Report: Will Grier transferring from University of Florida

Will Grier is reportedly transferring from the University of Florida.

The Will Grier saga at the University of Florida has now taken another twist. According to Bruce Feldman, the redshirt quarterback is planning on transferring from the Gators.

Here’s a cliff notes version of the Grier story: As a high school player he broke records across the board. There were questions during the recruiting process about whether his statistics were inflated, given the level of competition. Nonetheless, Grier was brought in by Florida’s former regime – heavily recruited by Will Muschamp, D.J. Durkin, Kurt Roper and Chris Leak.

During a turbulent 2014 season, one that saw ineffective quarterback play from Jeff Driskel and Treon Harris play well in spurts – but also miss a game due to a domestic violence allegation – Muschamp never burned Grier’s redshirt (something that might have well saved the coach’s job).

Come the 2015 season, Grier battled with Harris for the starting position, eventually pulling away after the latter missed time in camp due to a family emergency. Grier’s game progressed as the season went along, and Florida started gaining momentum. Then, in a shocking revelation, the quarterback was popped for using performance enhancing drugs and given a one-year suspension by the NCAA. An appeal from Grier and Florida fell on deaf ears, and the suspension was upheld.

Florida’s offense regressed under Harris, and the future looked murky for the Gators at the quarterback position. One guy who’s more athlete than quarterback lined up under center. And then one guy who’s a promising quarterback, but won’t be around until the midway point of 2016 – which in the climate of the SEC means the season could be already in the trashcan.

Grier’s decision to transfer is a bit out of left field, but not all that surprising. When he came to Florida, head coach Jim McElwain was tepid at best on the quarterbacks he had inherited. With uncertainty at the position’s future, McElwain has been hitting the recruiting trail hard.

It’s likely that Grier and his family were upset by the team pursuing five-star quarterback Jacob Eason, who eventually stuck with his original decision to attend Georgia. Along with the recruitment of Feleipe Franks, as well as the comedy of errors during his two years in Gainesville, Grier’s family likely felt that the young man needed a change of scenery.