After announcing his intent to transfer upon an expected graduation from Notre Dame later this month, ex-Fighting Irish quarterback Malik Zaire scheduled visits to Wisconsin and North Carolina this week, according to IrishIllustrated.com and ESPN.com.
In a report by IrishIllustrated.com, Zaire is expected to make his visits to the University of Wisconsin this Wednesday and University of North Carolina Friday.
Contact between Zaire and Wisconsin’s football program has intensified since his announcement last week, according to the same report.
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Last Wednesday, Zaire was granted his desired release from Notre Dame’s football team with the intention of playing his fifth and final year of eligibility elsewhere.
Due to his impending status as a graduate transfer, Zaire will not be ruled ineligible for the upcoming season as opposed to the policy that bars undergraduate transfers from playing for a single season.
Zaire’s initial list of potential landing spots included Michigan State, Pittsburgh and Florida, alongside UNC and Wisconsin.
Football: Notre Dame QB Malik Zaire seeks transfer, names Wisconsin, Florida, Pitt and Mich. State as "primary contenders."(via @NDonScout)
— Badger Herald Sports (@BHeraldSports) November 29, 2016
But Michigan State may no longer have a dog in the race after Notre Dame stated it would not allow Zaire to transfer to any schools included on the Fighting Irish’s 2017-18 season, with UNC as the lone exception.
ESPN.com rated Zaire as a four-star recruit in the class of 2013, and named him as the No. 6 overall quarterback out of high school for that year.
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In his senior year of high school, Zaire showed heavy interest in the Badgers and was offered a scholarship roster position from various blue-blood programs like Alabama and Ohio State.
Zaire also admired then-Wisconsin offensive coordinator Paul Chryst’s success with similar style-of-play and graduate transfer quarterback Russell Wilson.
