LSU Quarterback TJ Finley Talks Decision to Enter Transfer Portal

Finley details what he's looking for in a program and how he benefitted from five starts as a freshman at LSU

In the back of his mind, TJ Finley has been thinking about transferring since the end of the 2020 season. He knew that entering this offseason, there was going to be extreme competition between four talented quarterbacks and was prepared to take on that challenge. 

But as the dust settled on spring ball, Finley knew there would come a time when one of he, Max Johnson and Myles Brennan would be moving on from the LSU program. Finley also knew that if he wanted to compete for a starting job elsewhere, he'd need to transfer during the summer so he could start building chemistry with his new team before the fall, which is why he ultimately elected to enter his name in the NCAA transfer portal this week.

"The main factor for me making this decision, I felt there was an opportunity for me to really show what I can do at another school," Finley said on the Jordy Culotta Show. "I felt like during the spring I was given that opportunity and things went well for me. I had a very good spring but it was just too many guys in our room that could play immediately. Somebody had to make the decision on which one was going to stay and which one was going to leave and I felt in my heart I could play at any Power 5 school in the country."

As a freshman, Finley gained valuable SEC experience, starting five games after Brennan went down with an injury that kept him out for all but the first three games of the season. In those five games, he certainly showed his immense potential but also showed flashes of being a true freshman. 

He completed 57% of his passes for 941 yards and five touchdowns but also threw five interceptions during his lone season in Baton Rouge. 

"It was the best thing I could've asked for," Finley said on his time at LSU. "I took the positives and going into the spring, I told myself, what did I do good at during the five games? I think it was poise, the ability to not be rattled in the moment and calm my guys down in each and every game. In each game we had successful drives but didn't come away with any points. Then I took the negatives, turning the ball over and putting the ball in harm's way and I went into the offseason and focused really on the negatives."

Needless to say, the interest is there for the now free agent Finley, who is waiting to see if the NCAA passes a rule that would allow transfers within the conference to play immediately. Teams have already started reaching out and one of the early life lessons that Finley has learned in the last day is that he never burned any bridges while going through the recruiting process the first go around.

"I have over 200 text messages in the last eight hours. It takes me back to where I was a year ago and I'm glad none of these bridges were burned coming out of high school," Finley said. "I'm grateful I treated everyone with respect and gave each coach their due dilligence during recruitment. Everything comes back full circle."

Finley is keeping his options open as he's primarily looking for a program that will allow him to compete for the starting job from day one. He's not looking for promises to be made as he knows any opportunity he gets at the next level will have to be earned. 

But ultimately the NCAA decision will weigh heavily on the time table Finley will commit as it could be in the next two weeks or perhaps a little longer until he knows what the best fit is. Regardless, all of that will figure itself out in time. 

Finley was asked to close the interview what the best trait he has as a quarterback and what a team will be getting in him when he walks on campus. 

"Natural born leader. Guys feed off of the quarterback and lets go to Auburn where I threw two interceptions, I had a fumble," Finley said. "I was still picking guys up and they were picking me up. They trusted in me and I trusted in them. No matter what happens in a game or what happens in life, I will always find a positive in any situation and make it bigger than what it's supposed to be."