Malik Zaire Officially Announces Transfer To Florida

Quarterback Malik Zaire made his transfer to the University of Florida official on Tuesday morning, sharing the news on social media.


Former Notre Dame quarterback Malik Zaire announced on Instagram Tuesday morning that he has officially transferred to the University of Florida. This doesn’t exactly come as breaking news as word of Zaire’s transfer to Florida has been circling the world of college football news for weeks.

Zaire said on Instagram, accompanied by the Gators’ logo, “Official! I couldn’t be happier to be a part of something special!! Time to get to work!!!”

The graduate transfer joins Jake Allen, Luke Del Rio, Feleipe Franks, Nick Sproles, and Kyle Trask in terms of quarterbacks listed on the Gators’ roster. It is believed that Zaire will be in contention for the starting QB job along with Franks and possibly Del Rio.

Zaire played in a total of 15 games with the Fighting Irish between 2014-16 and accumulated 816 passing yards along with six passing touchdowns and zero interceptions. He also ran the ball for 324 yards and two touchdowns while at Notre Dame.

For a team such as Florida that has been searching for that elusive star under center since the days of Tim Tebow, Malik Zaire at the very least presents Jim McElwain with some options along with Franks and Del Rio. Zaire is the oldest of the bunch and owns the most experience at the college level, but it will ultimately come down to who McElwain views as the best option for the Gators. It remains possible that Florida will use a “revolving door” strategy at the position in which there is no clear-cut No. 1 quarterback at the season’s outset – something one of McElwain’s mentors, Nick Saban, is prone to do.

The Gators open the season on September 2 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas when they take on Jim Harbaugh’s Michigan Wolverines.

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