When the NCAA announced that all Penn State football student-athletes would become free agents, many expected a mass exodus of players from State College. In all, only nine players who would have been on the 2012 roster transferred to different schools. Eleven players joined different teams though as Derrick Thomas and Devon Smith were somehow considered eligible to play this year even with both departing from the team before the sanctions came down.
With post-summer depth charts now out for most teams, we take a look at how Penn State's transfers are stacking up on their new teams.
Silas Redd (USC) - Redd is on the latter side of the Paternoesque "OR" at tailback in Los Angeles, sharing the spot with returning starter Curtis McNeal. Redd did not come in guaranteed a starting role in the Trojan offense as McNeal was a 1,000-yard rusher last year, but expect to see both get a modest workload as they help to set up Matt Barkley's passing attack.
Justin Brown (Oklahoma) - Brown will start from the beginning for Oklahoma as they have had trouble keeping wide receivers healthy or on the team all summer. Landry Jones will have Brown and Kenny Still as primary targets in the Big 12 this year.
Khairi Fortt (Cal) - Fortt is not listed on the Week 1 depth chart as he is still recovering from minor knee surgery performed in the spring. According to coach Jeff Tedford, when he is healthy, he will be see playing time for the Golden Bears.
Anthony Fera (Texas) - Fera is listed as the third kicker for Texas but will not see much early season action as he is recovering from a sore hip according to Longhorns coach Mack Brown.
Rob Bolden (LSU) - Bolden is listed as the third quarterback for LSU behind junior Zach Mettenberger and redshirt sophomore Stephen Rivers. Needless to say, Rob Bolden has probably started his last game as a college quarterback.
Kevin Haplea (Florida State) - Listed as the second tight end for Jimbo Fisher, it's a higher spot than he would have enjoyed at Penn State with the new tight end surplus the Nittany Lions have. In terms of playing time, a smart move on his part.
Tim Buckley (NC State) - Listed as the backup safety, just as he was after the spring at Penn State. Nothing gained, nothing lost.
Ryan Nowicki (Illinois) - Third-string right tackle. Hope it was worth the jet fuel and Corner Room lunches, Tim Beckman.
Jamil Pollard (Rutgers) - Pollard was the only player from the 2012 class who transferred and he might be the only to redshirt with all of the depth on the defensive line at Rutgers. If you are able to root for any transfer, it should be this guy.
Derrick Thomas and Devon Smith (Marshall) - Marshall's depth chart came out on Tuesday and I was also able to the Marshall Thundering Blog about it. They said that Derrick Thomas, while being listed second on the depth chart, should be the starter when they take the field against West Virginia on Saturday. They also said that Smith would be redshirting this year. So there's that for you.
Follow @BSDtweet on Twitter
And join us on Facebook
All BSD community members should review our current Posting & Commenting Policies before creating any posts or commenting.