Ole Miss quarterback Luke Altmyer announces he is transferring to Illinois
OXFORD, Miss. — Ole Miss quarterback Luke Altmyer announced Thursday evening he will continue his collegiate career at the University of Illinois.
Let’s go #Illini pic.twitter.com/q4mjYUbu5r
— Luke Altmyer (@lukealtmyer9) December 29, 2022
As quarterback Tommy DeVito was denied a waiver for an extra season of eligibility, Altmyer — who has three years of eligibility left — is in line to take over the starting job for the Illini. Illinois will only have two other quarterbacks on scholarship (incoming freshman Cal Swanson and redshirt freshman Donovan Leary).
The Rebel Walk spoke with Luke’s father, Dr. Chad Altmyer, after the announcement.
“The Altmyer family is very excited for this new opportunity. We are really excited about Luke having the chance to grow as a QB and person under Coach Bielema and the University of Illinois. He cannot wait to compete at the highest level and lead his team.“
Dr. Chad Altmyer, father of QB Luke Altmyer
The Illini finished 8-4 this season and, in an interesting twist, will play Mississippi State of Altmyer’s hometown of Starkville, at Raymond James Stadium on Monday, Jan. 2 at 11 a.m. CT on ESPN2.
Altmyer, one of the most decorated high school quarterbacks to come out of Mississippi, completed 52 percent of his passes for 317 yards and three touchdowns in his career with the Rebels as he served as backup to Matt Corral last season.
The toughest throw in football, made to look easy by Ole Miss QB Luke Altmyer, former understudy to likely 1st-rounder Matt Corral. pic.twitter.com/tbDQNiGgiM
— David Walker (@DavidWalkerQB) March 30, 2022
Altmyer chose the Rebels over Florida State, Alabama, LSU, Oregon, Mississippi State, Missouri, Wake Forest and NC State, among others.
Altmyer was neck-and-neck with Ole Miss’ eventual starter Jaxson Dart before suffering a shoulder injury early in the season. Even after announcing his intent to transfer, Altmyer did not opt out of the Rebels’ bowl game, knowing the team would need him if Dart were injured.
We wish Luke Altmyer the very best. He’s a young man with the utmost integrity and character and has represented Ole Miss well, both on and off the gridiron.
Evelyn Van Pelt
Evelyn has covered sports for over two decades, beginning her journalism career as a sports writer for a newspaper in Austin, Texas. She attended Texas A&M and majored in English. Evelyn's love for Ole Miss began when her daughter Katie attended the university on a volleyball scholarship. Evelyn created the Rebel Walk in 2013 and has served as publisher and managing editor since its inception.
