By Dustin Hollinger

We’ll explore this question, the factors that have prompted transferring and the outcomes. Scholarships are a one year award. There’s been plenty of examples of the coach having to give that difficult news to a player. Injuries, poor play or better performance from a teammate has contributed to one losing their scholarship. Then there’s always a coaching change. Whenever a lion overthrows the alpha lion and takes over the pride. The new alpha will kill off the former pride leader’s offspring and replace it with his own. Same is true with a coaching change.  The worst example of this was the degenerate behavior from Wille Taggart and Irele Oderinde. Soon as the misfortune of Willie Taggart being named Oregon’s “Coach”, three players were hospitalized from Willie Taggart and his so-called strength and conditioning Coach Irene Oderinde “workouts”.  According to one player this regiment was ” to brake our will and force us to quit.” The three hospitalized players were diagnosed with Rhabdomyolysis (muscle tissue breaks down and secretes through urine). According to one of the hospitalized players, his urine was “black as cola” and when a teammate passed out or vomited, the team was punished. Two of the three hospitalized players sued the University of Oregon, NCAA and Willie Taggart. University of Oregon suspended Irele Oderinde for 30 days without pay and moving forward, Oderinde had to report to the University of Oregon Director of Sports Performance. Fortunately for Oregon, after one season Willie Taggart and Irele Oderinde left for Florida State, where they became their problem. Granted, that’s an extreme example. Now let’s dive into historical transfers on how they fared.

Vince Ferragmo: (California 1972-73 & Nebraska 75-76)

This quarterback left sunny California for the big stage. During Vince Ferragmo’s two seasons he was named a first Team AA , First Team All Big 8 (Big 12),First Time All Academic Big 8.  He went on lead The LA Rams to the NFC Championship, a close Super Bowl loss and was inducted to The Italian American Sports Hall of Fame.

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Jarvis Redwine: (Oregon St 1976-77 , Nebraska 1979-80)

When Jarvis Redwine was at Oregon St , The Beavers were in amidst of a losing season streak that started in 1971 and lasted until 1999. Jarvis Redwine said “losing put pressure on coaches and in turn the players.” So he “wanted to do something else”. Which was construction, that lost its appeal. When Jarvis Redwine joined Nebraska he was told “he’d be at the bottom of the totem pole.”  Before Bill Callahan and Steve Pederson, Nebraska had the mantra of “making a football player out of anyone”. In two years as a running back, Redwine ran for 2,267 yards averaging 7.5 yards per rush. Jarvis Redwin went on to play for the Vikings as one of the 29 Cornhusker walk ons to make the NFL.

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Troy Aikman: (Oklahoma 1984-85 & UCLA 86-88)

Troy Aikman “stayed at home” when he committed to Oklahoma. If you believe a quarterback doesn’t lose his job to injury, Joe Montana and Phil Sims say hi. After his injury, He transferred to UCLA  as Oklahoma reverted back to The Wishbone and having Jamelle Holieway operating to near perfection. A fresh start at UCLA is what the doctor ordered. Troy Aikmam lead UCLA to a Pac-10 Co- Championship and a Cotton Bowl victory. He also won the Davy O’Brien Award. When asked why no remembers him winning a national championship at Oklahoma? He replied why should they? Troy Aikman won three Super Bowl with the Cowboys and is in the Pro and College Football Hall of Fame.

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Scott Frost: (Stanford 1993-94 & Nebraska 96-97)

Scott Frost followed his brother, Steve to The Stanford. His two years there was a backup QB that was used for his strong arm and shifty runs. Stanford wanted to switch him to free safety, he went back home to Nebraska, where his dad Larry played . Scott Frost’s senior year, he lead Nebraska to 13-0. During the post game Orange Bowl celebration he said  “If the voters (AP & Coaches Polls) after watching The Rose and Orange Bowls and  thinks Michigan can beat Nebraska then vote for them. I don’t think anyone with a clear conscience can’t say Nebraska doesn’t deserve a national championship- at least a share.” AP Poll named Michigan(12-0) National Champion and The Coaches crowned Nebraska (13-0). Scott Frost played safety and special teams for four teams during his seven year NFL career.

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Mitch Mustain: (Arkansas 2006 & USC 2008-10)

Mitch Mustain was the #1 high school QB- ranked ahead of Tim Tebow. Mitch followed his high school coach Gus Malzahn  to Arkansas, where he was their new offensive coordinator. Mitch Mustain was 8-0 as The Razorback QB. Trouble arose when HC Huston Nut wanted a power run attack that showcased future NFL Running Backs: Darren MC Fadden, Felix Jones and Running/Fullback Payton Hillis. As a result, Mustain was benched for the rest of the season. Transferring to USC seemed like a perfect idea: the Trojans needed a new quarterback after his redshirt year and  USC was a national championship contender. This was a excellent place to hone his skills before the NFL.  When Mark Sanchez entered the NFL, it was expected Mitch Mustain would be next up.  Then a freshman and future NFL QB Matt Barkley beat him out for the starting job. At the time, the NCAA allowed only one transfer. In an attempt to get on the field, he tried out for punter to no avail. Mitch Mustain threw 89 passes in time at USC. Afterwards, Mitch Mustain played minor league baseball and Arena Football. Today, he’s now happily working as a firefighter where every day he has a opportunity to be a hero. 

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Stay tuned for part two. When we’ll explore how a traffic stop forever changed transferring.