After spending three seasons at Fresno State, quarterback Ben Wooldridge has transferred to the University of Louisiana.

Wooldridge entered the transfer portal on Dec. 16, 2020. 

Wooldridge moves on to Louisiana, who play in the Sun Belt Conference. The Ragin’ Cajuns are coming off a historic season, as they ended the season ranked at No. 15. They opened their season with a victory of Iowa State ”” who at the time was ranked No. 23 and finished the season ranked No. 9, along with a victory over Oregon in the PlayStation Fiesta Bowl.

Louisiana ended its season with a win over the University of Texas, San Antonio, in the Servpro First Responder Bowl. 

“I am proud to be returning to my family’s home state and I am honored to be a Ragin’ Cajun,” Wooldridge said in a statement on twitter. “I want to thank Fresno State for all the opportunities I had and the staff for supporting me through this decision.”

Julian Kenion, Wooldridge’s coach at KT Prep ”” a 7-on-7 team in the Bay Area ”” said Louisiana bringing in Wooldridge speaks volumes about how they see him as a player.

“They reached out to Ben and for them to bring him in from Fresno it’s a clear indication of their belief in him,” Kenion said. “He can compete for the position and add value to their program, and that says a lot after the season they had last year.”

The quarterback battle between Wooldridge and Jake Haener ”” who transferred from Washington ”” was one of the main storylines heading into the 2020 pandemic season. Eventually, Haener was named the starter prior to the team’s first game of the season.

“Right now, we feel like Jake gives us the best chance for us to reach our full potential as a football team, as an offense,” DeBoer said in October when Haener was named the starter. “That’s a hard deal because a guy like Ben Wooldridge has put a lot into this program and will continue to do so and has carried himself in a very first-class way, and he’s going to be there to support Jake.”

However, Wooldridge saw the field sporadically during the first half of the season, mainly coming in for a couple of snaps  ”” but nothing beyond that. His most notable performance came on Nov. 7 against UNLV, where he threw his longest career pass to Jalen Cropper for 35 yards. He played back-to-back offensive drives game, but Wooldridge didn’t see the field much after that day.

He was the second-string quarterback for two straight seasons for the Bulldogs. In 2019, he backed up Jorge Reyna and scored his only career touchdown against Nevada.

Wooldridge committed to Fresno State in 2017 out of Foothill High School in Pleasanton, California. He led the Falcons to a North Coast Section Division I championship appearance and won the East Bay Athletic League MVP award his senior year.

Haener will be returning to Fresno State and will most likely be the starter next year. Fresno State’s quarterback room is young, with freshmen Logan Fife, Jalan Early, Joseph Campbell and Class of 2021 signee Jaylen Henderson.