Mountain West transfers to watch 2021
Logan Bonner, QB, Utah State
Bonner is another transfer who follows his coach to a new destination, joining Blake Anderson in his first year at Utah State after playing for him at Arkansas State. Bonner split time with Layne Hatcher as the Red Wolves' starting quarterback and has enjoyed a pretty accomplished college career. He was named honorable mention All-Sun Belt Conference in 2020 and has 3,166 passing yards and 30 touchdowns in his career. That experience combined with the familiarity with Anderson should allow him to take over the starting role for the Aggies.
Tate Martell, QB, UNLV
Martell's college career thus far has been a bit of a rough story. He was a heralded recruit who committed to Ohio State then transferred to Miami after losing quarterback competitions to both Dwayne Haskins and Justin Fields. He would lose the QB competition there as well, and the Hurricanes would try to use him as a receiver. He has since transferred to UNLV and will join its QB race when fully healthy. You'd have to think he'll win the job since the team doesn't get many 5-star recruits for its football program.
Terry Wilson, QB, New Mexico
Wilson had an illustrious career as far as Kentucky quarterbacks go and has been named the starter for the Lobos. He's a true dual-threat quarterback with over 3,000 career passing yards and over 1,000 career rushing yards, which is no easy feat in the SEC. A great addition to this program.
David Bailey, RB, Colorado State
Bailey ran for 1,600 yards and 16 touchdowns during his Boston College career. The way he plays reminds me much of his former BC teammate AJ Dillon--both big guys who are not just hard to bring down but have underrated speed and vision. He's a leading contender for the Mountain West's top RB and may have an NFL future.
Cyrus Habibi-Likio, RB, Boise State
Habibi-Likio has a history of scoring touchdowns. He's never had a season with over 340 yards or more than 100 carries, but he has 21 touchdown runs. He performs well when his workload increases and becomes more consistent. which should happen at Boise.
Ty Jones, WR, Fresno State
Joins Fresno after four years at Washington. Didn't see the field much at Washington after a good high school career. Big-bodied receiver at 6'4" 203 lbs who should get a chance to show his worth for the Bulldogs this season.
Tyrell Shavers, WR, San Diego State
Former top-200 recruit with an enticing frame at 6'6" 210 lbs. Comes to SDSU from Mississippi State. There's a drastic change in offensive philosophies between the two programs, and Shavers might not see as many balls thrown his way-- even as the team's No.1 receiver. Nonetheless, his physicality should be a great fit for this offense.
Quazzel White, OL, Utah State
White played a rotational role on the TCU offensive line with five starts. He's the kind of player who can help a first-year coach build a program and use the opportunity to increase his pro stock.
Zaccheus McKinney, DL, Hawaii
Former Oklahoma defensive lineman with the potential to make a difference up front for Hawaii's defense. Was not highly recruited and has not played much in college, but he is definitely one of the better defensive tackles in the Mountain West.
Byron Vaughns/Patrick Joyner, LB/DE, Utah State
Vaughns transfers from Texas after playing successfully in a depth role for the Longhorns. Joyner was the better high school player but has less playing time accrued at the college level. Both players are moving from LB to DE and should be impact players for the Aggie defense.
Elijah Gates, CB, Fresno State
Gates played in 31 games with 10 starts in four years at UCLA. His career started promisingly as he quickly displayed a knack for creating turnovers and finished with the fourth-most passes defended on the team in 2018. He saw plenty of playing time in his first two years with the Bruins yet saw his role diminished to special teams last season. Transferring to Fresno will give him a chance to build off of his 2018 and 2019 seasons.