ASU quarterback and former top recruit Blake Barnett to transfer
Apr 25, 2018, 1:04 PM | Updated: Apr 26, 2018, 11:55 am
Arizona State quarterback Blake Barnett pulls back for the throw during spring workouts on Tuesday, March 14, 2017, in Tempe, Ariz. (Photo by Tyler Drake/ Cronkite News)
(Photo by Tyler Drake/ Cronkite News)
Junior quarterback Blake Barnett will transfer from Arizona State after just a single season and two appearances with the Sun Devils. Barnett’s father, Lance, confirmed the news to ArizonaSports.com’s Craig Morgan.
FOX Sports’ Bruce Feldman added that Barnett, a former top-five quarterback recruit, will visit South Florida as he searches for a new team.
Barnett joined ASU for the 2017 season after beginning his career at Alabama, where he started the 2016 season-opener for the No. 1 Crimson Tide but lost his starting job midway through that game. He would only appear in two more outings for Alabama before transferring and committing to an Arizona State staff led by head coach Todd Graham, offensive coordinator Chip Lindsey and passing game coordinator Jay Norvell.
Norvell was hired as the head coach at Nevada within a week of Barnett’s commitment, and Lindsey left to take the Auburn offensive coordinator job a month after that.
Barnett lost the competition for the starting job to incumbent Manny Wilkins, then only appeared in two games of clean-up duty last season under Lindsey’s replacement, Billy Napier. Barnett went 3-for-5 for 40 yards and an interception.
Further coaching turnover followed this offseason. Graham was fired by the Sun Devils, and Napier took the head coaching job at Louisiana-Lafayette after ASU replaced Graham with Herm Edwards.
Barnett was competing for the second-string job with sophomore Dillon Sterling-Cole in spring ball. That would have continued into the fall with ASU needing to replace senior starter Manny Wilkins in 2019.
— SunDevilSource.com (@SunDevilSource) April 25, 2018
Moving forward for ASU, Wilkins returns for his senior season, while redshirt freshmen Ryan Kelley and Kevin Brown, plus junior Dillon Sterling-Cole provide the remaining depth.
Barnett is the second quarterback to transfer out of ASU since Edwards’ arrival. Brady White left the school in January and landed with Lindsey’s predecessor, Memphis head coach Mike Norvell.
Barnett was the No. 3-ranked quarterback recruit in the 2015 class, while White was the No. 7-ranked prospect, according to 247 Sports.
