Texas QB Casey Thompson enters the NCAA transfer portal

Fallout from the Texas Longhorns adding former Ohio State Buckeyes quarterback Quinn Ewers to an open quarterback competition set for the spring was always inevitable, with the decision by Casey Thompson on Friday to enter the NCAA transfer portal as a graduate transfer serving as the first attrition.

It’s the second time Thompson has entered the portal — after the Sugar Bowl win to start 2019, Thompson joined Shane Buechele and Cameron Rising in the portal, but eventually removed his name.

A consensus four-star recruit from Newcastle (Okla.), Thompson was ranked as the No. 291 player nationally and the No. 14 dual-threat quarterback in the 2018 recruiting class, according to the 247Sports Composite rankings.

Thompson redshirted his first season on the Forty Acres, serving as the fourth-string quarterback behind Sam Ehlinger, Buechele, and Rising.

After electing to return to Texas for the 2019 season, Thompson held the role as Ehlinger’s backup for two years, attempting 12 passes as a redshirt freshman before replacing Ehlinger due to injury during last year’s Alamo Bowl against Colorado and impressing by hitting 8-of-10 passes for 170 yards and four touchdowns.

Thompson competed with redshirt freshman Hudson Card throughout spring practice and preseason camp before Card was named the starter prior to the season opener against Louisiana. When Card stumbled against Arkansas, Thompson made his first career start against Rice and largely played at a high level before injuring his thumb against Oklahoma.

Battling through the injury despite aggravating it multiple times throughout the season, Thompson ended the 2021 campaign with 10 starts, going 165-of-261 passing (63.2 percent) for 2,113 yards with 24 touchdowns and nine interceptions.

With Thompson’s decision, the four scholarship quarterbacks set to compete this spring are Card, the redshirt sophomore, redshirt freshman Charles Wright, Ewers, the redshirt freshman, and early enrollee Maalik Murphy.