Standout Shepherd quarterback Tyson Bagent has entered the NCAA Transfer Portal.
Bagent recently garnered the Harlon Hill Award given to the top player in all of Division II after an outstanding junior season for the Rams.
The former Martinsburgh High School star led Shepherd to a 13-2 season and an appearance in a national semifinal.
Over 15 games, Bagent passed for 5,000 yards and 53 touchdowns while completing better than 67 percent of his passes. The 6-foot-3, 215-pound Bagent was intercepted 13 times on 579 passing attempts.
Bagent is a three-year starter for Shepherd, which played only one game in 2020 as a result of the pandemic. After leading Martinsburg to consecutive Class AAA championships in 2016 and 2017, Bagent became an instant starter behind center at Shepherd.
As a true freshman, Bagent passed for 3,029 yards and 29 touchdowns. He followed it up with a strong sophomore season, passing for 4,349 yards and 36 touchdowns.
In 2021, the Rams knocked off Findlay 38-31 in their postseason opener, then beat Notre Dame College (38-34) and Kutztown (30-28) on last-second touchdown passes from Bagent.
Both West Virginia and Marshall could be in the mix to at least one quarterback through the transfer portal, with each team’s starter from the 2021 season — WVU’s Jarret Doege and the Herd’s Grant Wells — revealing their intention to transfer following this season.
Wells, a Charleston native and former George Washington High star, has chosen Virginia Tech.
However, Bagent indicated to his hometown newspaper, The Journal, he’s likely to stay at Shepherd unless he’s to receive an offer he can’t pass up.
“I’m not going anywhere,” Bagent said. “Me, my grandfather and father wanted to see if there’s anything out there.
“I love Shepherd too much.”
Bagent also said he plans to leave his name in the portal for approximately two weeks to see what comes of it.
Bagent’s younger brother, Ezra Bagent, was one of two quarterbacks Martinsburg regularly used in 2021 and helped the Bulldogs capture the Class AAA championship as a junior.