Tennessee quarterback J.T. Shrout reportedly intends to enter NCAA transfer portal

And the hits just keep on coming.

After some solid outings to close the 2020 season, quarterback J.T. Shrout intends to enter the NCAA transfer portal. Pete Thamel broke the news on Tuesday afternoon.

Shrout follows senior quarterback Jarrett Guarantano to the portal, who entered on Saturday after Tennessee’s loss to Texas A&M. Shrout, a redshirt sophomore, should have three seasons of eligibility remaining wherever he lands.

True freshman Harrison Bailey took over the starting job from Jarrett Guarantano with three games left in the season. Tennessee used both Bailey and Shrout in a two-quarterback system during that time, getting both experience in an attempt to build towards 2021. Clearly, that tactic didn’t work with Shrout.

Shrout is a former three-star prospect out of California. He was one of Jeremy Pruitt’s first commitments at Tennessee, joining the Volunteers while former offensive coordinator Tyson Helton was running the show.

Regarded as a raw prospect with plenty of upside, Shrout redshirted as a freshman and saw his first playing time in 2019. He flashed against South Carolina last season, and looked like Tennessee’s most physically gifted passer in 2020. Though he was certainly rough around the edges, his live arm was exciting.

Harrison Bailey was definitely the more efficient of the two, which is exciting considering that he still has four seasons of eligibility remaining. He now becomes the clear favorite to win the starting job in 2021, though he will have to hold off Brian Maurer and incoming four-star Kaidon Salter.