Houston QB D'Eriq King to Redshirt to Preserve Final Year of Eligibility
Houston quarterback D'Eriq King announced he is redshirting his senior season, he said in a statement released by the school.
"I came here to play football for the University of Houston and that is not changing," King said. "After carefully thinking through this process with my family and Coach (Dana) Holgorsen, I have decided the opportunity to redshirt this season gives me the best chance to develop as a player, earn my degree and set me up for the best success in the future. I'm looking forward to being a part of the success of this program going forward."
Senior wide reciever Keith Corbin also announced he would redshirt the remainder of the year to focus on his degree.
"Having the opportunity to take time and focus on the completion of my degree, plus having the chance to develop as a student-athlete is why I have decided to redshirt for the remainder of the 2019 season," Corbin said in a statement. "Coach Holgorsen, myself and my family both took time to make this decision. Being a Cougar has been one of the best decisions I have made, and I'm ready to take this time to help our program develop for the future."
The statement came after it was reported earlier Monday by Fox 26 and the Houston Chroniclethat he was considering sitting out the rest of the season to preserve his final year of eligibility to use elsewhere. King's statement did not explicitly say he was returning in 2020 for sure.
According to the outlets, King may redshirt this season at Houston and transfer to another program in 2020. Since he has played only four games in 2019, he would be eligible under the redshirt rule to preserve a year of eligibility. A new NCAA rule allows a player to appear in a maximum four games and still retain a year of eligibility. King and Corbin played in all four games this season.
Earlier in the day, King's father, Eric King, told Fox 26 that his son would indeed leave UH, though King told the station his decision was not finalized.
"It's the best decision for him at this point," King's father said, per Fox 26. "Very, very tough (decision). He's got a lot of teammates riding on him. Sometimes you got to be a little self-centered and do what's best for you."
In 2018, King passed for 2,982 yards and 36 touchdowns before being sidelined with a knee injury. He set the FBS record for consecutive games with a passing or rushing touchdown with 15 against Tulane on Thursday, passing former Florida quarterback Tim Tebow's record.
King has passed for 663 yards and six touchdowns in the first four games under new coach Holgorsen.
One year ago, former Clemson QB Kelly Bryant announced he would transfer after taking a redshirt after playing in the first four games of the season. Bryant is now the starting quarterback at Missouri.
