McKenzie Milton transferring to Florida State

Former UCF quarterback McKenzie Milton plans to transfer to Florida State, he announced Sunday.

Milton has been unable to play for the past two years while rehabbing from a significant leg injury.

He announced last week that he was transferring for his final year of eligibility. The Hawaii native described the move as "a great opportunity to play at the biggest level on one of the most historic teams in college football," according to ESPN's Andrea Adelson.

"You see Florida State, the garnet and gold, it speaks for itself," Milton said. "The notoriety the people that have come through there, Deion Sanders, Charlie Ward, Jameis Winston, it speaks for itself. I'm extremely grateful for the opportunity. It's something I don't take for granted, especially what I've been through the past two years."

Milton dislocated his right knee and suffered ligament, nerve, and artery damage in a game against USF in November 2018. He spent much of the 2020 season working with the scout team.

As a member of the Golden Knights, Milton passed for 8,683 yards and 77 touchdowns with a 61.8% completion rate.

Milton's addition provides a boost to a Florida State quarterback room that lost James Blackmon to the transfer portal. The Seminoles have sophomore Jordan Travis and freshmen Chubba Purdy and Tate Rodemaker.

Despite his experience, Milton doesn’t expect to be handed the keys to the offense.

"I'm going to have to go in and earn it, but it's not something where they said you're going to be the guy, and that's not something I want," Milton said. "I want to go earn it, I want to earn the respect of the guys, and I just want to be a good teammate to the other quarterbacks, like I was at UCF.

"At the end of the day, the best guy needs to play, whether it's me or one of the other guys, so it's my job to go out there and earn it every day, and hopefully I can do that."