JD Spielman Reportedly Transferring To TCU
Former Nebraska football receiver JD Spielman is reportedly transferring to the TCU Horned Frogs.
Jeremy Clark of HornedFrogBlitz reported on Saturday said multiple sources confirmed the player’s eventual landing spot. Spielman had been reported to have been interested in the Big 12 team for several weeks.
Clark said the big question now is whether or not Spielman is going to be able to play for the Horned Frogs this season. He entered the transfer portal earlier this spring, but there is a chance he will have to sit out 2020.
The wideout first took a leave of absence from the Huskers citing a “personal health matter.” He later officially transferred but hasn’t yet graduated from Nebraska. He also already used up his redshirt year.
The player needs to get a special waiver in order to take the field this coming season. Clark said sources told him that waiver has already been granted.
When Spielman left the Huskers, several analysts around the player’s family thought his eventual landing spot would be the Minnesota Golden Gophers. He’s from Minneapolis and his father, Rick Spielman, is general manager for the NFL’s Minnesota Vikings.
Perhaps because of his only having one more season to play, and the waiting period that might have occurred with a transfer in the conference, Gophers’ head coach PJ Fleck never pursued him.
There is at least a tangential tie to Minnesota if the reports of Spielman going to the Texas-based school are correct. Former Gophers’ head coach Jerry Kill is now the special assistant to the head coach for the Horned Frogs. It’s not clear whether Kill and the elder Spielman had a relationship. Kill did briefly recruit the wideout out of high school, though retired due to health reasons before Spielman played a down of college football
Based on 2019 statistics, Spielman would be the leading receiver for TCU.
Last year, he had 55 catches for 830 yards and two touchdowns. He could be sliding into the spot vacated on the team by Jalen Reagor who was selected by the Philadelphia Eagles in the 2020 NFL Draft. Reagor hauled in 43 passes for 611 yards and five touchdowns. The number two receiver a year ago had just 29 catches for a little over 300 yards.
When Spielman first left the Huskers in the spring, there was some hope that he might eventually return. The coaching staff reportedly kept in contact with him in case he decided he wanted to still be a member of the team. It appears those hopes are now officially dashed.
