Florida on Sunday earned a pledge from former Colorado State quarterback Clay Millen, a rising junior with two seasons of remaining eligibility.
Millen becomes the third scholarship quarterback on the Gators roster, joining senior Graham Mertz, the Gators’ projected starter, and true freshman DJ Lagway, who is expected to serve as Florida’s primary backup.
A former four-star prospect who committed to Nevada as a member of the 2021 high school recruiting class, Millen is a second-time transfer who spent the last two seasons at Colorado State where he shined as a redshirt freshman in 2022, breaking the school record for single season completion percentage (72 percent) and earning freshman all-American recognition from College Football News.
That year, Millen threw for 1,910 yards and 10 touchdowns against six interceptions, a reasonably impressive output considering he played behind one of the most porous offensive lines in the nation and absorbed 55 sacks.
Though Millen experienced success in his first season as a contributing signal-caller at the college level, his stint as Colorado State’s starting quarterback was short lived as he was replaced on the depth chart following a 15-for-24 performance with 110 yards and an interception against Washington State in the Rams’ 2023 season opener.
With Brayden Fowler-Nicolosi taking over Colorado State’s offense, Millen did not appear again in a Rams uniform and entered the NCAA transfer portal in late December.
“I think the biggest thing this year, coming into the season, I’m an older guy now, was the focus is leadership this year,” Millen told the Loveland Roperter-Herald prior to his sophomore season with the Rams. “Keep on being a leader, leading my guys. be vocal with them. I think I’m definitely enjoying it a lot more than last year. I think I took it a little too seriously to start out. We weren’t winning games, and it wasn’t fun. I think I was a little too hard on myself, almost, but I think this year, I’m just enjoying myself and having fun. It’s a lot more fun.”
The Gators carried three scholarship quarterbacks, Mertz, redshirt freshman Max Brown and sophomore Jack Miller, in 2023 but Brown and Miller entered the transfer portal and retired from football, respectively, leaving the program with just two scholarship players, including Lagway, on its roster.
It remains unclear if Florida intends to add a fourth scholarship quarterback before the 2024 season, though it should be noted that the team added a preferred walk-on, Yale transfer Aidan Warner, this offseason and also returns walk-on Parker Leise, who spent the 2023 season in Gainesville and at times even traveled with the team while Miller did not.
Millen is the ninth scholarship transfer to pledge to the Gators this offseason, joining former Wisconsin wideout Chimere Dike, former San Diego State offensive tackle Brandon Crenshaw-Dickson, former Penn defensive lineman Joey Slackman, former Oregon defensive back Trikweze Bridges, former South Carolina linebacker Grayson Howard, former Northern Illinois defensive end George Gumbs, former Arkansas offensive tackle Devon Manuel and former Tulane safety DJ Douglas.
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