With the EA series and all of our fun story telling, we've been remiss in talking about real-life developments on Fowler Avenue. Over the last week, USF football has picked up several transfer commitments, and others are still on the horizon.
- First is running back Dontae Aycock, who is transferring after redshirting for a season at Auburn and then being removed from the team under what are still mysterious circumstances. A four-star recruit, Aycock was recruited by Jim Leavitt's staff when he came out of Tampa's Chamberlain High School in 2008, but the previous staff hoped to turn him into a linebacker. Aycock played quarterback at Chamberlain and appeared to be going to Georgia Tech early in the 2008-9 recruiting process, but signed late with Auburn instead.
Auburn claims Aycock's dismissal was for a violation of team rules, while Aycock and his high school coach, Billy Turner, say it was because he asked for a transfer. (Between Mario Fannin and five-star recruit Michael Dyer, there might not have been much playing time for him on the plains this year.) Either way, USF has offered Aycock preferred walk-on status, and even though he can't play this fall, it means he can earn a scholarship for next year if he stays out of trouble. Scott Carter talked to Turner to get more information about Aycock.
- Another transfer for next year is former Notre Dame cornerback Spencer Boyd. Boyd was a three-star defensive back at Cape Coral High School, and committed to the Irish last July before their coaching change. Boyd was far down on the Notre Dame depth chart after the spring game and recently earned the grade he needed to reach good academic standing and become eligible to transfer. Scott Carter has really been coming through with the Q&A's lately, and this time he has one as part of a comprehensive post about Boyd, including background story from the South Bend News-Press.
Once he reaches Tampa, Boyd may be switching to offense. According to Greg Auman, Boyd has been told that the Bulls will try him at wide receiver first, an area of desperate need. (It's worth noting he has a two-year-old son back in Cape Coral, although our paperwork ninjas in the compliance department don't appear to be on the case to try and get a hardship waiver to let him play this year.)
- The third transfer is the first player to follow Skip Holtz from East Carolina. Kevin Gidrey played fullback and tight end for the Pirates, and with Ruffin McNeill bringing the Texas Tech "air raid" offense with him to Greenville, Gidrey's positions have been basically eliminated. That opened the door for him to receive a graduate transfer to USF, where he will play his last season this fall.
Still on the radar screen are the transfers of NC State wide receiver Donald Bowens, and Colorado running back Darrell Scott. In the same article with the news of Boyd's transfer, Auman reports that we should find out whether Bowens has been admitted to USF's graduate school on Monday, which is the make-or-break event for his transfer request. As for Scott, it looks like nothing has really changed since the news broke last month. Let's all just keep in mind that the only source for this story so far has been Scott's Facebook page. That's not to say he won't ever end up with the Bulls, but I wouldn't start stitching a nameplate on a jersey for him yet.