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Pete ThamelESPN
Drew Pyne, one of the top available quarterbacks in the NCAA transfer portal, is transferring to Arizona State from Notre Dame, he announced Monday.
Pyne visited ASU over the weekend, according to sources, and clicked with first-year head coach Kenny Dillingham. Pyne appreciated Dillingham’s work in developing Bo Nix at Oregon last year and was attracted to the program’s new energy and playing for a quarterback-friendly head coach.
According to sources, Pyne also felt the momentum building within the program.
The addition of Pyne marks the 26th new recruit or transfer brought in since Dillingham’s hire in late November, and Pyne left Tempe wanting to be part of that program’s building. While ASU needed to reload on the offensive line, it’s arguable that none of the individual commitments was bigger than Pyne.
Pyne will have three years of eligibility remaining. He comes to ASU after starting 10 games at Notre Dame last season, leading it to an 8-2 record and finishing No. 20 nationally in individual quarterback efficiency in the regular season. Pyne completed 22 touchdown passes and 64.6% of his passes overall. That 8-2 record included a 4-1 record against top 25 teams.
Pyne impressed the Arizona State staff with his productivity in a pro-style system that’s generally conservative and lacked dynamic weapons, as tight end Michael Mayer was Notre Dame’s top pass game threat. Pyne showed toughness in both his ability to create plays and take hits. While Pyne isn’t physically imposing at 6-foot and 205 pounds, he showed the ability to stay healthy and absorb hits without getting injured. He also took care of the ball, showed quick twitch on his throws and the ability to deliver from different platforms.
Arizona State finished last season 3-9, as many of the program’s top players fled to the transfer portal after the 2021 season as former coach Herm Edwards’ program unraveled. Edwards was fired in September.
The addition of Pyne gives Dillingham’s rebuilding effort a linchpin player for the upcoming seasons. He’ll join a few solid offensive weapons, as both sophomore receiver Elijhah Badger (866 yards) and sophomore tight end Jalin Conyers (422 yards) emerged last year as two of the more promising young skill players in the Pac-12.