The Pitt football program received some good news on Friday afternoon as Joey Yellen was granted immediate eligibility from the NCAA to play this season. Yellen is a 6'3" and 215-pound redshirt freshman quarterback. He transferred to Pitt from Arizona State back in January.

“This is outstanding news for Joey and our entire program,” Pitt head coach Pat Narduzzi said in a statement. “He’s been such a great addition, on and off the field, for us. We’re thrilled for him and his family. We are all very grateful for our compliance staff’s excellent work throughout this process.”

Yellen played in one game last season for Arizona State. He started against USC and went 28-of-44 for 292 and four touchdowns in a losing effort to the Trojans. Arizona State's regular quarterback Jayden Daniels was also a freshman in 2019. Daniels threw over 2,900 yards and 17 touchdowns in 2019 and looks to be Arizona State's quarterback for the foreseeable future.

Following the 2019 season, Yellen entered his name in the transfer portal and Pitt quickly pounced on the Mission Viejo (Ca.) native and secured a commitment.

“I’m very happy to have received this news from the NCAA, and I appreciate them making this decision on my situation,” Yellen said. “I am excited to be able to be available for my team this season and look forward to helping out any way I can.”

Yellen chose Arizona State over offers from Georgia, Oregon State, and Washington as a member of the 2019 recruiting class. He was graded as a three-star recruit by Rivals.com and was the 22nd ranked pro-style quarterback in his class. Yellen was a prolific passer at the high school level as he threw for over 6,000 yards and 57 touchdowns in his two years as a starter for Mission Veijo High School.

Yellen immediately joins the official race to be Kenny Pickett's backup in the upcoming 2020 season. Pickett has started 27 of the last 28 contests under center for the Panthers. The lone backup on the roster with playing experience is Nick Patti. The New Jersey native started one contest last season as he threw for two touchdowns in a win over Delaware. Also in the mix is redshirt freshman Davis Beville. He is a former four-star recruit and was the 11th ranked pro-style quarterback according to Rivals in 2019.