Report: Two unexpected landing spots emerging in Spencer Rattler sweepstakes

Oklahoma quarterback Spencer Rattler was the favorite to win the Heisman Trophy entering the season, but after the emergence of Caleb Williams, Rattler’s Heisman hopes diminished.

Now, not only are Heisman hopes all but gone, but so is his head coach, as Lincoln Riley on Sunday accepted the head coaching job at USC. One day after Riley’s departure, Rattler followed suit, announcing on Twitter that he is leaving Oklahoma to enter the transfer portal.

Not long after Rattler made the leap to the transfer portal, a report from Matt Miller emerged with two potential destinations for the former five-star quarterback, and both should come as a surprise.

“Lot of people are going to expect he lands in USC, but… I think SMU and South Carolina are more likely and better options for him,” Miller said.

Rattler penned a message to Oklahoma Sooners’ fans in his Twitter announcement Monday.

“Sooner Nation: Thank you for allowing me to be a student-athlete at this prestigious institution. Thank you to every teammate and coach these last three seasons. We won several games together and made memories that I will cherish forever. Special thanks to my family and friends for your support. Thank God for the game of football. It’s the ultimate team sport and brings people and communities together unlike anything else,” Rattler wrote on Twitter. “At this time, I would like to announce that I have decided to enter the transfer portal to continue my academic and athletic career. Thank you again, Oklahoma. I will miss you.”

Rattler, a redshirt sophomore who was in his second year as the Oklahoma starter, has had a disappointing year at the helm. He was first benched and replaced by Williams against Texas, with the Sooners down 35-17 with 6:36 left in the first half. Riley made the change after a Rattler fumble, his second turnover of the Red River Showdown.

Williams ultimately led one of the most iconic comebacks in recent college football memory and the largest comeback Oklahoma has ever mounted in the 117-year history of the Red River Rivalry. 

Since his benching against Texas, Rattler has appeared in just three games, serving as a change-of-pace option behind Williams, the freshman. He’s completed 10 of his 12 passes for 112 passing yards and one touchdown in very limited snaps against Texas Tech, Baylor and Iowa State. In the Baylor game, after Williams got off to a sluggish start, Oklahoma fans began chanting for Rattler in hopes that Riley would make the change.

On the year, Rattler was 140-for-187 with 1,483 yards, 11 touchdowns and five interceptions, completing 74.9 percent of his passes. In 2020, he was named CBS Sports’ freshman of the year, hence the Heisman hype entering this season. His stats paled in comparison to last year, when he posted 3,031 passing yards, 28 touchdowns and seven interceptions, while completing 68 percent of his passes in the abbreviated 2020 season.

A native of Phoenix, Arizona, Rattler was a consensus five-star recruit and the No. 1 quarterback in the 2019 recruiting class. He served as the backup to Jalen Hurts his freshman season, before taking over as starter in 2020, then being benched in 2021.