BREAKING: NC State QB MJ Morris to enter transfer portal
NC State sophomore quarterback MJ Morris will enter the transfer portal. The second-year signal-caller played four games for the Pack before choosing to redshirt earlier this year.
On3’s Hayes Fawcett broke the news Thursday morning.
Morris, considered by many NC State’s quarterback of the future going into this year, will hit the portal as a redshirt sophomore, preserving three seasons of eligibility. He played his final game for the Pack Nov. 4, leading the program to a win over Miami.
He finished his Wolfpack career with a 4-2 record as a starter. He threw for 719 yards, 7 touchdowns and 5 interceptions over four starts during the 2023 season. He defeated Marshall in his season debut, lost to Duke and then recorded wins over Clemson and the Hurricanes.
The sophomore went into this season with the plan to redshirt after graduate Brennan Armstrong won the starting job earlier in the year. Following a loss to Lousiville in week five, the coaching staff approached him about taking on the starting job.
Morris took on that responsibility before informing the coaching staff later in the year that he was still considering redshirting. He led the Pack to a win over Miami and declared his decision to redshirt to the staff the following day.
“I was surprised by that because he was our starter, and I didn’t expect that for a starting player to want to sit back down,” Doeren said. “… After the fourth game, he was very decisive in telling me that it was important to him and his family to preserve his redshirt. We’re honoring that decision.”
Doeren did not originally make a statement on the quarterback change publicly because he hoped to maintain a competitive advantage going into the Pack’s contest with Wake Forest.
In the following games, the sophomore practiced with the scout team and did not dress out for any games. Armstrong took over as the starting signal-caller and led the program to wins over Wake Forest, Virginia Tech and UNC to wrap up the regular season.
NC State heads into next season with 1 scholarship quarterback already on its roster, true freshman Lex Thomas. Class of 2024 signal-caller Cedrick Bailey Jr. is also committed to the Wolfpack, so the program is on-pace to start the season with a pair of signal-callers with 0 college snaps.
For that reason, expect NC State to look towards the transfer portal for the second year in a row for
