Delaware success attracts transfers

In 2005, Joe Flacco, a relatively unknown football player from New Jersey, transferred from the University of Pittsburgh to the University of Delaware.  In addition to the transfer of schools, Flacco also transferred to play Football Championship subdivision football from Bowl Championship Series football.  Flacco and the Hens struggled in 2006, finishing 5-6 for the season. However, in 2007, Flacco's true talent and leadership shined as he led the team to the National Championship of the Football Championship Subdivision. Since then, the caliber of transfer student-athletes has been higher than ever before for Delaware athletics. 

Student-athletes transferring to Delaware is common.  Athletes have had differences with coaches, training methods, and simply their previous schools since college athletics began years ago. However, considering the recent rise in the amount of high-profile student athletes, in moneymaker sports such as football and basketball, as well as the Olympic sports of swimming and volleyball, a question has arisen: Why are these athletes transferring to the University of Delaware?

The most notable transfer recently, Pat Devlin, lasted two years as a back-up quarterback at Penn State before deciding to become a Blue Hen, and perhaps rescue an ailing team coming off a 4-8 season. At the very least, he would start in college football games, which was a rarity while he was at Penn State.

"You just want to put yourself in a good situation," Devlin said at a press conference last week. "[Delaware] was the best situation for me."

As much of a blessing as it may turn out to be for Delaware football to have Devlin as the quarterback, it is not too surprising. Even before the days of Flacco, Delaware was considered a football school through and through. 

When it comes to sports such as swimming, it is less obvious why the elite swimmers would choose to transfer to a school not known for the sport.  Hans Gillan, a high school All- American and Florida state champion, chose to do just that. 

Gillan transferred from the University of Georgia, a Division 1 perennial swimming power that sends numerous swimmers to the NCAA Championships every year, as well as to the Olympic Trials —even the Olympics themselves. Delaware, which has posted increasingly impressive seasons over the past years, is still only a mid-major school and has yet to reach the same type of swimming record Georgia holds. 

"I wasn't connecting with my coaches (at Georgia)," Gillan said. "I wanted to continue my swimming career, and I wasn't going to be able to do that successfully there."

He cited a number of reasons for his transfer, including family and personal reasons.  He was also looking for a smaller school, and at Delaware found what he thought was a great program that he could assist in its rise up the rankings.

"I liked John Hayman, the head coach, and Rory Coleman, the assistant coach," Gillan said. "I wanted to go to a place where I could I help a team rise up from a lower rank."

Elena DelleDonne, the former USA Today National Player of the Year for high school basketball, only spent a few days at the University of Connecticut before coming back to Delaware. Her reasons for transferring were based almost solely on family reasons and a burnout from basketball. She found herself missing basketball, and after a year hiatus playing volleyball at Delaware, decided to play basketball for the Hens.

"I am extremely excited to be competing in my home state and for Coach [Tina] Martin," said DelleDonne at a press conference in June. "Basketball has been an important part of my life and I realized that it is my first love and my passion."

Although her switch from Connecticut had less to do with the sport itself, and more for personal reasons, her presence alone could have a huge impact for the women's basketball program, and higher-ranked recruits looking to play basketball.

As more talented athletes come along, competition will rise, and will perhaps attract more athletes who were looking to play at the 1-A level, rather than mid-major. 

Gillan believes this is true for the swimming program.

"When I was in high school, I personally wanted to go to a top school so I could be with the top competition," Gillan said. "So if [swimmers] see somebody performing as I am here, coming out of high school [they] would definitely be attracted. "

Ultimately, the university strives for prominence across the entire NCAA.  These athletes that choose to change schools, for whatever reason, will fuel Delaware's status in the athletic community.  As the Blue Hen community continues to appeal to more transfer athletes, it will eventually appeal to larger numbers of elite high school athletes as well. The capacity in which Delaware competes will expand to great lengths.

If anything, Gillan already believes swimming is on the rise for Delaware.

"I think we have the potential to do extremely well. There will be a couple a teams at the top jockeying for a title this year," Gillan said. "It should be fun to watch."