Following in the footsteps of star RB Silas Redd, three more Penn State players – TE Kevin Haplea, LB Khairi Fortt, and QB Rob Bolden– have decided to exercise their right to transfer in the wake of the crushing sanctions handed down by the NCAA.
Haplea, a junior, will transfer to Florida State and have two years of eligibility left. Last season he had three receptions for 21 yards and a touchdown but was predominantly used to block for Redd, who amassed 1,262 yards and seven rushing touchdowns last season.
Entering 2012, he was the backup TE to Garry Gilliam, who had only one catch for 21 yards last season. Penn State also has a pair of 6-foot-7 tight ends in Jesse James and Matt Lehman, both expected to compete for playing time. James, a freshman, was a three-star recruit.
Fortt will transfer to University of California after logging 33 tackles and one sack last season. The junior was expected to challenge for a starting spot at LB alongside veterans Gerald Hodges and Michael Mauti. Instead, junior Glenn Carson, a returning starter, will fill the void. Carson had 66 tackles last season.
“The friends I’ve made here are friends for life,” Fortt told Dave Ruden of the Stamford Advocate. “Some people have different paths,” he said.
Bolden, a junior who saw time in 10 of Penn State’s 13 games last season, will transfer to LSU, according to the New Orleans Times-Picayune. He’ll immediately be the backup to junior QB Zach Mettenberger as the only other quarterbacks on the Tigers are freshmen.
Penn State head coach Bill O’Brien named senior Matt McGloin his starting QB in early June so the Nittany Lions figure to have enough depth to withstand Bolden’s loss. Sophomore Paul Jones, who doesn’t have any game experience, was listed as the No. 2 QB on PSU’s summer depth chart.
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