10 Best College Football Graduate Transfers of the Past Decade
Thanks to Everett Golson's move to Florida State and the continued debate over NCAA legislation, the graduate transfer is the hottest topic in college football this offseason.
Since the NCAA adopted a rule in 2006 that granted immediate eligibility for any transfer player who had already graduated with a degree, the movements of these so-called "college football free agents" have been nothing short of controversial for the last decade.
But when it comes to their impact on the field, many of these transfers have just been average at their new schools. Some have been complete failures, while others—such as Jake Coker's heavily hyped move to Alabama—still have a chance to be worthwhile this upcoming season.
While the rule has been famous for shuffling quarterbacks across the country, players at other positions have also been able to boost their playing careers after graduation.
With the number of graduates heading to new schools growing by the day, here is a look at the 10 of these transfers who had the most success at their final destinations.
10. QB Greg Paulus (Duke to Syracuse)
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Sure, Paulus' stats were far from outstanding during his lone year at Syracuse, but he deserves special mention on this list for changing both schools and sports.
New York's Mr. Basketball and the 2004 Gatorade National Football Player of the Year decided to start his collegiate career on the hardwood at Duke. After four seasons of basketball for the Blue Devils, he decided to transfer back to his home state and play quarterback for Syracuse as a graduate student.
Although Paulus had 14 interceptions and went 4-8 as the starter for the struggling Orange program in 2009, he threw for more than 2,000 yards and completed 67.7 percent of his passes. Those results weren't bad, especially for someone who was away from the football field for four years.
9. LB Houston Bates (Illinois to Louisiana Tech)
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While most graduate transfers are moves from smaller schools to bigger schools or lateral ones, Bates excelled with his recent move down to Conference USA's Louisiana Tech from the Big Ten's Illinois.
Last year, the former starting Illini linebacker transferred closer to his home of Covington, La., after graduating from the school. Bates finished 2014 as one of 22 players in college football with double-digit sacks—largely thanks to his performance against his former school.
Bates led the Bulldogs defense with an astonishing 4.5 sacks in Louisiana Tech's 35-18 victory over Illinois in the Heart of Dallas Bowl.
His work in his senior season earned him a pro contract, as he signed with Washington as an undrafted free agent last month.
8. QB Clint Trickett (Florida State to West Virginia)
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The son of a Florida State assistant coach, Trickett started his career in his hometown of Tallahassee with the Seminoles and backed up starter EJ Manuel for two seasons. Trickett decided to transfer to West Virginia, one of his father's former schools, after losing the position battle in 2013 to Jameis Winston.
The graduate Trickett was injured in one of his first games at West Virginia, a 30-21 win against Oklahoma State, and he was never 100 percent for the rest of the Mountaineers' disappointing 4-8 season.
After recovering from his injuries in the offseason, Trickett was named West Virginia's starting quarterback for the 2014 season and started well, throwing for at least 300 yards in each of the first eight games of his senior season.
But Trickett suffered a concussion late in the year against Kansas State and decided to end his playing career early. He is now coaching at JUCO powerhouse East Mississippi CC.
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7. OT Matt Patchan (Florida to Boston College)
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Patchan is the first of two former Florida Gators who joined Steve Addazio at Boston College. The 6'7" lineman started his career in Gainesville in 2008 and started several games at right tackle in 2011, but he missed most or all of the 2009, 2010 and 2012 seasons due to injury.
With immediate eligibility for 2013 at Boston College, Patchan started every game for the Eagles at left tackle and played a huge part in paving the way for running back Andre Williams' monster season. He was a two-time ACC Offensive Lineman of the Week in a season that featured 2,177 rushing yards and 18 touchdowns for Williams.
Patchan's breakthrough campaign at Boston College finished with second-team All-ACC honors. The formerly injury-plagued offensive lineman is now back in his hometown of Tampa as a practice-squad member of the Buccaneers.
6. QB Garrett Gilbert (Texas to SMU)
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One of the highest-rated quarterback prospects of the last decade, the start of Gilbert's career did not go well at all. As a true freshman, he famously checked into the 2009 BCS National Championship Game for the injured Colt McCoy and committed five turnovers in Texas' failed comeback against Alabama.
He threw 17 interceptions as the Longhorns' full-time starter in a disastrous 2010 season and was benched early into the 2011 campaign. Gilbert got his degree from Texas and transferred to SMU in 2012, where he starred for two seasons in the Mustangs' Run and Shoot attack.
Gilbert's 2013 season at SMU was particularly impressive, as he finished fourth in the country with 352.8 passing yards per game and broke numerous school records—he had 635 yards of total offense and six touchdowns in one game against Temple. Gilbert was a seventh-round pick for the Rams and is now a member of the Patriots.
5. RB Charles Sims (Houston to West Virginia)
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Trickett isn't the only offensive difference-maker who benefitted from a graduate transfer to West Virginia in 2013. Sims decided to finish his collegiate career with the Mountaineers after receiving his degree from Houston, and it paid off in a big way.
The bruising Sims rushed for 1,095 yards and 11 touchdowns in his lone year with West Virginia. Despite West Virginia's 4-8 record, Sims was still named the Big 12's Offensive Newcomer of the Year and a member of the All-Big 12 first team for his standout season on the ground.
Sims' move to a Power Five conference helped him gain more attention from pro scouts. The Buccaneers took him 69th overall in the 2014 NFL draft, and he capped his rookie season in Tampa Bay last year with a rushing touchdown against the Saints.
4. QB Tyler Murphy (Florida to Boston College)
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Although he was a borderline 2-/3-star recruit out of Connecticut, Murphy signed with Florida in 2010. He waited on the bench until the 2013 season, when he came in for an injured Jeff Driskel against Tennessee and helped the Gators win his first three games of action.
Then Florida hit its seven-game losing streak to end the campaign, and Murphy was injured during a homecoming loss to Vanderbilt. Like Patchan before him, Murphy decided to use his fifth and final year of eligibility with Addazio at Boston College, and his 2014 transfer was a great success.
As the Eagles' starting quarterback in 2014, Murphy broke the ACC's all-time record for QB rushing yards in a season with 1,179 and finished the year 7-6. He most notably ran for 191 yards and a touchdown in Boston College's upset win over ninth-ranked USC.
Murphy was an undrafted free agent who signed earlier this year for the Steelers and is lining up at wide receiver in the pros.
3. QB Ben Mauk (Wake Forest to Cincinnati)
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Mauk, the older brother of current Missouri quarterback Maty Mauk, was one of the first notable players to take advantage of the NCAA rule that allowed graduate transfers to become immediately eligible.
After starting several games in Wake Forest's back-to-back 4-7 seasons, Mauk suffered a serious injury to his throwing arm in the 2006 season opener against Syracuse, underwent major reconstructive surgery and watched from the sidelines as Riley Skinner led the Demon Deacons to the ACC title. Mauk then transferred back to his home state in 2007 and played for Cincinnati, who had a new coach in Brian Kelly.
"Bionic Ben" won the starting job and promptly led the Bearcats to their first 10-win season since 1951. Mauk threw for 3,121 yards and 31 touchdowns that season to become one of the biggest success stories of the graduate-transfer era in college football.
2. CB Ryan Smith (Utah to Florida)
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One year before Mauk became a graduate-transfer star at Cincinnati, Smith took advantage of the NCAA's new rule and became a key component of a national championship-winning defense at Florida. While his pro career never materialized, the end to his college one was fantastic.
Smith started for Urban Meyer's unbeaten Utah team in 2004 but had "a falling out with the coaching staff that took over after Meyer left for Florida," according to then-ESPN reporter Pat Forde. After Smith's father found out that the cornerback would be eligible anywhere after graduation, Smith rushed to finish his course work and joined his former coach in Gainesville ahead of the 2006 season.
As a starter for the Gators, Smith recorded eight interceptions—tied for the second-most pics in the country—and 52 tackles in an All-SEC season for the 2006 BCS national champions. Although he had one more season of eligibility with Florida, Smith declared for the 2007 NFL draft and was cut a few months after his selection in the sixth round by the Titans.
1. QB Russell Wilson (NC State to Wisconsin)
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Whenever the graduate-transfer rule is written about or discussed, there's a great chance that Wilson will be mentioned. Wilson's incredible season at Wisconsin received plenty of national attention and set the tone for a spike in graduate transfers for the next several years.
After three standout years as N.C. State's starting quarterback, a release from his scholarship and a mediocre spring of minor league baseball, Wilson came back to football in 2011 and was eligible immediately at Wisconsin. Wilson brought the spotlight to the graduate-transfer rule and the Badgers as he threw for 3,175 yards, 33 touchdowns and just four interceptions.
Wilson led the Badgers to a 11-3 record that ended with a Big Ten title and a close Rose Bowl loss to Oregon. On top of all his collegiate success, Wilson is having by far the best pro career of any former graduate transfer as a former Pepsi NFL Rookie of the Year, a two-time Pro Bowler and a Super Bowl champion with the Seahawks.
Recruiting information courtesy of 247Sports.
Justin Ferguson is an On-Call College Football Writer at Bleacher Report. You can follow him on Twitter @JFergusonBR.
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