Breaking Down the 2016 Transfer QB Market in College Football

A national champion hasn't even been crowned yet for the 2015 season, but college football's version of free agency for 2016—the quarterback transfer market—is already in full swing.

As the most important position on the roster, quarterbacks are in high demand each year. And whether it's due to coaching changes or depth-chart issues, the trend of passers on the move continues to grow.

This year's quarterback market started with a frenzy down in the Lone Star State, and pieces continue to fall into place in other areas across the country.

Some schools will gain valuable depth at the position for the future, while others will pick up instant-impact graduate transfers who will be eligible immediately.

Let's recap all the action in the transfer quarterback market so far this offseason and update some situations for those still looking for new schools.

Name	Old School	New School	Eligible in 2016?
Kyle Allen	Texas A&M	Houston	No
Austin Appleby	Purdue	Florida	Yes
Faton Bauta	Georgia	Colorado State	Yes
Will Gardner	Louisville	West Georgia	Yes
Will Grier	Florida		No
Sheriron Jones	Tennessee	Colorado	No
DeVante Kincade	Ole Miss		No
Trevor Knight	Oklahoma	Texas A&M	Yes
Morgan Mahalak	Oregon		No
Johnny McCrary	Vanderbilt		Yes
Alec Morris	Alabama	North Texas	Yes
Kyler Murray	Texas A&M	Oklahoma	No
Reese Phillips	Kentucky		No
Dakota Prukop	Montana State	Oregon	Yes
Grant Rohach	Iowa State		Yes
Patrick Towles	Kentucky	Boston College	Yes
Chad Voytik	Pittsburgh		Yes
Davis Webb	Texas Tech		Yes

Tony Gutierrez/Associated Press

Decisions finalized

The epicenter of the early quarterback transfer market was at Texas A&M.

The Aggies' two quarterbacks with starting experience in 2015—former 5-star recruits Kyle Allen and Kyler Murray—both announced their intentions to leave College Station early last month. 

Allen, who took over as Texas A&M's starting quarterback in the second half of his 2014 true-freshman season and was the original 2015 starter, decided to stay in Texas earlier this week. The strong-armed quarterback chose AAC and Peach Bowl champion Houston, where he'll compete for the job left by Greg Ward Jr. in 2017.

"I just have a lot of trust in Coach [Tom] Herman," Allen said, via Bruce Feldman of Fox Sports. "He had recruited me in high school [when Herman was at Ohio State]. I had gotten to know him extremely well. I know he can really help me grow as a man and get to the NFL."

Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports

Although Murray decided to transfer after Allen, he chose his new school in less time. The 5'11" speedster, who never lost a single game as a high school starter, signed with Oklahoma before Christmas.

Murray seems like a great fit for Oklahoma offensive coordinator Lincoln Riley's scheme when he becomes eligible to play as a redshirt sophomore in 2017. While he needs to continue to develop his passing accuracy, he was an electrifying rushing threat with the Aggies, averaging 6.32 yards per carry.

The transfers left Texas A&M with only one quarterback on its roster, but the Aggies turned the situation into a virtual "player to be named later" trade with Oklahoma.

Former Sooners starter Trevor Knight decided to transfer to Texas A&M this week, and he will be eligible immediately for the 2016 season.

The experienced Knight lost his starting job to former Texas Tech transfer Baker Mayfield in 2015 after passing for 2,300 yards, 14 touchdowns and 12 interceptions in 2014. He famously led Oklahoma to a Sugar Bowl win over Alabama at the end of the 2013 season.

Before the Texas A&M quarterback saga was finalized, Dakota Prukop was the top transfer QB story in college football.

Prukop decided to make a move from the FCS ranks after throwing for 3,025 yards, 28 touchdowns and 10 interceptions at Montana State. According to Bleacher Report's Ben Kercheval, he may be more dangerous with his legs.

"The ability to extend plays with his arm and his legs not only makes Prukop hard to physically defend in space, but forces opposing defenses to account for him at all times," Kercheval wrote last month.

He visited SEC champion Alabama, who will have a new starting quarterback in 2016, but decided to transfer to Oregon—a school that picked up FCS star Vernon Adams Jr. for the 2015 season. 

Prukop will have huge shoes to fill from Adams, who led the nation in passing efficiency in his one and only season for a warp-speed Oregon offense that struggled in a huge way when he was injured.

But unlike Adams, Prukop will have plenty of time to prepare in Oregon's offense. According to Chantel Jennings of ESPN.com, Prukop is already enrolled in classes in Eugene. Adams didn't arrive at Oregon until late in fall practice last year after some academic drama.

Other transfers who will immediately compete for starting jobs in 2016 include Austin Appleby, who joined a quarterback-hungry Florida team from Purdue.

Boston College picked up former Kentucky starter Patrick Towles, and Georgia's Faton Bauta joined former Bulldogs assistant Mike Bobo at Colorado State.

Will Gardner, who started at Louisville in the 2014 season, stepped down to Division II's West Georgia. Alec Morris will also be on the move from Alabama's crowded quarterback room to Sun Belt school North Texas.

Sue Ogrocki/Associated Press

Still on the market

While most of the big names on the quarterback transfer market have already been claimed by schools, a few impact passers are still looking for new homes.

Former Texas Tech quarterback Davis Webb could become a new starter somewhere in 2016. He threw for 44 touchdowns in his first two seasons at Texas Tech and averaged more than 300 yards per contest in 2014. 

Health woes limited Webb, and Patrick Mahomes took control of the starting quarterback job in the 2015 season. Still, Webb's 6'5" frame and high football IQ should make one school happy for the upcoming campaign.

"He has a chance to be very special," Kingsbury told Feldman in 2013. "He has one of the quickest releases and strongest arms I've been around. Very smart, intellectual thinker. Processes things very quickly. Sees the field. Great at checking to the right place."

There haven't been any reports yet of any schools leading for Webb, although Feldman wrote that SEC and Pac-12 options were the most likely landing spots for him. 

Jared Wickerham/Getty Images

Pittsburgh's Chad Voytik will also be eligible in 2016 after receiving his release from the Panthers earlier this week.

Voytik recorded more than 2,500 yards of total offense and 19 touchdowns as Pitt's starting quarterback in 2014. He lost the starting quarterback job to former Tennessee transfer Nathan Peterman this past season, the first for Pitt under new coach Pat Narduzzi.

According to Saralyn Norkus of the Cleveland (Tennessee) Daily Banner, Voytik is considering Arkansas State, Memphis, Vanderbilt, Kentucky, Indiana and Tennessee-Chattanooga.

The Tennessee native mentioned Memphis to Norkus because of new coach Jay Norvell, who was the offensive coordinator at Pittsburgh when he signed in 2011.

John Raoux/Associated Press

Elsewhere, Will Grier is looking for a new school.

He broke out as Florida's new quarterback in 2015 and went 6-0 as a starter with 10 touchdowns and just three picks before receiving a one-year suspension for testing positive for a banned substance.

Even without the suspension, Grier would have to sit out one season for his new team due to the NCAA's transfer rules. He will be eligible again for 2017.

Other SEC quarterbacks set to transfer are Ole Miss' DeVante Kincade and Vanderbilt's Johnny McCrary.

Kincade played the last two seasons as a reserve and is considering joining North Texas, according to Brett Vito of the Denton Record-Chronicle. McCrary, who started 12 games at Vanderbilt, can finish his degree this summer and be eligible for the next two seasons at his new school, according to Adam Sparks of the Tennessean.

Rick Bowmer/Associated Press

A final possiblity

There's still plenty of time for some more movement in the market, especially with the fluid roster situations across the country.

The biggest rumor right now in that area revolves around BYU senior Taysom Hill.

When he was healthy for the Cougars, Hill was one of the most exciting dual-threat players in the country, racking up more than 4,000 yards of offense in 2013 (he's only been able to play in eight games since).

With Bronco Mendenhall leaving BYU to become the new coach at Virginia and Tanner Mangum breaking out as a freshman starter in 2015, Hill is expected by some to finish his eligibility elsewhere.

According to Dick Harmon of the Deseret News, Mendenhall and his new Virginia staff have reached out to Hill:

Michigan has also been connected with Hill's name since the regular season, and Matt Brown of SB Nation's Vanquish the Foe mentioned Stanford as another possible landing spot for the Cougar quarterback.

Of course, Hill has had three straight season-ending injuries, and his health may prevent him from playing another season in Provo or anywhere else.

Still, if he leaves BYU for the 2016 season, another school could cash in on a veteran talent and send the market spinning once more. 

Statistics courtesy of CFBStats.com. Recruiting information courtesy of 247Sports.

Justin Ferguson is a college football writer at Bleacher Report. You can follow him on Twitter @JFergusonBR.