QB Henton To Transfer

QB Antonio Henton will return to his home state and play at Georgia Southern, ending a disappointing run at Ohio State. Rumors had swirled about the Internet for months, but the speculation was officially ended this week.

Henton was a fast-rising 3-star when he was recruited in 2006. Buckeye coaches and fans saw him as the heir apparent to Troy Smith, a mobile dual-threat quarterback with a strong arm and leadership skills. But that potential never came to fruition, and his time in Columbus will probably be more remembered for an embarrassing arrest than any on-field exploits.

Henton redshirted in 2006 and was given an opportunity to compete for the starting role in 2007. He lost that competition to Todd Boeckman, but many fans expected Henton to take over at some point. The coaches also had him prepped to take on a bigger role, or at least run special packages as a change of pace. But his arrest in the fall led to a suspension and things just never got better. by the time Henton returned, Boeckman had solidified his hold on the #1 spot and never looked back. There was some chatter about Henton being used in the BCS Championship game, but that never materialized.

During the recruitment of uber-prospect Terrelle Pryor, many assumed that Henton would have to leave the program. With Boeckman the starter in 2008, Pryor would be the logical choice to succeed him in 2009. But it might have been walk-on Joe Bauserman that really did the most damage. He reportedly outperformed Henton all spring, leaving Henton on the wrong end of the depth chart before Pryor even arrived.

Henton will have three years left and is headed to a school where his high school coach is an assistant. He's the second quarterback to transfer this off-season, joining former 4-star Rob Schoenhoft, who left for Delaware.

Buckeyes fans should wish Henton good luck - we'll certainly be rooting for him. The best in-game memory I have of Antonio was his TD pass to Taurian Washington in the season opener against Youngstown State. It was a gorgeous strike and looked like the future - a young, athletic passer hitting a true freshman in stride for an exclamation point on the game. Hope Antonio has many more of those in the next few years.