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SMU backup QB Preston Stone to hit portal but will be with Mustangs for trip to Penn State

Greg Pickelby:Greg Pickel•12/10/24•

GregPickel

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SMU backup quarterback Preston Stone is entering the NCAA transfer portal, he announced on Tuesday night. However, the senior plans to stick with the team for the remainder of its College Football Playoff run, which starts at Penn State on Dec. 21, while looking for a new home. Stone led the Mustangs to the AAC title game in 2023 and entered 2024 as the starter but was replaced by now first-year starting quarterback Kevin Jennings in December. He, of course, led SMU to the ACC title game.

“This December, I will be graduating from the Cox School of Business and entering the transfer portal as a graduate transfer,” Stone wrote on social media. “The goal set out at the beginning of this season was to win a national championship, and that goal is still within reach. I plan on keeping my commitment to my teammates to finish the remainder of this season as a Mustang and doing whatever I can to help us win it all.”

More: Pennsylvania native is Penn State’s first offer in the Transfer Portal

Stone’s decision to go into the portal was expected. His decision to stick around, however, is key as the No. 11 Mustangs look to upset No. 6 Penn State as an 8.5-point underdog. Jennings and Stone have thrown almost every pass this season for head coach Rhett Lashlee’s team.

If Stone would have up and left now, SMU would be down to just Jennings and redshirt freshman Keldric Lucker, who has completed just one of two passes this season. So, it goes without saying that SMU would have been in a world of hurt for its CFP opener if anything happened to Jennings in the lead up to it or on game day. Now, at least, it will have two talented passers to try and navigate Tom Allen’s Penn State defense. Jennings is the leader of the offense. But, at least for one more game, Stone will be preparing to come in if needed.

As for Penn State, it has two players already in the portal. Neither were going to make an impact on the postseason run regardless of whether they stuck around or not. Backup tight end Jerry Cross and defensive tackle T.A. Cunningham are both moving on. Others could join them later this week. The fall portal window runs until Dec. 28.

Penn State-SMU is set for Noon ET on Dec. 21. TNT will televise the contest.

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