5 Tobias Merriweather transfer destinations that could unlock Top 100 recruit's potential
Tobias Merriweather is one of the best wide receivers in the transfer portal. Where could he go?
By John Buhler
With Notre Dame's regular season in the books, now is the time for players like Tobias Merriweather to enter the transfer portal. While he could conceivably return to South Bend for another year or two, especially if the Fighting Irish land former Duke star Riley Leonard in the transfer portal as Sam Hartman's long-term replacement, Merriweather will be coveted by other elite college football teams.
Coming out of high school, Merriweather was a four-star recruit in the 2022 recruiting cycle out of Camas, Washington. While one would think a blue-chipper like he was in-state would be ripe for the picking for a place like U-Dub, keep in mind that Kalen DeBoer had just taken over an ineffective Jimmy Lake in Seattle. Merriweather committed to Notre Dame over places like Stanford and Oregon.
If Merriweather were to leave South Bend, one would think he would be going to a program closer to his native Washington out on the West Coast, or possibly to a place with some Notre Dame ties. Because of his immense talent, Merriweather will not have a hard time finding a new place to play ball at, should he want to leave Notre Dame altogether. He may want to stay, but he could be moving on.
If he does indeed transfer, here are five potential landing spots for the former four-star wide receiver.
5. Arizona Wildcats are really trending up under Jedd Fisch in Year 3
The Arizona Wildcats were once a program where top-flight talent was harvested from in the transfer portal, but now entering year four under Jedd Fisch's watch, U of A could be the harvesters. Arizona massively overachieved this season to finish with a brilliant 9-3 record for its standards. With a big move to the Big 12 next season, Arizona could potentially be in play for a receiver like Merriweather.
Arizona has found its guy under center in quarterback Noah Fifita. For what he lacks in size, he makes up for in being a damn good football player. As long as Fisch stays at Arizona, we can expect for the Wildcats to be anything but a pushover in whatever league they play in. Should Billy Napier continue to circle the drain at Florida, Fisch might be the top candidate to replace him over at his alma mater.
Admittedly, Merriweather leaving Notre Dame for Arizona feels like a bit of a stretch. He would probably need a sweet NIL deal to help pull this transfer off, but the fact we are even considering Arizona, which is historically a basketball school, for one of the best wide receivers potentially on the market, signifies what type of ascending program Fisch is running. It is a good time to be at Arizona.
If this were a year from now, I would venture to guess Merriweather would seriously consider Arizona.