Ohio State quarterback Tate Martell is in the NCAA transfer portal.
The move comes six days after Justin Fields confirmed speculation that he would transfer from Georgia to Ohio State, where Dwayne Haskins was leaving for the NFL. And while entering the transfer portal doesn't guarantee a transfer, given Martell's comments prior to Fields' transfer, his intentions seem clear.
Where might Martell land?
For what it's worth:
The 2017 four-star prospect was recruited to Columbus by running backs coach Tony Alford and then-offensive coordinator Tim Beck. Alford is still on Ryan Day's staff, while Beck — who visited Martell several times during Martell's high school career at Bishop Gorman High School in Las Vegas — left for the same position at Texas prior to Martell's arrival in early 2017.
Prior to his commitment to Ohio State, Martell pledged his services to both Washington (July 2012) and Texas A&M (August 2015). He committed to Steve Sarkisian's staff at Washington but also visited Seattle — while still committed — during Chris Petersen's first season.
Washington has another former Georgia quarterback in Jacob Eason, who's eligible — and the heavy favorite to start — in 2019. In Tucson, Khalil Tate will be a senior next year.
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Martell was also recruited by Dan Enos while Enos was Arkansas quarterbacks coach and offensive coordinator. Enos is expected to replace Mike Locksley as Alabama offensive coordinator (Update: Enos is leaving for the Miami). Jalen Hurts is also in the transfer portal and Tua Tagovailoa is expected to enter the 2020 NFL Draft, though Tua's brother, Tualia, is arriving in Tuscaloosa this year.
Also, former Crimson Tide offensive coordinator Lane Kiffin failed in luring Martell to Alabama. Gus Malzahn offered him, as did Les Miles (at LSU), Mike Gundy and Clay Helton.
