Nebraska Football: Losing Luke McCaffrey to transfer portal isn’t shocking

Nebraska football fans aren’t loving the news of Luke McCaffrey transferring, but it’s news that most probably saw coming. 

This time last year, Nebraska football fans were hoping to see Luke McCaffrey really push for the starting quarterback job in 2020. Adrian Martinez had a slump of a season in 2019 and that seemed to open the door for McCaffrey to swoop in and be the hero.

While McCaffrey did have his hero moments early in the season, it was mostly downhill from there. His first start of the season saw him and the Huskers win 30-23 over Penn State (who was winless at that point) in what came down to the defense having to show up big.

McCaffrey was praised for his efforts in that game, but his next start went rather poorly, as he threw for 134 yards and three interceptions. It was in that game that Scott Frost and the Nebraska Cornhuskers were right back where they started — Without a legitimate option to turn to at quarterback.

After McCaffrey struggled, Martinez re-earned the job and finished out the season as the team’s quarterback. While McCaffrey would have had a shot to unseat Martinez again this offseason, he’d also be competing with freshman Logan Smothers, who the program is optimistic about.

Nebraska football fans shouldn’t be upset with Luke McCaffrey.

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With the transfer portal rules, it’s easier than ever for college players to switch schools if they’re unhappy with their current situation. In a lot of cases, players can transfer and immediately play the following season, which wasn’t always the case before.

McCaffrey clearly feels like he can be a starter elsewhere, so why not enter the transfer portal and see if that dream can happen? While I personally don’t think McCaffrey is talented enough at quarterback to start for a Power-5 team, he could really flourish with a Group of 5 program.

McCaffrey could have been a bigger part of Nebraska’s offense had he been willing to switch positions, but we know how these kids are. If they’re quarterbacks, that’s the position they want to play. McCaffrey didn’t want to be a running back. He wanted to be the one under center, taking the snap and throwing the ball.

It’ll be interesting to see where McCaffrey ends up in 2021 and beyond. While his brother has made a name for himself in the NFL, that doesn’t seem to be a legitimate option for Luke, but hopefully, he does well. Nebraska fans wish him the best for sure.

Go Big Red!