Gunslinger Buzz Daily - May 8, 2023 (FREE)

QB recruiting & transfer portal news

Photo courtesy of Auburn Athletics

Plenty of quarterbacks went off the board this weekend with 10 QBs committing to or from FBS programs in addition to three recruiting commitments with two in the Power 5. We’ll get into all of it but first, we’ve got some big news on a Monday.

Inside Today’s College Football QB Report…

🏈 College Football QB Report

🏈 Depth Chart & Injury Report

🏈 Transfer Portal Report

🏈 Recruiting Report

🏈 NFL Draft Report

🏈 Upcoming Key Dates

Subscribers get a weekday afternoon college football newsletter covering the quarterback injury, depth chart, transfer portal, recruiting and NFL Draft news of the day. A special game day guide is sent on Saturday mornings.

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Monday message from The Gunslinger Buzz

We’ve been on a roll in subscriptions recently with high newsletter open rates and a Twitter account that doubled in followers over the last month. Who knew a college football newsletter would have this much interest near the halfway point of the offseason? Thanks to you and thanks to the transfer portal.

Because you love college football enough to pay attention to this nonsense in early May and because I love you, we’re adding to the content options next month. The Gunslinger Buzz is starting a podcast covering quarterback recruiting and transfer portal news with guests who will make us smarter. After spending multiple seconds thinking about a title, I got a little creative and it’ll be called The Gunslinger Buzz Podcast.

The free podcast will be available on video so while you cannot subscribe on audio formats yet, sign up to the new YouTube channel. Paying subscribers will have access to bonus episodes every week, and more information will be released leading up to the launch.

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COLLEGE FOOTBALL QB REPORT

Quarterback Central | Teams | Players

Auburn adds Michigan State transfer QB Payton Thorne
SCOOP: Payton Thorne
It was fairly clear Auburn wanted to add a transfer quarterback this spring, and it picked up Payton Thorne (Stats), a two-year starter at Michigan State. Robby Ashford (Stats) and Holden Geriner (Stats) were the top two options after TJ Finley (Stats) hit the portal last week. Thorne’s status as the Spartans’ starting quarterback was in question this spring, so there’s no guarantee he steps in and immediately takes over at the top of the depth chart.

North Carolina lands 2024 3-star QB Michael Merdinger
SCOOP: Michael Merdinger
Michael Merdinger (FL) did it all this weekend with an offer, visit and commitment to North Carolina. He added a Minnesota offer recently, and his only other Power 5 offer came from Georgia Tech before joining the Tar Heels. Merdinger will be a part of a quarterback room that just signed 4-star Tad Hudson (Stats) from the 2023 class.

2024 3-star QB Trey Petty commits to Illinois
SCOOP: Trey Petty
Trey Petty (MS) picked up an Illinois offer about a month before this announcement and visited campus in the final weekend of April. He chose the Illini over finalists West Virginia, San Diego State, Tulane, Indiana and Georgia Tech.

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DEPTH CHART & INJURY REPORT

Week 1 College football QB depth charts & injuries

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TRANSFER PORTAL REPORT

FBS Transfers - 2023 | 2024
Juco Transfers - 2023 | 2024

Texas A&M adds Fresno State transfer QB Jaylen Henderson
SCOOP: Jaylen Henderson
Conner Weigman (Stats) and Max Johnson (Stats) competed for the Texas A&M starting quarterback spot this spring, and a decision isn’t expected till fall camp. Jaylen Henderson (Stats) didn’t see much playing time a few spots behind Jake Haener (Stats) at Fresno State, but Aggies' offensive coordinator Bobby Petrino may view Henderson differently. It’d be surprise if he starts Week 1, but this is a quarterback battle worth monitoring.