WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (WGHP) — A record-setting quarterback has entered the NCAA transfer portal, ESPN is reporting.
Sam Hartman, who set the ACC record for touchdown passes while playing for Wake Forest, has entered the portal as a graduate transfer.
Hartman has started for 45 games at Wake Forest, with a 27-18 record during his time with the Demon Deacons.
ESPN is reporting that Notre Dame is a strong favorite to snap up Hartman, as their quarterback Drew Pyne transferred to Arizona State.
Sources have told ESPN that Hartman is seeking a “high-end situation to keep him from declaring for the NFL draft” and that he will be spending a week looking at his options.
Scouts believe that transferring may improve his stock in the NFL draft. They say as of now, he’d likely be a third-day, sixth or seventh-round draft pick, if he got picked at all. His NFL prospects may be improved by a school has a “pro-style system” versus Wake Forest’s “slow mesh system.”
Wake Forest is expecting the loss of Hartman, ESPN says.
Hartman will leave Wake Forest as one of their all-time greats. He led them to victory in the 2021 Gator Bowl and the Gasparilla Bowl this year.
A blood clot took him out of action early in the season, but he returned after receiving a diagnosis of Paget-Scroetter syndrome.
Third-year quarterback Mitch Griffis will likely replace Hartman for the Deacs.
Wake Forest will open the 2023 season against Elon and plays at Notre Dame on Oct. 28.
