Five Landing Spots for Transfer Quarterback Kyle Allen

Texas A&M quarterback Kyle Allen is now "former" Texas A&M quarterback Kyle Allen. 

On Wednesday, the sophomore announced on Twitter he was transferring from the Aggies program."... I wish things would have worked out here," Allen said. "But at some points in life, people have to do what's best for them." 

Allen's transfer shouldn't come as a big surprise. A&M rotated Allen and freshman Kyler Murray for much of the season and as David Ubben of Sports on Earth noted, the juggling act at a spot like quarterback is a tough one to manage. 

Where does Allen land? He told Bruce Feldman of Fox Sports "he'd like to transfer to a Power 5 conference program that would have a QB who will be a senior in 2016 so he'd be able to compete for an open job in 2017 when he becomes eligible."

With that in mind, here are five options for Allen. 

Oklahoma

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The only school mentioned specifically by Allen so far has been Oklahoma, and it makes sense why. Starting quarterback Baker Mayfield will be a senior in 2016—he lost a year of eligibility by transferring intraconference from Texas Tech—while Allen would have to sit out that year. 

His old high school teammate, Mark Andrews, also plays for the Sooners. 

"Oklahoma comes to mind because it does fit all those things, and my old [high school] teammate [tight end Mark Andrews] is a receiver there, and coach [Bob] Stoops is an all-time great coach," Allen told Feldman. 

The offense would fit Allen's skill set as well. Under offensive coordinator Lincoln Riley, Oklahoma runs an Air Raid offense similar to what Allen ran at Texas A&M. 

West Virginia

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Allen actually helped Texas A&M beat West Virginia in the 2014 Liberty Bowl by throwing for 294 yards and recording five touchdowns. 

Like Mayfield at Oklahoma, Mountaineers quarterback Skyler Howard will be a senior in 2016 and backups William Crest Jr. and David Sills have played more extensively at wide receiver. It's possible one or both of them challenge Howard for the starting job in the spring, however. Additionally, the 'Eers have a verbal commitment from 3-star prospect Cody Saunders for 2016. 

The knock on Dana Holgorsen has been his inability to recruit and develop a quarterback out of high school, relying instead on transfers Howard and Clint Trickett in the post-Geno Smith era. Allen would be another transfer, but if Holgorsen makes it to the 2017 season—he definitely enters next year on the hot seat—it would easily be the best signal-caller West Virginia has had since Smith in 2012. 

Houston

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Allen's hope is to land at a Power Five program, but he could do a lot worse than traveling just down the road from College Station to Houston, the former stomping ground for Aggies head coach Kevin Sumlin. 

Tom Herman is regarded as one of the rising coaches in college football, leading the Cougars to a 12-1 season and an American Athletic Conference championship in Year 1. He's also a quarterback whisperer. At Ohio State, he coached up J.T. Barrett and Cardale Jones after Braxton Miller reinjured his shoulder. Barrett won the Big Ten's Griese-Brees Quarterback of the Year and Jones helped the Buckeyes win the 2014-15 national championship. 

At Houston, quarterback Greg Ward Jr. averaged 279.3 total yards per game and was responsible for 35 touchdowns. Ward will be a senior in 2016, paving the way for Allen to compete for the starting job the following year. 

Who thinks Herman couldn't do something with Allen? Anyone?

Arizona State

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Allen is a Scottsdale native, so going back home to Arizona and relocating about 30 minutes south to Tempe could be a good move for him. 

It would have been an ideal move, however, if quarterback Mike Bercovici had one more year of eligibility. Instead, Arizona State will re-open its quarterback competition in the spring. However, Bercovici took literally almost every single snap at quarterback this year, so experience is lacking in the backfield. That might be enough for head coach Todd Graham to look elsewhere for it. 

If Allen did somehow end up with the Sun Devils, he'd be in good hands. Chip Lindsey was just announced as the team's new offensive coordinator, coming over from Southern Miss. Under Lindsey in 2015, the Golden Eagles ranked second in Conference USA in scoring offense, and quarterback Nick Mullens threw for 4,145 yards and 36 touchdowns. 

Colorado

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Now we're getting into programs where the connections are a little—or a lot—more dim. Still, Colorado could be an interesting landing spot for Allen if there's mutual interest.

The Buffs meet the two key parts of Allen's criteria: They play in a Power Five conference and their starting quarterback, Sefo Liufau, will be a senior in 2016. Head coach Mike MacIntyre has actually done a nice job with the program, but the results haven't quite been there. 

Still, this is an offense in which Allen could thrive. The Buffs have been a pass-heavy team as of late, but that's due in part to the fact they play from behind so often. Allen has all the tools to succeed throwing the ball and his underrated ability to scramble would add an extra dimension to the offense. 

Ben Kercheval is a lead writer for college football. All quotes cited unless obtained firsthand. All stats courtesy of cfbstats.com.