Report: Ball State QB Neal to transfer to Vanderbilt

Quarterback Riley Neal, a three-year starter at Ball State, reportedly will transfer to Vanderbilt and be eligible to play next season. Neal confirmed to 247Sports.com that he will make a move to Vanderbilt as a graduate transfer. He had announced earlier that he would transfer from Ball State. Vanderbilt will need a new starting quarterback next season to replace Kyle Shurmur, who has been the Commodores' starting quarterback each of the past four seasons. Shurmur will play his final college game in the Dec. 27 Texas Bowl. "They obviously were in the market for a quarterback, I was looking for a school that needed a quarterback," Neal said, according to 24Sports.com, a recruiting website. "I went there and visited with their staff and saw everything and it was a good fit. "They have a lot of guys returning. Their team has some good players that have a year left. Their quarterback situation, you're not going to go anywhere where they're going to tell you it's a lock but they don't have a ton of guys on their roster and they're graduating their starter." Neal started the last nine games of his true freshman season in 2015, then started 11 games the following year. He started the first three games of 2017 before suffering a season-ending injury. Neal started the first nine games of this season, but again an injury ended his season. This season, Neal completed 57.9 percent of his passes with 11 touchdown passes and four interceptions. His primary competition for the starting job at Vandy is expected to be redshirt sophomore Deuce Wallace and true freshman Allan Walters. Wallace was Shurmur's backup in 2017, but was suspended for the entire 2018 season.