Big Ten Roundup (Aug. 14): Former Wisconsin QB Named Florida Starter, Ohio State Lands 4-Star
The Graham Mertz experience was not every Wisconsin fan's favorite cup of tea, but he's Florida's problem now.
Midway through the 2022 season, Wisconsin fired coach Paul Chryst following a loss to Illinois. At the end of his fourth season in Madison, Mertz decided he'd rather spend his final seasons of college football in Gainesville, transferring to the SEC East power during the offseason. Florida coach Billy Napier named Mertz the team's starting quarterback on Friday, while Wisconsin and new coach Luke Fickell will trot out their own transfer starting quarterback in 2023 — Tanner Mordecai, formerly of SMU.
In basketball news, coach Chris Holtmann and Ohio State earned a commitment from four-star prospect Colin White in the class of 2024.
Here's everything you need to know in today's Big Ten Roundup:
Graham Mertz Named Starting QB at Florida
Mertz ending what was supposed to be a promising career at Wisconsin with a 16-for-27 passing performance for zero touchdowns and one interception in a depressing loss to Minnesota seemed only fitting.
Nevertheless, the former Badgers' quarterback is set to take over for the Florida Gators in 2023.
Mertz beat out former Ohio State transfer Jack Miller II, and redshirt freshman Max Brown for the starting job at Florida, Napier announced on Friday. Mertz came to Wisconsin in 2019 as the highest-ranked quarterback commit in the program's history, but both he and the team largely disappointed from 2020 and onward.
Over the course of Mertz's three seasons as a starter, Wisconsin finished with a combined record of 19-13, and failed to win the Big Ten West. Mertz did not play in the Badgers' 2022 Guaranteed Rate Bowl win over Oklahoma State.
Mertz left Madison with 5,405 career passing yards, 38 touchdowns and 26 interceptions, numbers reflective of his frustrating, up-and-down play. Despite this being his fifth season in college football, Mertz is listed as a redshirt junior at Florida, and has two years of eligibility remaining.
Florida finished the 2022 season with a 6-7 record, and Mertz's first action with the Gators will be in a brutal season opener, as UF travels to Utah to take on the two-time defending Pac-12 champions.
Colin White Commits to Ohio State
Even following Ohio State's disastrous 2022-23 season, where the Buckeyes finished with a 16-19 record, Holtmann still can bring in mighty fine talent on the recruiting trail.
On Sunday, 2024 four-star prospect Colin White from Ottawa, Ohio, committed to Ohio State, choosing the Buckeyes over programs such as Northwestern, Cincinnati, Butler and TCU.
White joins four-star prospect John Mobley Jr. as the second commit in Ohio State's 2024 recruiting class, which is ranked 16th overall in the country, according to 247 Sports.
For more on the commitment of White, check out the full story on our sister site Buckeyes Now.
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