College Football World Stunned By Quarterback's Transfer Before Playoff
12/15/2024 09:41 PM
The college football world has been shocked by a quarterback's transfer days before the start of the College Football Playoff.
The 2024-25 College Football Playoff is set to begin on Friday night, Dec. 20, when No. 7 Notre Dame hosts No. 10 Indiana in South Bend. The following day, No. 6 Penn State will take on No. 11 SMU, No. 5 Texas will face No. 12 Clemson and No. 8 Ohio State will do battle against No. 9 Tennessee.
Penn State, which has arguably the easiest path of any team to the College Football Playoff semifinals, has been dealt a significant blow, days before kickoff.
Nittany Lions backup quarterback Beau Pribula, who has accounted for more than 400 yards of total offense and close to 10 touchdowns, has decided to leave the program.
Pribula has hit the NCAA's transfer portal, admitting that he's been put in an impossible situation. He had to decide between helping his team and prioritizing his future.
"The current NCAA postseason model creates a challenge for student-athletes," he wrote. "The overlapping CFB Playoff & transfer portal timeline has forced me into an impossible decision. After speaking at length with my family and coaches, it is with a heavy heart that I announce my intentions to enter the transfer portal and depart from the team to explore opportunities elsewhere."
He added: "I want to thank the coaches, my teammates, the fanbase, and everyone else who has supported me along this journey. For the rest of my life, I stand proud as a Penn State graduate and letterman."
College football fans are still pretty stunned. It's extremely rare to see a player who could see the field in a College Football Playoff game transferring out.
"Penn State's backup QB says he's left with an "impossible decision" as playoffs overlap with the open portal period. He's leaving the team a week before a 1st-round game. The timing of the portal period is not just impacting bowls (ie Marshall); it is impacting playoff games," one reporter noted.
"Penn State's No. 2 QB is entering the portal and won't remain with the team. A lot of people were in denial thinking this would never happen on a Playoff team, but the timing of the calendar makes it unavoidable," one fan added.
"Not just Penn State's backup QB, but a backup who plays regularly as a change of pace guy. Wow," another reported noted.
"Guys have left CFP teams for the portal, but mostly down depth chart backups. This is an important player for Penn State not only as backup to Allar but as a guy who gets used a fair amount in the offense with Allar," another added.
— Beau Pribula (@beauprib) December 16, 2024
Penn State has to hope that its starting quarterback, Drew Allar, can stay healthy.
The Nittany Lions and the Mustangs are scheduled to kick off at noon E.T. on Saturday.
