The college football free agency…err I mean the graduate transfer market, is in full swing. Graduate transfers have become a highly sought after commodity throughout college football. This is particularly true at Michigan where Jim Harbaugh has recently targeted grad transfers for quick fixes to specific holes in a lineup.
Recently grad transfers have gone both ways for Michigan. Harbaugh brings them in, while other players leave the program. The biggest headline this offseason was former starting quarterback Wilton Speight announcing his intentions to seek a graduate transfer and play his last year somewhere else.
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As people wait for Speight to announce where he will play, another Michigan quarterback announced today where he will be playing next year. That man is Alex Malzone. Malzone was a highly recruited local quarterback from Birmingham Brother Rice but was unable to move up the depth chart. Today, Malzone announced his intentions to play football at Miami University in Ohio.
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Malzone is an interesting graduate transfer case since he still has two years of eligibility left. So on top of being eligible to play right away, Malzone will also get to stick around for a rare second year at Miami Ohio. He is able to do this because he graduated from Michigan a year early.
At Miami Ohio, Malzone will have to beat out returning starting quarterback Gus Ragland who threw for over 2,000 yards and 19 touchdowns. Malzone was a highly recruited four-star quarterback coming out of high school, so maybe a change of scenery is all he needs.
With Malzone’s decision, there are now just three major questions regarding Michigan quarterbacks this offseason. One, will transfer Shea Patterson be granted immediate eligibility? Two, where will Wilton Speight end up? And lastly and most importantly, who will be Michigan’s starting quarterback in 2018.