Former Terrapins football quarterback Danny O’Brien will continue his career at Wisconsin next season, the school announced yesterday.
O’Brien, who is set to graduate in May, will attend graduate school at Wisconsin starting in the fall. Because he will enroll in a graduate program not offered at this university, O’Brien won’t be required to sit out a season as a transfer. The rising redshirt junior has two years of eligibility remaining.
“We’re excited that Danny has chosen to attend Wisconsin,” Badgers coach Bret Bielema said in a release. “The first thing we did when we were aware of Danny’s interest was to try and find out what type of person he was and if he would fit into our program.
“From our dealings with him and all the things I have heard from those who have been around him, he is a tremendous person and has great character. He had a fantastic visit and our current players who met him came away impressed.”
O’Brien, the 2010 ACC Rookie of the Year, will join a Badgers program that has won two straight Big Ten championships and is considered a preseason top-25 team for the 2012 season. Should O’Brien play this year, he’ll partner with Heisman Trophy finalist Montee Ball in Wisconsin’s backfield.
O’Brien, who had also visited Penn State and Mississippi before ultimately deciding to join the Badgers, could replace another ACC transplant in Madison. Quarterback Russell Wilson transferred to Wisconsin before last fall after spending his first three seasons at N.C. State.
With his eligibility exhausted, the Badgers have just two healthy quarterbacks competing in spring practice, and O’Brien will have a strong chance of earning the starting job for next season.
“As is the case with any player who joins our program, we have not promised Danny anything other than the chance to come in during the fall and compete for the starting quarterback position,” Bielema said. “He understands that and is excited for that opportunity.”
O’Brien had 22 touchdown passes in his two seasons with the Terps, ninth best in program history, but he asked for a release from his scholarship following a sophomore season defined by a quarterback controversy between him and C.J. Brown.
O’Brien is the most high profile of the 13 members of last season’s 2-10 team to be released from their scholarships this offseason.
“I will always be a proud Terp alum, but am hungry to get after it and start my next chapter in Madison!” O’Brien wrote on his Twitter account yesterday afternoon. “Lots of hard work ahead.”
cwalsh@umdbk.com
