Texas State quarterback TJ Finley will enter the transfer portal, he announced Tuesday. The news comes one day after the Bobcats landed a commitment from Arizona transfer signal caller Jayden de Laura. For Finley, it's his third time in the portal after previous stops at LSU and Auburn.
Despite the addition of de Laura, Finley is a significant loss for the Bobcats. He started all 13 games in 2023 and immediately set the program record for passing yards in a single season with 3,439. He also had 24 passing touchdowns to just eight interceptions while guiding Texas State to an 8-5 record with a win in the First Responder Bowl under first-year coach G.J. Kinne.
It was a breakout year for the 6-foot-7 and 255-pound Finley, who started 11 games in three years at Auburn and LSU. He started five games as a freshman with the Louisiana-based Tigers but saw his role diminish in 2021 as the coaching staff turned to Max Johnson. Finley entered 2022 as Auburn's starter and was first off the bench in three games before an injury cut his year short. He re-entered the transfer portal after the midseason firing of coach Bryan Harsin.
In de Laura, Texas State will have a veteran option that can step into the starting role in Kinne's prolific offensive system. The Bobcats' new quarterback spent two seasons at Washington State before transferring to Arizona in 2022 and starting 12 games for the Wildcats. He was an honorable mention All-Pac-12 honoree after throwing for 3,685 yards and 25 touchdowns.
He started the first four games of Arizona's 2023 campaign but suffered an ankle injury that caused him to miss almost a month of action. In that span, the Wildcats turned to redshirt freshman Noah Fifita. Fifita didn't give up the starting job the rest of the year despite de Laura's eventual return to health and earned Pac-12 Offensive Freshman of the Year honors while throwing for 2,869 yards and 25 touchdowns.
