College football player wins starting QB job at his 4th school
Dec 28, 2021; Birmingham, Alabama, USA; Auburn Tigers quarterback TJ Finley (1) looks to pass against the Houston Cougars during the first half of the 2021 Birmingham Bowl at Protective Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Marvin Gentry-USA TODAY Sports
The fourth time was the charm for college football journeyman TJ Finley.
In January, the 22-year-old Finley committed to Western Kentucky, the fourth stop of his amateur career.
On Monday, Hilltoppers head coach Tyson Helton officially named Finley the team’s starter for their season-opening game. Finley edged out redshirt sophomore Caden Veltkamp in a competitive QB battle.
Helton revealed the decision during a Monday press conference. But while Finley will take the first snap against Alabama on Saturday, the hierarchy could flip throughout the season.
“TJ will run out there first,” Helton said, via On3’s Dan Morrison. “But I’ve told both quarterbacks that they both need to be ready to play. We’ll see how the game goes. I feel like at camp, either one of those men were deserving of being the starter. You can flip a coin to be quite honest. Somebody has to run out there first.”
Finley has not been shy about taking advantage of the transfer portal.
The 6’7″ signal-caller started his career at LSU back in 2020, splitting time as the starter with Max Johnson. Finley then transferred to Auburn, serving as Bo Nix’s backup during his first year there.
After once again failing to win the Auburn starting job in 2022, Finley moved to Texas State in the Sun Belt Conference a year later. Finley started in all 13 games for Bobcats and finished top-5 in the conference in both passing yards (3,439) and passing touchdowns (24).
With NIL money pouring in, players like Finley have had plenty of incentive to prolong their college football careers. Just ask the Oklahoma State QB who looked mighty proud to be entering his 7th season.
