For Penn State, transfer rumors are now transfer reality, as redshirt freshman safety Tim Buckley is headed home to play for North Carolina State.
"Penn State safety Tim Buckley to transfer to N.C. State," News & Observer writer Joe Giglio posted Monday afternoon to his Twitter account (@jpgiglio).
NC State has also released a report on its official athletics website (www.gopack.com) indicating that Buckley will transfer. Buckley is the first player to transfer from Penn State since the NCAA announced its sanctions against the program last Monday.
Under the terms of the NCAA sanctions - which include a four-year bowl game ban and loss of scholarships - any current or incoming Penn State player is allowed to transfer to another institution with immediate eligibility.
Buckley, a Raleigh native who played at Cardinal Gibbons High School, was set to begin his Penn State career this fall after redshirting in 2011 at his father's alma mater. Instead, he'll join a Wolfpack team that went 8-5 last season, culminating in a 31-24 win over Louisville in the Belk Bowl.
Buckley, who was a preferred walk-on at Penn State, joins an N.C. State team that has three players listed at safety: graduate student Earl Wolff, senior Brandan Bishop and junior Dontae Johnson. Ten other players are listed simply as defensive backs on the team's 2012 roster.
Transfer rumors continue to swirl around other Penn State players, including running back Silas Redd, who visited USC over the weekend and left strongly leaning toward joining the Trojans, and quarterback Rob Bolden, who has been removed from the Penn State roster and is strongly rumored to be transferring to LSU.
Buckley, however, is officially the first player out the door.
