Former Utah QB Nate Johnson To Transfer To Vanderbilt

The former Utah quarterback revealed where he will finish his career after entering his name into the college football transfer portal

Following the news that Cam Rising was returning for a seventh season, the Utah quarterback room saw a couple of departures.

The first to go was Nate Johnson, who started the year as the backup to Bryson Barnes but ended up taking over as the starter after a couple of slow starts from Barnes. His tenure as the starter lasted a few weeks before the Utes turned back to Barnes, and ended up starting him the rest of the way outside of the last game when he was unavailable, but by that time Johnson was no longer with the team.

On Sunday evening, the California native revealed where he will be finishing his career, as he will be in the SEC next year, and announced his plans to transfer to Vanderbilt. 

@Greg_Panelli @CoachDanny10 @PeteThamel @VandyFootball @RoscoesMr pic.twitter.com/Gc5oROF7Ux

— Nate (@Shaboinate3) December 18, 2023

Johnson showed flashes of being a promising quarterback for the Utes, but struggled with consistency in the passing game and was also limited by the play-calling. He has made it quite clear he wants to play quarterback despite calls for him to switch positions due to his athleticism. In Nashville, he should have a pretty clear path to being the starter, being that the Commodores have lost three quarterbacks to the portal. 

In seven games this season, Johnson threw for 499 yards and three touchdowns, while completing 54% of his passes, sporting a 46.7 QBR. He also rushed for 235 yards and four touchdowns on the year.

If used correctly, he can be quite the weapon for an offense, but the Commodores are certainly in the midst of a rebuild being that they lost three quarterbacks, their second-leading rusher, and their three top receivers.

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