Following reports from Sunday night that Penn State junior quarterback Rob Bolden was visiting Louisiana State University with an interest in transferring, the former starting signal-caller has reportedly been relieved of his scholarship at PSU.
Bolden's name has been removed from the team roster at Penn State's official athletic site (www.gopsusports.com), and Examiner.com national college football writer Kevin McGuire, also a featured columnist at Bleacher Report, reported via his Twitter account (@KevinOnCFB) that Bolden is no longer on scholarship.
In handing down its sanctions against Penn State a week ago - sanctions that include a four-year bowl ban and the loss of 10 initial and 20 total scholarships each year - the governing body stated that "any football student-athletes who remain at the university may retain their scholarships, regardless of whether they compete on the team." However, the removal of Bolden from scholarship is a strong indicator that he will avail himself of the opportunity to transfer with immediate eligibility, also announced by the NCAA last week.
A 6'3" native of Orchard Lake, Michigan, Bolden became the first true freshman to start at quarterback for Penn State in 100 years when he began the 2010 season under center for then-head coach Joe Paterno. He completed 112 of 193 passes that year with five touchdowns and seven interceptions, but regressed in 2011, completing just 53 of 135 passes for two touchdowns and seven picks while losing his starting spot. He finished spring practice under new head coach Bill O'Brien as the third quarterback on PSU's depth chart.
LSU is certainly in the market for an experienced quarterback, as the Tigers' current complement of QBs includes two redshirt freshmen, one true freshman and junior Zach Mettenberger, last year's third-stringer. The addition of an experienced starter in Bolden could certainly be a boon to the Bayou Bengals.
Penn State is scheduled to begin training camp next week.
