Report: Notre Dame QB transfer Malik Zaire has chosen Florida
It’s been talked about for nearly all off-season, but it appears that Notre Dame graduate transfer QB Malik Zaire has chosen the Gators over the Longhorns.
Alex Wilcox, of WNDU-TV in South Bend, is reporting that Zaire has been telling people he’s chosen Florida, but that he’s just waiting on the SEC to change its graduate transfer rule. That could come as early as this week at the SEC’s spring meetings. Reports surfaced recently that Zaire was down to Florida and Texas, but that he was waiting on the SEC to reverse the rule.
Sources tell me former Irish QB Malik Zaire is telling people he has chosen Florida, is now just waiting for SEC to change transfer rules. https://t.co/byta4Mph34
— Alex Wilcox (@AlexWilcoxTV) May 28, 2017
Currently, the SEC doesn’t allow schools that have previously taken graduate transfers who did not hit certain academic requirements once transferring from taking further graduate transfers, and it’s a three-year period. Florida is one of those schools. The Gators took graduate transfers Anthony Harrell and Mason Halter, and neither met the league’s academic requirements back in 2015.
However, when the SEC meets for its annual spring meetings this week, it could reverse the rule.
Redshirt freshman QB Feleipe Franks looks like he is the leading candidate for the starting QB job, but with Zaire potentially coming to Florida, it could shake things up a bit. Currently, Zaire has one year left of eligibility.
In three seasons at Notre Dame, Zaire threw for 816 yards and six touchdowns. If nothing else, he could help bridge the gap to Franks and give the position more competition. Remember, Florida also has Luke Del Rio with eligibility, and he’s recovering from surgery and will compete for the job this fall.
Nonetheless, Jim McElwain wants competition at QB, and it looks like he’ll have it this fall.