Former Miami (Ohio) receiver Nick Harwell, dismissed from the school following an arrest in March, has transferred to Kansas, Jayhawks head coach Charlie Weis announced on Wednesday.
The 6-foot-1, 193-pounder has been one of the most productive receivers in the country over the past three seasons, catching 229 passes for 3,166 yards and 23 touchdowns for the Redhawks. A knee injury limited him to nine games and 68 catches for 870 yards as a 2012 junior, but he was second nationally in receiving yards per game as a 2011 sophomore, catching 97 passes for 1,425 yards.
He'll be a senior for Kansas and could be eligible to play right away under the graduate-transfer rule, provided he can earn his undergraduate degree in time. This could be problematic, though, as explained by the Kansas City Star:
Harwell was arrested in March after an incident involving his girlfriend, according to the Dayton Daily News. Harwell, according to the Daily News, was charged with criminal damaging, theft and unauthorized use of a vehicle/vehicle trespass on March 30, according to the Oxford Police Department. The charge was later reduced to a single count of attempted theft, a second-degree misdemeanor, but Harwell was later dismissed from school after going through an appeals process with the university’s Office of Ethics & Student Conflict Resolution.
The ruling left Harwell looking for a new school. And in order to be eligible for next season, Harwell would need to complete a degree before enrolling at Kansas, which begins fall classes in late August.
If Harwell is eligible, he'll be an immediate upgrade to the lackluster Kansas receiving corps and likely become the top target for new quarterback Jake Heaps.
