Zach Mettenberger the talented outcast from the Georgia Bulldogs program will not be coming to UC, at least not this summer. Mettenberger did visit campus in early May. But afterward the message board chatter about Mettenberger being bound for UC, which was pretty significant, died off almost completely. Troy tried to get in on the action after his visit to UC. But it was to no avail as Mettenberger is headed to Butler Community College in El Dorado Kansas which is the number one JUCO program in the country according to no less a source than themselves. All kidding aside Butler does have a good Football program. It is rare for Rivals top 50 JUCO list doesn't include a handful of Butler kids, last years had three, the year before boasted 7 of the top 100.
Mettenberger will try to do the Cam Newton whereby you commit to an SEC power out of high school, get booted from said SEC power after an off season arrest, transfer from SEC power to an obscure backwater community college in middle America (albeit one with a couple of surprising alums), where you manage to reinvent yourself while simultaneously proving your talent. That is probably the safest play for Mettenberger.
The bit about this piece that I find interesting comes from this article that broke the story about the transfer. (emphasis added)
When he finishes up at Butler, Zach will still have three years left to play college ball. And here’s the kicker…when he’s done in December, any other school in the NCAA can make him an offer. Troy and Cincy have already said that their offers will still stay on the table, but now they’ll have to compete against other schools!
I do find it interesting that Butch Jones and Co. are leaving that offer on the table for Mettenberger. They have already secured a commitment from Patrick Coyne in this class, who is probably the best QB prospect UC has received a commitment from. The fact that they are leaving that offer on the table is pretty illuminating on Brendon Kay's situation. Kay has had a run of bad luck when it comes to injuries. He has barely been healthy enough to get reps in fall camp or spring football since coming to UC. He wasn't able to compete in live practices this spring either. If Jones has doubts about Kay's ability to stay healthy, or more accurately, stay healthy than the Mettenberger offer makes more sense.