After a year out of football and two different schools, Michael Dyer has made his next college choice. He'll be a Louisville Cardinal, according to USA Today's George Schroeder, and he'll be able to play when the team takes the field Sept. 1 against Ohio.
The 22-year-old had reportedly narrowed down his choices to Louisville and USF, and in the past few days talk of Louisville really began to heat up. He apparently made his decision Thursday, but it didn't become official, as Charlie Strong wouldn't confirm the team had added the running back. Now we know, and the conference-favorite Cardinals have another weapon.
The Michael Dyer saga
Tracking Michael Dyer, from Auburn to Arkansas State to Arkansas Baptist and now to Louisville.
Louisville already has two strong options at running back -- senior Senorise Perry and junior Dominique Brown were both named to the Doak Walker Award watch list, Perry after a 705-yard, 11-TD season that was cut short by a knee injury, while Brown missed last year due to injury but had 533 yards rushing in 2011.
After finishing last year ranked No. 13 in the country following a Sugar Bowl victory over No. 3 Florida, Louisville was already poised to do bad things to a conference that doesn't really feature another prime contender. Teddy Bridgewater threw for 3,718 yards with 27 touchdowns and just eight interceptions, and he was just a sophomore. Now, he has a third back ready to do work.
Dyer's story is a long one. It started back at Auburn in the team's 2010 national title year, when he had 143 yards rushing to beat Oregon in the national championship and improved on that season with 1,242 yards rushing in 2011. But he was suspended from the team, involved in Auburn's mass robbery arrest, transferred to Arkansas State, and then was kicked off Arkansas State following an arrest. He spent last year at Arkansas Baptist University not playing football.
He's been troubled by connections with drugs, weapons, and bad grades, but if Dyer is ready to get things back on track, Louisville just landed a very talented running back, and one who could have an NFL future.
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