Western Kentucky QB TJ Finley plans to enter transfer portal
Western Kentucky quarterback TJ Finley plans to enter the transfer portal, he announced Saturday morning. The former LSU, Auburn and Texas State quarterback will be moving on to his fifth school.
He was named the WKU starter earlier this season but injured his leg in early September and never reclaimed the starting role. In 2024, he threw for 490 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions in three games.
“He is in a backup role right now,” WKU head coach Tyson Helton said last month. “I’ve been very impressed with TJ though in the role that he’s playing, (we) always talk about master your role and he like even on the sidelines during the game I’m watching him talk to Caden [Veltkamp] and telling Caden what he sees from the sideline, so that’s extremely beneficial.”
In between his time at Auburn and Western Kentucky, Finley spent one season at Texas State. While there, he completed 67.4 percent of his passes for 3,439 yards and 24 touchdowns. He also rushed for five touchdowns.
The redshirt junior will be playing his sixth season in 2025. He’s thrown for 6,128 career yards, 37 touchdowns and 20 interceptions. He is 14−13 as a starter, too. An initial LSU commit, Finley transferred out of Baton Rouge after the 2020 seasons and spent 2021 and 2022 at Auburn.
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In 2023 at Texas State, TJ Finley led the Bobcats to an 8-5 record and the first bowl appearance in program history. He decided to re-enter the portal last spring, however, when Texas State brought in Jayden de Laura, who later left the team.
Western Kentucky played in the C-USA championship game on Friday night, losing to Jacksonville State 52-12. The Hilltoppers are 8-5 as they prepare for their bowl game.
The transfer portal officially opens on Dec. 9. More than 2,800 FBS scholarship players entered their names into the NCAA’s transfer database during the 2023-24 school year. Removing those who withdrew or went pro, the final total sat at 2,707 transfers. That means roughly 25% of all FBS scholarship players hit free agency in one year.