ESPN: Former Arizona State, Notre Dame QB Drew Pyne commits to Missouri

Former Arizona State quarterback Drew Pyne has committed to Missouri, via the NCAA Transfer Portal, per ESPN’s Pete Thamel.

Pyne only appeared in two games at Arizona State after dealing with injuries throughout the year. As a result, he only completed 26 of 49 passes for 273 yards and two touchdowns, along with three interceptions.

Before transferring to Arizona State, Pyne spent three seasons at Notre Dame. The Connecticut native received scarce minutes in his first two seasons before assuming the role of QB1 in his redshirt sophomore year.

In the 2022 campaign, Pyne completed 164-for-254 passes, throwing for 22 touchdowns against just six interceptions. In 10 starts, Pyne led the Fighting Irish to an 8-2 record, including a 4-1 mark against top 25 teams.

Drew Pyne played high school football at New Canaan (CT) where he was a four-star prospect. He was the No. 238 overall recruit in the 2020 cycle, according to the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies.

Most recently, Pyne has been finishing his degree back in South Bend while exploring the transfer portal. Evidently, Pyne liked what he saw in Missouri. In a visit this weekend, Pyne committed to head coach Eli Drinkwitz and Co. He will have three seasons of eligibility remaining.

With Pyne, Missouri has added 10 players in the transfer portal, four former four-star recruits. The Tigers’ success has earned them the No. 10 spot in On3’s Transfer Portal Team Rankings. Nonetheless, not all of Missouri’s 2024 talent is from the portal.

Drew Pyne has competition for the QB1 spot

The team will return its starting quarterback Brady Cook next season. In 2023, Cook completed 66.1 percent of his passes for 3,317 yards. He also had 21 passing touchdowns. Cook also rushed for 319 yards and an additional eight touchdowns.

With spring practice rapidly approaching, Drinkwitz met with the media where he spoke about Cook. There, he emphasized just how consistent Cook has been, including in how he practices, regardless of whether or not he’s in a quarterback battle. 

“I don’t think ever since, Brady hasn’t changed really since Week 3, after we beat K-State,” Eli Drinkwitz said. “He’s kind of been the same, consistent person. Not looking over his shoulders, just being uniquely him. He’s driving a much nicer car because of an NIL deal and I’ve seen a couple more commercials on Instagram and stuff. So, maybe we’ve got to make sure he’s not gonna be a celebrity quarterback, but he’s Mr. Consistent.”

Despite how different the situation is moving forward for Brady Cook, Eli Drinkwitz doesn’t expect any change from him in practice.

“So, I don’t really worry about that part of it. I don’t think that he’s approaching Spring a whole lot different than how he approached bowl practice with something to prove.”