Utah QB Jake Bentley enters the transfer portal

Jake Bentley (Photo: USA TODAY Sports)

Utah senior quarterback Jake Bentley entered the transfer portal on Tuesday afternoon, 247Sports learned.

Bentley shot for 882 yards and six touchdowns against six interceptions, completing 62.1 percent of his passes in his first season with the Utes. The former four-star player came to Utah during this off-season, after three years as a full-time defender from South Carolina.

Cameron Rising started the Utah season under the center, but suffered an injury early in the Utes’ first game with the USC. Bentley took charge under the center of the rest of the way, taking Utah to a 3-2 record.

In the days since the 2020 season ended, Utah added a pair of transfer defenders at Baylor’s Charlie Brewer and Texas’ Ja’Quinden Jackson.

Bentley will be a graduate transfer at his next stop. He has the potential to be a rare sixth-year starter in college football, thanks to the NCAA’s pause in qualifying clocks during the 2020 season.

O Alabama native Opelika spent the first four years of his career in South Carolina, where he pitched for 7,527 yards and 55 touchdowns in four seasons. Bentley started the 2018 campaign as an unquestionable Gamecocks holder, but suffered an injury at the end of the season in Week 1 against North Carolina. True freshman Ryan Hilinski he started the rest of the way to South Carolina and Bentley chose to move after the season.

Bentley ranked No. 263 overall player and No. 12 pro-style quarterback in the 2016 class, according to 247Sports Composite.

The NCAA launched the transfer portal on October 15, 2018, offering athletes a way to explore their options. Players do not need to ask the technical team for permission to make the transfer. They just need to ask compliance to enter their name. It usually takes 24 to 48 hours for a player to show up after ordering. Schools are free to contact a player without restriction, as their name appears on the portal.

The portal’s first cycle saw 1,942 FBS players enter the initial calendar year of its existence, by a source.

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