Former Tennessee quarterback Harrison Bailey committed to Florida football on Monday afternoon, three seasons and two school after he transferred away from the Volunteer program.
BREAKING: Louisville transfer QB Harrison Bailey has committed to Florida, @SWiltfong_ reports
The former Tennessee, UNLV signal-caller was the No. 4 QB in the 2020 class behind Bryce Young, DJ Uiagalelei, and CJ Stroud. https://t.co/7GoicW7Z8B pic.twitter.com/0V8HjzrET0
— On3 (@On3sports) January 20, 2025
Bailey entered the transfer portal earlier this month after spending two seasons as a walk-on at Louisville. Florida hosted Bailey on a visit last week and the veteran quarterback threw for the Gators’ staff. Following the visit, both sides felt that it was a good fit and Bailey committed to Tennessee’s SEC rival.
At Florida, Bailey will compete for the backup quarterback job behind freshman quarterback DJ Lagway. Lagway started the back half of the season for Florida last season where he completed 59.9% of his passes for 1,915 yards, 12 touchdowns and nine interceptions.
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Lagway became Florida’s full-time starting quarterback after Graham Mertz suffered a season-ending knee injury in the Gators’ loss at Tennessee. Florida went 6-1 in games that Lagway started during the 2024 season though it included games against Samford and Tulane.
A former top 50 recruit, Bailey signed with Jeremy Pruitt and Tennessee in the 2020 recruiting cycle before spending two years in Knoxville. Bailey started briefly to end the 2020 season but earned most his playing time off the bench, completing 51-of-75 passes for 594 yards, four touchdowns in two interceptions.
Bailey was Tennessee’s third string quarterback in 2021 behind both Hendon Hooker and Joe Milton III and announced his plans to transfer in the middle of the season.
The Atlanta native transferred to UNLV after the season where he spent most of his lone season in Las Vegas as the Runnin’ Rebels backup but did start a game late in the season. Bailey completed 30-of-58 passes for 318 yards, two touchdowns and one interception at UNLV.