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Transfer Market (Part 40)
- Admin (Garrett Zatlin)
- Apr 21, 2023
- 9 min read
Have a transfer tip? Send us an email at contact@thestridereport.com and we'll look into it.
NOTE: The Stride Report is aware that there are multiple athletes who have announced their transfers who are not mentioned in this article. Those athletes will be highlighted in a future Transfer Market piece. The Stride Report is also aware that there are multiple top-caliber names currently in the transfer portal. However, out of respect for athlete privacy, TSR will not report on certain transfer portal entries until official decisions are established, commitments are made public or approvals of publishing are granted.
Izaiah Steury (Notre Dame to Oregon)
One of the bigger transfer surprises (although maybe not the biggest) of the year was just made public on Thursday. Izaiah Steury, a superstar freshman for Notre Dame, has announced that he will be joining the Oregon Ducks starting next year.
The Fighting Irish rookie is expected to hold four full years of outdoor track and indoor track eligibility as well as three years of cross country eligibility.
Steury, a former high school superstar who was originally recruited by coach Sean Carlson before he ventured to Tennessee, was beyond fantastic for the Fighting Irish men this past fall, emerging as one of the best true rookies in the entire NCAA.
The Indiana native finished 14th at the Joe Piane Invitational, 28th at Nuttycombe, 9th at the ACC XC Championships, 6th at the Great Lakes Regional XC Championships and 63rd at the NCAA XC Championships. Steury has not yet competed on the indoor or outdoor ovals as an attached collegiate, but he does hold high school personals bests of 8:08 (3k), 8:55 (3200) and 14:47 (5k XC).
The Notre Dame men are now under the leadership of new distance coach in Chris Neal as well as long-time Fighting Irish distance coach Matt Sparks. That coaching development is something that Steury likely wasn't expecting when he first signed with Sean Carlson.
This past fall, the Notre Dame men showed tons of promise. They were fantastic at their home meet, the Joe Piane Invitational, and largely matched expectations at the Nuttycombe Invite. However, postseason struggles and lineup inconsistency left the Irish vulnerable to excessive scoring in a handful of their most important races of the year.
But Steury, despite his youth, was the one constant.
The Fighting Irish will remain competitive in the fall of 2023 even without their star rookie. However, the gaps in their lineup will need to be addressed via their graduate transfers, Vinny Mauri (via Arizona State) and Rishabh Prakash (via Cornell).
And as far as long-term stability goes, losing an emerging low-stick like Steury will likely limit, or at least slow, Notre Dame's rebuild attempt to become a podium contender.
But for Oregon?
Well, this is a game-changing transfer win.
The Ducks are now under the direction of Jerry Schumacher, the famed Nike Bowerman Track Club coach who has been responsible for producing numerous Olympians. And in the past 10 months, the newest leader of the historic Eugene-based program has landed all-time elite high school recruits while developing a deep and promising young core of underclassmen.
However, with All-American low-stick Aaron Bienenfeld now out of collegiate eligibility, few Power Five programs are in greater need of upper-tier firepower than Oregon. And while there is a good chance that one of their up-and-coming younger runners could make a jump, Steury gives the Ducks a more reliable and realistic ace to rally around and (more importantly) build around.
And yes, the soon-to-be sophomore still has room to grow. He was still 20+ spots out from being an All-American last fall and he's probably not a top-30 talent, nationally, going into the 2023 cross country season...right?
But in terms of what Jerry Schumacher is building over the long-term, few guys will be more impactful on the wholistic success of a program than Steury.
Davis Bove (Transfer Portal)
The Stride Report has confirmed that LSU veteran Davis Bove has entered the transfer portal as a graduate transfer. He is expected to have one full year of eligibility across all three seasons as well as a second season of cross country eligibility.
Over the last few years, Bove has evolved into one of the more lethal milers throughout the NCAA while also flexing quietly great versatility.
The LSU standout, who is also a competitive triathlete, has run a sub-four mile (as an attached collegiate) five different times throughout his tenure with the Tigers. And of those five mile races, Bove run 3:57 or faster three different times -- ultimately recording a 3:56 mile PR in the winter of 2022.
However, Bove has developed into more than just a miler. The LSU veteran ran 7:53 over 3000 meters this past winter and has posted a few respectable cross country results. Most recently, he ran 1:49 for 800 meters and 3:39 for 1500 meters, both personal bests.
In terms of utility, there aren't many transfer prospects with as much utility as Bove. He's a true miler who can beautifully mesh speed with endurance. And with two cross country seasons still available for him to exhaust, he could eventually become a subtly great scoring piece for a competitive varsity lineup during the fall months.
Trying to figure out a new home for this current SEC standout is admittedly a challenge.
Bove is a Tennessee native, so would he opt to join Coach Sean Carlson and the Volunteers at Rocky Top? Carlson is known to go after top talents via the transfer portal and has had great success with milers, making this LSU ace a fairly solid fit for the Knoxville-based distance squad.
The appeal of Oregon, an on-the-rise team with a handful of elite milers who will soon be joining their roster, would also benefit from adding an experienced mile-centric veteran who can also bring (some) value to the grass.
It would also be hard to ignore Ole Miss as a potential option. The Rebels are a dominant middle distance group who have had success with multiple graduate transfers before. New distance coach Adam Smith has recently turned Anthony Camerieri into a national-caliber talent and he just landed graduate transfer Jack Meijer from Wisconsin (for next year).
For a team that will be desperate to fill out their cross country lineup, Bove would be a perfect fit. Because not only could he be a (potential) backend scorer for Ole Miss, but he also fits their 800 meter and mile-centric roster identity as well.
Other schools that have come to my mind for Bove include UCLA, Alabama, Cal Poly, Washington, Virginia and Texas.
Dalia Frias (Duke to UCLA)
In one of the least surprising transfer developments of the year, true freshman and former high school superstar Dalia Frias has announced that she will be transferring to UCLA. The former Duke runner holds four years of outdoor track eligibility and three years of both indoor track eligibility and cross country eligibility.
Frias was a national-level distance running standout during her time at the prep level. As a high schooler, the California native ran times of 2:09 (800), 4:33 (1600), 4:35 (mile), 9:14 (3k) and 9:50 (two miles), all on the outdoor oval.
On the grass, she ran 15:43 for three miles during the 2021 cross country season. Frias also won the California XC State Championships and placed 5th at the 2021 Garmin RunningLane XC National Championships.
During her time at Duke, Frias proved to be a solid and valuable piece for the Blue Devils, but not necessarily one who massively altered the perception of their roster. Finishing 67th at Nuttycombe and 36th at the Southeast Regional XC Championships were promising results which were later complemented by times of 4:44 (mile) and 9:20 (3k) on the indoor oval.
Seeing UCLA snag Frias as a transfer is something that, truthfully, most knowledgable fans of NCAA distance running probably saw coming. In fact, in our "Transfer Market: Part 37" article, I even stated how, "it is impossible to ignore the idea of the UCLA women being in contention to land this current Blue Devil."
And sure enough, new distance coach Sean Brosnan has delivered yet another valuable long-term piece. Frias now joins Mia Barnett (formerly of Virginia) and Sam McDonnell (formerly of Alabama) as recent underclassmen transfers who have signed with the Bruins. McKaylie Caesar of Cal State Fullerton is also set to join the UCLA women next fall.
While UCLA's women's roster still needs further development, Frias gives the Bruins another long-term piece who can realistically help this group be competitive as soon as this fall.
In a way, she completes their cross country lineup.
Yes, the Bruins will need more proven firepower and a greater low-stick presence if they want a shot at advancing to the national meet. Still, a potential powerhouse could be on the rise in Los Angeles given the current rate of young transfers who are entering this program.
And when it comes to the track, Frias could give UCLA a contingent of national-caliber milers. When Barnett, McDonnell and Frias are all at their peak fitness, they could put together a lethal DMR lineup or overwhelm the PAC-12 over 1500 meters.
Both McDonnell and Frias need return to those peak levels before that can happen, but with the amount of time that Coach Sean Brosnan has to refine these young athletes, that scenario feels more probable than possible.
Toby Gualter (Eastern Michigan to NC State)
The Stride Report has confirmed that Eastern Michigan's Toby Gualter will be venturing to NC State as a regular transfer. He is expected to have two seasons of cross country eligibility, one season of indoor track eligibility and one season of outdoor track eligibility remaining.
Earlier this year, TSR reported that Gualter was on the transfer portal. His credentials were detailed as the following...
"On the grass, Gualter was a three-time top-10 finisher at his conference meet, including two finishes inside the top-three. While he has never been to the national stage, the New Zealand native has finished 19th (2021) and 22nd (2022) at the Great Lakes Regional XC Championships, 13th at the 2022 Louisville XC Classic and 5th at the 2022 Penn State National Open.
On the oval, the Eagle veteran has proven to be just as effective. This past winter, Gualter ran new personal bests of 4:04 (mile), 7:58 (3k) and 14:00 (5k). He actually ran under the 8:00 barrier for 3000 meters twice this past winter and he was a three-time scorer at his indoor conference meet."
The soon-to-be Wolfpack distance runner could end up being a perfect fit for the men of Raleigh, North Carolina. While Gualter isn't necessarily expected to be a star low-stick, he can bring stability, legitimate scoring and depth to a roster that put together a very nice 2022 cross country season.
According to TFRRS, the Wolfpack lose just two men from last fall's lineup. One of those guys is true low-stick Ian Shanklin while the other was/is long-time veteran Robinson Snider. And while Gualter likely won't make up for the scoring impact of Shanklin, he will immediately plug in the gap left behind Snider.
Doing so would allow the NC State men to maintain the core of their scoring from their 2022 cross country team that finished 11th at the NCAA XC Championships. But if Gualter continues to progress and begins to mimic the performances that we've seen from future teammate Brett Gardner, then the Wolfpack may have a shot of being a top-10 squad, nationally.
Yasmin Austridge (Lamar to Colorado State)
Colorado State has announced that Yasmin Austridge, a recent breakout star during the 2023 outdoor track season, will be joining the Rams this fall as a graduate transfer.
The current Lamar runner is expected to have one year of outdoor track eligibility and one year of indoor track eligibility remaining next year, according to TFRRS. It is unclear if her "senior" status on TFRRS from last fall is accurate.
Austridge has been one of the more pleasant surprises of the 2023 outdoor track season. The current Lamar ace had respectable fall and winter campaigns, finishing 29th at the South Central Regional XC Championships and running 4:44 in the mile, but no one could have anticipated what she has done (so far) on the outdoor oval.
So far this spring, the dynamic distance runner has posted times of 2:04 (800), 4:19 (1500) and 9:52 (steeple). She is set to compete in the steeplechase at the Payton Jordan Invitational later this evening.
That 9:52 (steeple) mark that Austridge ran earlier this month was a completely solo effort, easily dominating her competition in the process. The idea that she could run a faster time in that event (and in other events for that matter) seems extremely realistic.
The English distance talent brings a very unique (and valuable) skillset to Colorado State.
Given her steeplechase success, Austridge seemingly meshes well with the endurance-centric reputation of the Rams' program. And at the same time, she gives them a competitive name in an event that no one in school history has ever run under 10 minutes in.
Not only that, but Austridge's 2:04 speed over 800 meters gives the Colorado State women a legitimate middle distance option, offering greater scoring diversity for meets like the Mountain West Championships.
Rishabh Prakash (Cornell to Notre Dame)
Notre Dame has announced that Rishabh Prakash will be joining the Fighting Irish as a graduate transfer starting next fall. The current Cornell runner is expected to have one full year of eligibility across all three seasons, but that is not yet confirmed.
Prakash is a very solid and underrated distance talent who could end up being an underrated asset for an already-deep Notre Dame roster. This past fall, Prakash finished 13th at the Ivy League XC Championships and 41st at the Northeast Regional XC Championships. However, it wasn't until the winter months when he really began to find his groove.
During the 2023 indoor track season, Prakash recorded times of 4:04 (mile), 7:55 (3k) and 13:51 (5k), showcasing a sharp level of improvement across numerous distances.
Sure, this future Fighting Irish runner isn't expected to be a low-stick star when he reaches South Bend, Indiana. But what he does offer is a realistic varsity top-seven cross country option for Notre Dame, if necessary.
And the good news is that the current Ivy League talent seems to only be trending upwards in his fitness, meaning that Notre Dame may have just invested in a high-upside athlete with greater scoring value than they (or anyone else) maybe realize.
The next month and a half will be fascinating to watch as Prakash continues to refine his fitness and bring down his personal bests. A new 5k PR in the 13:40s range would boost his stock in a major way and give him a dangerous amount of momentum heading into the summer and fall months.
