Why the QB got in where he could land

On December 16, 2024By Littum

STARKVILLE — Mississippi State football quarterback Michael Van Buren Jr. enters the transfer portal.

Van Buren, a freshman, announced his intentions to enter social media Tuesday. The portal officially opened on Monday.

Van Buren started eight games this season after starter Blake Shapen suffered a season-ending injury against Florida. He is a former four-star prospect who transferred to MSU shortly after coach Jeff Lebby was hired last year.

Van Buren completed 56.5% of his passes for 1,886 yards, 11 touchdowns, seven interceptions with -12 rushing yards and five rushing touchdowns.

Why did Michael Van Buren Jr. leave? into the transfer portal?

Van Buren came to Mississippi State in a competition for the second-string quarterback spot, beating out the more experienced Chris Parson. He was put into the starting role after Shapen’s shoulder injury.

Five of Van Buren’s eight starts were against teams currently ranked in US LBM Coaches Pollincluding road starts at Texas, Georgia and Tennessee, all of which are College Football Playoff teams. However, Van Buren didn’t look like a true freshman in many of those games. After his debut start against Texas, he scored three touchdowns in four consecutive games against Georgia, Texas A&M, Arkansas and UMass. He struggled a bit in the final three games of the season, but there were many indicators that he is capable of being a starting college football quarterback.

As the season ended, dominoes began to fall for Van Buren to enter the transfer portal.

Shapen, who transferred from Baylor last season, announced Tuesday that he will return for the 2025 season. Mississippi State is also reportedly tied to Oklahoma quarterback Jackson Arnold, a former five-star transfer who Lebby coached for one season. Two of Van Buren’s other four-star freshmen receivers, Mario Craver and JJ Harrell, are also already on the transfer portal. The Bulldogs signed four-star quarterback KaMario Taylor last week.

Michael Van Buren Jr. transfer portal landing sites

Van Buren was committed to Oregon before signing with MSU, so maybe the Ducks could ask if they need a quarterback. He is from Bowie, Maryland, near Baltimore and Washington, DC if he wants to be closer to home. Otherwise, there may even be some SEC teams that want Van Buren.

Mississippi State football players in the transfer portal

Van Buren is the 23rd Mississippi State player to announce intentions to enter the transfer portal.

WR Creed Whittemore
WR JJ Harrell
WR Trent Hudson
QB Chris Parsons
LB TB Hinton
LB Ty Cooper
LB John Lewis
DL Gabe Moore
TE Rayfield Lotten
CB Brice Pollock
S Kobe Albert
OT Makylan Pounders
CB Khamauri Rogers
WR Antonio Harmon
LB Javae Gilmore
LB Marcus Ross
Olympic Amari Smith
CB Raydarious Jones
S Chris Keys Jr.
WR Mario Craver
RB Keyvone Lee
DL Gavin Nelson
QB Michael Van Buren Jr.

When does the transfer portal close?

The college football transfer portal opens on December 9th and closes on December 28th.

Sam Sklar is the Mississippi State reporter for the Clarion Ledger. Email him at [email protected] and follow him at X @sklarsam_.