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After three up-and-down seasons with the Fresno State Bulldogs, former Elite 11 product Zack Greenlee announced today that he will be transferring to UTEP.
Very blessed to say I will be transferring to Utep at the end of the semester. ⛏ pic.twitter.com/fM46w3nx9l
— Zack Greenlee (@ZDG_17) April 17, 2016
The Stockton native arrived in Fresno to much fanfare, and it was assumed by many that he would follow Brian Burrell as the Bulldogs quarterback. In 2014, Greenlee saw action in three games as a redshirt freshman, including an aborted stint as the starter against Wyoming that lasted roughly two quarters, and finished the year 18-of-41 for 213 yards and one touchdown.
After Burrell's departure from the program following the 2014 season, Greenlee was perceived to be the frontrunner for the starting job once more, but the coaching staff's inability to commit to one player -- as well as Greenlee's own erratic performances -- contributed to a wildly uneven 2015. He led the Bulldogs with 866 passing yards, but he only completed 47.4% of his passes, and ended the year with a 113.88 passer rating.
He showed glimpses of the quarterback many expected he could be, coming off the bench to throw three touchdowns against Utah and tying the school records with six touchdowns against Hawaii, but he never put all of his tools together for more than brief stretches. It also didn't help that Greenlee ran into some trouble with the law last year, either, missing one game after an arrest for public drunkenness. That particular event appears in retrospect to have been an aberration, however, and he leaves the program in good standing.
As a graduate transfer, Greenlee's move to El Paso means that he will be able to play immediately and compete in a quarterback competition that appears eerily similar to the one he is leaving. For more on the move, be sure to check out SB Nation's UTEP blog, Miner Rush.