TJ Finley Reverses Course, Enters 2026 NFL Draft Instead of Joining Incarnate Word

TJ Finley will declare for the 2026 NFL Draft instead of transferring to Incarnate Word, reversing an announced plan he had put in place just weeks earlier. The decision, reported by CBS Sports, ended Finley's time with the Incarnate Word program after career stops at LSU, Auburn, Texas State, Western Kentucky, Tulane and Georgia State.

On January 14, Finley had signed with the FCS program at Incarnate Word, marking his seventh different college football program across seven seasons. He is now ending his collegiate career and declaring for the NFL Draft in April, having been about to enter his seventh season of college football playing for his sixth and latest school.

Finley's college journey began with the LSU Tigers in 2020 before he transferred to the Auburn Tigers for two years, then moved on to Texas State for a year, Western Kentucky for a season, and finally Georgia State for a season. Between Western Kentucky and Georgia State was a four-month stay at Tulane, where he went through the team's winter program but was suspended following an arrest and departed in the spring transfer window.

His peak came in the middle of that odyssey. In 2023 with Texas State, Finley threw for 3,439 yards while completing 67 percent of his passes with a touchdown-to-interception ratio of 24 to 8, while also rushing for five scores. The performance established him as a legitimate Group of Five starter, but the consistency never followed. He appeared in just seven games for Georgia State in 2025, throwing for 1,244 yards with six touchdowns and seven interceptions as the Panthers posted a 1-6 record in those contests. Over his full college career, Finley threw for 7,372 yards, 43 touchdowns and 27 interceptions across six seasons.

A former Ponchatoula High standout, Finley is considered one of the most traveled college quarterbacks ever. Three waivers granted him three additional years beyond his standard eligibility clock, making a seven-year college career possible.

The timing of the decision comes as a surprise, as pre-draft evaluation events like the Senior Bowl and the Shrine Bowl, where Finley could have tried to bolster his stock, have already passed while teams have been evaluating other players for far longer. His 6-foot-7, 245-pound frame gives him the prototypical size NFL teams covet at the position, but questions about consistency follow him into the process. As College Sports Wire noted in its coverage, his inability to stick at a single program over the past several years may draw red flags from NFL evaluators, even in a quarterback draft class that lacks depth beyond the top of the board.

Finley told On3's Pete Nakos of his intention to declare. No official statement from Incarnate Word has been issued, and no details about team interest or pre-draft visits have been reported.