Florida football: Possible transfer destinations for Feleipe Franks

Florida football has been in a quarterback drought for the better part of the last decade. Under Dan Mullen, the Gators have fixed the quarterback room, but the wealth at one position will lead to transfers.

Florida football QB Feleipe Franks announced his intent to leave UF in an Instagram post today.

Franks ended 2018 on a strong note and gave fans hope for a big jump heading in this season, but an injury in the third game sidelined Franks for the rest of the year.

Franks’ size and athleticism make him a strong candidate to play in the NFL one day. However, he’ll likely need another year to develop as a pro prospect.

Here are some top-potential landing spots for the former Florida football starter.

Boston College

According to a Yahoo! Sports report, ex-Florida Offensive Coordinator, Steve Addazio, has been fired after seven season at Boston College.

The Eagles have been a run-first, defensive-oriented team under the hard-nosed Addazio and the athletic administration could look to go with a more wide-open style of play of with their next hire. Either way, Franks would be a nice one-year stopgap for a new coach who inherits a couple of young signal-callers.

Kansas

Yes, Franks flipped his commitment at the last minute from a Les Miles-led LSU staff, but I’m sure Miles will harbor no hard feelings if Franks were to express interest in joining the Mad Hatter in Lawrence.

The Jayhawks finished the year at 3-9 (1-8 in Big XII), but Miles needs to replace starter QB Carter Stanley (RS SR) and Franks could be the answer.

Iowa

Franks fits the size profile of Iowa quarterbacks in the recent years of the Kirk Ferentz era. The Hawkeyes could use some experience at the position with the departure of QB Nate Stanley.

This would be an attractive landing spot for Franks since Ferentz has strong NFL ties and Iowa should be in the hunt to win the Big Ten West next season.

Maryland

Head coach Mike Locksley will likely hit the recruiting trail hard in search of a steady quarterback after one injury-plagued season from Virginia Tech transfer Josh Jackson.

There’s a good chance Jackson will return to College Park, but Franks should get a look by the Terps’ coaching staff.

Michigan State

The Spartans have been buried by Michigan, Penn State, and Ohio State in the last couple of seasons, but it wasn’t that long ago that Mark Dantonio had MSU in the hunt for the Big Ten title on an annual basis.

The Brian Lewerke era is mercifully coming to an end at quarterback in East Lansing and Dantonio will be expected to make some changes to an offense that has produced bleak results over the last two seasons.

Franks could provide a jolt for the Spartans while they work to transition the offense.

Rutgers

According to NJ.com, Rutgers is bringing back Greg Schiano as its head coach. Schiano’s new staff will likely have enough challenges in year one and may not view a one-year transfer as a solution at quarterback, but the Scarlet Knights should consider pursuing Franks.

Schiano’s recent NFL ties may appeal to Franks as he preps for the 2021 NFL Draft.

Arkansas

Fayetteville may not be the right fit for Franks since the Razorbacks will likely return QB K.J. Jefferson (FR), QB Jack Lindsey (RS JR), and QB Nick Starkel (RS JR).

However, if a new coach decides to look outside of the program for the next starting quarterback, Franks’ experience as a starter in the SEC should stand out in the transfer portal.

Central Michigan

The Chippewas depth chart current features two seniors and a freshman and Central Michigan is led by former UF head coach, Jim McElwain.

McElwain was able to convince Franks to flip from LSU to Florida at the last minute. Though the two struggled as a pair in Gainesville, Franks has grown as a player and McElwain took CMU from one-win to playing for a MAC title next weekend.

The familiarity between McElwain and Franks could be enough to reunite the two for one last season.