San Diego State transfer turns heads at new school

Nick Boyd entered the transfer portal after leading SDSU in scoring last season

Wisconsin Badgers head coach Greg Gard. | Matt Krohn-Imagn Images

Former San Diego State Aztecs point guard Nick Boyd is drawing rave reviews at his new school, Wisconsin, and the season is still months away. 

Boyd is one of five players picked up by the Badgers from the transfer portal after a season in which they went 27-10 and reached the second round of the NCAA Tournament before losing to BYU.

Associated head coach Joe Krabbenhoft says Boyd has been impressive during summer workouts.

“He’s an exciting player in so many ways with the ball in his hands,” Krabbenhoft said on The Swing Podcast. “He’s probably the fastest guy we’ve had in a long time with the ball, and that’s going to be exciting for our fans to watch, and he’ll have the Kohl Center [rocking] going up and down the court faster than maybe we’ve ever seen, which is fun.

“But, he’s been well-schooled under both Dusty May at FAU and Coach Dutch (Brian Dutcher) at San Diego State. So, he understands how to win and what it looks like.”

Dec 21, 2024; San Jose, California, USA; San Diego State Aztecs guard Nick Boyd (2) defends against California Golden Bears guard Jovan Blacksher Jr. (left) during the first half at SAP Center. | Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

Boyd helped FAU reach its first Final Four in 2023, the same year SDSU made its first Final Four appearance. 

The two teams met in the national semifinals and Boyd was the FAU player defending SDSU’s Lamont Butler when he launched his buzzer-beating jumper that gave the Aztecs a thrilling win that will long be considered one of the greatest moments in the city’s sports history.

Boyd and Butler each played one more year at their respective schools. Butler then left for Kentucky and Boyd transferred to SDSU after May left FAU for Michigan.

Boyd had his best season yet when he led the Aztecs with 13.4 points and 3.9 assists. SDSU lost to North Carolina in a First Four game.

Wisconsin had been keeping tabs on Boyd last season and he committed after making a visit. Now he’s expected to be the Badgers’ starting point guard. 

Losing players in the transfer portal is a reality of life these days in college sports, and the Aztecs have seen some big names leave the last few seasons.

Keshad Johnson left for Arizona after leading the Aztecs with 14 points in their loss to UConn in the 2023 national championship game. Butler headed for Kentucky the following year after nabbing a big NIL deal, and then Boyd bolted for Wisconsin.

But the Aztecs are happy with the roster Dutcher has put together, particularly after Miles Byrd withdrew from the NBA Draft and 7-footer Magoon Gwath pulled out of both the transfer portal and the draft. Gwath was the Mountain West Freshman of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year.

Additionally, guard Reese Waters returns after missing last season with a foot injury.

Plus, the Aztecs signed Sean Newman Jr., Latrell Davis and Jeremiah Oden from the transfer portal, as well as incoming four-star freshmen Tae Simmons and Elzie Harrington.