A Big Ten program is about to lose one of the country’s fastest quarterbacks. Rather than warming the bench in Los Angeles, UCLA Bruins quarterback Karson Gordon has decided to leverage his track and field background. The quarterback now has plans to enter the transfer portal as a track athlete ahead of the 2026 season.

Per CBS Sports’ Chris Hummer, UCLA Bruins quarterback Karson Gordon is set to enter the transfer portal, according to his representatives Matt Woolslayer and Noah Clair. While he is not entering the portal as a quarterback, he intends to play football at his next program as a track athlete.

The NCAA’s track and field transfer portal opened on Thursday and will remain that way until June 26. As a result, Gordon can transfer to any interested program as a track and field athlete. And with the possibility of being a dual-athlete, he would join the program’s football team ahead of the fall semester.

Gordon joined the UCLA Bruins as a three-star dual-threat quarterback from Episcopal High School, Missouri City, Texas, in the 2024 recruiting class. Per 247Sports, he was the No. 70 quarterback in the nation and the No. 194 player in the state of Texas. In 2022, he threw for 2,157 yards and 28 touchdowns, completing 158 of 250 passes at a 63.2% pass completion rate. He also rushed 84 times for 699 yards and eight touchdowns.

Unfortunately, he has not enjoyed his time with the UCLA Bruins, as he has lacked playing time during his two seasons with them. In his freshman year, Gordon made no appearance and had to redshirt the season.

Just before his second year with the Bruins, he was in contention for the starting quarterback role before the former Tennessee Volunteers quarterback Nico Iamaleava joined the program via the transfer portal in April 2025. Last season, Gordon lost the QB1 battle to Iamaleava, who will also be returning for the 2026 season. And even the QB2 role seems to be out of his hands already, as Iamaleava’s younger brother, Madden, is expected to take on the role in the coming season.

As a result of his inactivity at quarterback, the Bruins decided to take advantage of his speed. The 6-foot-1-inch, 180-pounder was moved to wide receiver this offseason and has been listed as a wide receiver on the program’s official website. Perhaps, due to his unwillingness to move to his new position or fears regarding his game time, Gordon has leveraged his track and field background and opted for the transfer portal.

Karson Gordon’s track and field background

Gordon began his track and field career in high school, where he excelled at the national level. He won the national championship in the triple jump with a try of 51 feet, 4 ¼ inches at the Nike Outdoor Nationals. In 2024, Gordon also broke a 44-year national record of 52 feet 10 ½ inches and set a new high school record of 53 feet 1 ½ inches at the Texas Clyde Littlefield Relays.

He also won the Southwest Prep Conference triple jump championship as a junior with a 48-9.5 in April 2023. In the same junior year, he ran the 200 meters in 21.72 seconds and had a 22-3 in the long jump. Before then, Gordon finished fourth in the Texas 6A state track and field championships as a sophomore with a triple jump of 49-3.75, and posted a wind-aided jump of 49-11.5 at the regional meet.

Notably, Gordon was a part of the UCLA track and field team. During the 2025 indoor season, he set a personal record with a winning jump of 51-feet, 11-inches at the Spokane Sports Showcase in January 2025. Gordon ran a 40-yard dash for 4.28 seconds, which is a super impressive record, even by NFL Combine standards.