Report: Justin Fields will seek eligibility waiver to play right away at Ohio State

Justin Fields is in the final stages of transferring from Georgia to Ohio State, and the former five-star recruit is hoping he does not have to sit out the entire 2019 season.

Pat Forde of Yahoo Sports reported on Friday that Fields is finalizing his transfer to Ohio State. The No. 2 quarterback in the 2018 recruiting class is expected to enroll in spring classes in Columbus, which begin on Monday. After that, he will be seeking a waiver to avoid having to follow the one-year transfer eligibility rule.

As was previously reported, Fields’ waiver request is expected to center around a racial slur that was hurled at him by a Georgia baseball player early in the 2018 season. Former Bulldogs baseball player Adam Sassler, who was dismissed from the team following the incident, was investigated by Georgia’s Equal Opportunity Office and later issued an apology.

Fields is a two-sport athlete who was considered a pro baseball prospect in high school, so he could argue that he feels the incident with Sassler makes it so he would not feel comfortable pursuing baseball at Georgia and affects his well-being on campus. If the NCAA tried to argue against that, it would not be a great look.

If Fields is granted a waiver, he would immediately compete for the Buckeyes’ starting quarterback job with Tate Martell. Judging by what Martell recently said about Fields’ impending transfer, it sounds like that competition could get a bit testy.