been impressive but there's also Braden Davis and Colten Gauthier in the quarterback room. This leaves redshirt freshman Tanner Bailey with quite the battle going forward at quarterback. Bailey, a pro-style passer from Alabama in 2022 class, was a three-star quarterback and the No. 23 player at the position. Bailey is a smaller quarterback at about 6-foot and 200 pounds, but he's got a high football IQ and mental makeup for the position.
Bailey could stick it and keep trying to climb the depth chart at South Carolina or try his luck elsewhere.
Noah Kim (Michigan State, Redshirt Jr., No. 58 QB in 2020)
There's a three-way quarterback battle happening this spring at Michigan State betweenPayton Thorne, Katin Houser and Noah Kim. Thorne started last season and regressed from a nice 2021 season, which opened up competition at the position. Thorne and Houser are the likely frontrunners for the job, but Kim is still getting just as much of an opportunity to win the job. Thorne could have the upper hand with his experience as a starter but Houser was the No. 11 overall quarterback in the country in the 2022 class. He's a talented passer and a sturdy 6-foot-3, 215-pounds. Kim is a redshirt junior with nice set-up quickness and ability outside the pocket. If Kim doesn't like where he ends up on the depth chart he could look to play two more seasons at another program.
AJ Duffy (Florida State, Redshirt Fr., No. 13 QB in 2022)
It wouldn't be a huge shock if Florida State redshirt freshman AJ Duffy quarterback decided to weigh his options in the transfer portal. Duffy is in a battle with Tate Rodemaker, last season's backup, for the No. 2 job behind Jordan Travis. Rodemaker has some valuable experience, coming in for Travis at times last season and leading the Seminoles to a win over Louisville on the road. He displayed a big arm at times and he's not shy about fitting the ball in a tight window downfield. Florida State also seems really high on early enrollee Brock Glenn.
Duffy has been receiving some backup reps along with Rodemaker and has all the opportunity to grab the spot so we'll see how things play out. Duffy, the No. 13 overall quarterback in the country coming out of high school, completed 2 of 7 passes for 26 yards and a touchdown in 2022.
Grayson McCall (Coastal Carolina, Sr.)
NIL money is changing college football in a huge way and Coastal Carolina quarterback Grayson McCall will surely have some big name school that need a quarterback trying to entice him to enter the portal and come to their program. McCall already entered the transfer portal and then withdrew his name back in January; between the point of portal entry and exit, there was serious smoke about him landing at Auburn. There's going to be more pressure on him to enter the transfer portal in this window as teams have seen what they have at the quarterback position. Can whatever held McCall back from transferring a few months ago be sorted out? McCall is a fifth year senior that has thrown for over 8,000 yards and 78 touchdowns in his career with only eight interceptions. He's also rushed for over 1,000 yards. When he entered the portal, we ranked McCall in the top-10 among all transfers.
My thoughts on Alabama and Ole Miss: These are very interesting and different quarterback situations. For the Crimson Tide's battle, which is between Jalen Milroe and Ty Simpson, I just don't see somebody bailing on a mostly even battle before fall camp unless the younger Simpson were to suddenly command the lead before spring wraps (that isn't the case as Milroe is the perceived starter). I'm not forecasting much movement there. For Ole Miss, I know the rationale that Spencer Sanders didn't transfer to Oxford to be the backup to Jaxson Dart, but I still think Dart emerges as the victor of that job — and besides, he's already used his one-time free transfer without penalty.
