Transfer Tracker: 2020 5-star QB enters portal
Mark Pszonak contributed to this report.
The transfer portal never stops grinding. After a year of rumors, 2020 five-star quarterback Harrison Bailey decided that his time at Tennessee had ended as he officially entered the portal on Wednesday afternoon.
Recruiting: Bailey committed to Tennessee at the conclusion of his junior season. While he never seriously wavered, both Georgia and Miami made serious pushed to try to get him to flip but he decided on the Vols over Michigan in the end.
At Tennessee: As a true freshman, Bailey started the final three games of the 2020 season. He completed 48 of 68 passing for 578 yards and four touchdowns. This season he only played in one game, finishing 3 of 7 for 16 yards. He did have a rushing touchdown.
Potential landing spots: While returning home to play for Georgia was the initial thought by many, it doesn't look likely that the Bulldogs will seriously pursue. The other school that tried for a late flip in 2019, Miami, is a school to keep in mind. Other schools that should make a run at Bailey include South Carolina, Georgia Tech, LSU, Ole Miss, North Carolina, Pittsburgh and Florida State and keep an eye on Michigan as he and Jim Harbaugh connected.
Farrell’s Take: This comes as no surprise as Bailey was bound for the portal after he wasn't named the starter or the backup this season for the Vols. Obviously he has a ton of upside with his five star ranking but you have to wonder why he couldn't beat out transfers Hendon Hooker and Joe Milton for the starting job. Bailey has a live arm and showed some signs in the few games he played in. Based on his position his impact rating is very high.
Impact Meter: 8.9 out of 10
IMPACT METER
The Transfer Portal continues to change the way college football programs recruit and manage their rosters so we here at Rivals.com continue to evolve our coverage. Each time a player of note enters the portal, we will examine their potential impact on the college football landscape and assign an impact rating, both when they enter the portal and when they choose a destination. The scale is from 1-10 and the description below explains the scoring scale.
1.1-4.0 — Not a big impact expected, likely a non-starter and down the bench depth player.
4.1- 6.0 — A solid impact can be expected in the right scenario and has the potential to battle for a starting job.
6.1-9.0. — A high impact player who won’t change a program but will certainly be a very good contributor and starter.
9.1- 9.9 — A very high impact player who should start the moment he steps on the field and will change the outlook of a program immediately.
10 — A franchise transfer who has a chance to be an All American and one of the elite players in college football.