Transfer From Penn State Follows Flacco Pattern at Delaware

[dbackjon]

A larger-than-life photograph of a smiling Joe Flacco, holding up a Baltimore Ravens jersey on the day last April when he became their No. 1 draft choice, covers one wall in the waiting area at the University of Delaware football office.
Flacco played quarterback with distinction at Delaware after transferring from Pittsburgh, and he set standards that will be difficult to match. But another heralded transfer named Pat Devlin will try, motivated by many of the same reasons that brought Flacco here.

“The ultimate goal is to get to the N.F.L. and get coached along the way, to get my degree and to play the best I can play,” Devlin said in a recent interview before a spring practice.

Devlin, a 6-foot-4, 220-pound quarterback, has transferred from Penn State and enrolled as a finance major. He is chasing a goal of parlaying success at Delaware into an N.F.L. contract. There is a difference. Flacco was sensational, and one successor has already come up short.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/19/sport ... aware.html

[bluehenbillk]

Devlin comes in with more hype than Flacco or Gannon ever had at UD. Might be fair to say, with as much hype as any FBS transfer ever. We'll see in about 4+ months how he fares.

[slycat]

Interesting way to use Flaccos Ravens pic to recruit guys thinking they will make it to the NFL. As cheesy as that seems its gotten one good QB recruit.

[Ivytalk]

I'm hopeful that Devlin will succeed on his own merits and won't feel compelled to "live up to" Flacco. He can't be any worse than that Pick-Six King from Ohio State that the Hens had last year.

[SunCoastBlueHen]

Pat Devlin certainly has a lot of hype to live up to. Check out this picture and article from when he was coming out of HS.

Young Quarterbacks, Future Pitchmen



From left, with EA Sports Elite 11 logos: the high school quarterbacks Josh Freeman, Tim Tebow, Pat Devlin, Neil Caudle, Jevan Snead and Matthew Stafford.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/07/30/sport ... elite.html

Some pretty lofty company in that picture.

[Cap'n Cat]

Keeler looking for QBs in Big East locker rooms. Can't grow one of his own.

[SunCoastBlueHen]

Keeler can't grow one of his own.

This is certainly seems to be true. However, with the exception of last year's debacle the QB position has been well manned under Keeler. If they are solid students, free of off-field issues and good teammates, I couldn't care less where they came from.

It remains to be seen how this Devlin kid will work out, but not many with his credentials find their way to a I-AA school.

[SUUTbird]

Seems like a solid athlete, hope he brings the Delaware program back to where it was when flacco was there. Wondering suncoast any word yet on wether or not or when Delaware may be moving up to join the big east?

[SunCoastBlueHen]

Wondering suncoast any word yet on wether or not or when Delaware may be moving up to join the big east?

As far as I know, there was never and invite on the table for Delaware to join the Big East. There has been some speculation that UD might look to move up to I-A if the NCAA disallows the Hens to host playoff games due to the State's proposed legalization of sports betting. That, however, is nothing more than speculation and, IMHO, a very unlikely scenario. I think Delaware will be staying put for the foreseeable future.