Former USC quarterback Kedon Slovis announces transfer destination

Roughly a week after entering the NCAA Transfer Portal, USC quarterback Kedon Slovis has landed on a destination: Pitt.

Slovis announced on Instagram Tuesday that he’ll be transferring to Pittsburgh to finish his collegiate career with the Pitt Panthers. Slovis is a junior, but he’ll have three years of eligibility to exhaust at Pitt due to the NCAA’s COVID-19 blanket waiver, giving student-athletes an extra year of eligibility after the 2020 season. He may not use all three, if his note in The Players’ Tribune is any indication.

“USC will always be a special place to me. But now it’s time for me to start a new chapter,” Slovis wrote. “For my next two years of eligibility, I’ll be playing quarterback at the University of Pittsburgh.”

Slovis was a three-star recruit in the class of 2019, according to the On3 Consensus, a complete and equally weighted industry-generated average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies. He was ranked the No. 40 quarterback in his class, and he entered his freshman season as the backup quarterback — that is, until an early-season injury to JT Daniels thrust Slovis into the starting role. In 2019, Slovis thrived as a first-year starter, completing 71.9 percent of his passes for 3,502 yards, 30 touchdowns and nine interceptions. He was named the Pac-12 Offensive Freshman of the Year, while picking up several other honors such as All-Pac-12 honorable mention and FWAA Freshman All-American first team.

Slovis returned in 2020 as the clear-cut starter after his strong freshman campaign, and he continued to build on that performance. Despite a shortened season due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Slovis turned in a 67 percent completion rate, good for 1,921 yards, 17 touchdowns and seven interceptions, which made him a consensus first-team All-Pac-12 selection.

However, Slovis sustained an injury in 2021, opening the door for freshman quarterback Jaxson Dart. Dart ultimately proved enough in a short span to solidify his spot as USC’s starting quarterback. Slovis finished the 2021 season with 2,153 passing yards, 11 touchdowns and eight interceptions; in three seasons, including an injury-shortened 2021 season and COVID-shortened 2020 season, Slovis tallied 7,576 passing yards with a 68 percent completion rate, along with 58 touchdowns and 24 interceptions.

Slovis enters Pitt as the heir to Kenny Pickett. Pickett put together a historic 2021 campaign, breaking numerous Pitt program records en route to a Heisman Trophy finalist nod, and Pitt amassed an 11-2 record plus an ACC Championship victory.

“I was so excited when Coach Narduzzi called, because I knew that Pitt and this program were the right fit for me to keep developing into the best leader I can be,” Slovis wrote in The Players’ Tribune. “I’m ready to win now — and talking to the players who are returning, and seeing how hungry they are for next season, that got me pumped. They have a lot of talented players coming back. And, man … getting to throw the ball to the guy who just won the Biletnikoff?? That’s something you don’t pass up. The culture and identity that Coach Narduzzi has created is everything I want to be a part of.”