Dante Wright enters the transfer portal

Dante Wright has played his final game in the Green & Gold.

On Tuesday the senior wide receiver confirmed earlier reports that he has elected to enter the transfer portal.

Wright was one of the more popular players on the roster over the last couple of years after bursting onto the scene in Mike Bobo’s final year back in 2019.

The first true freshman to start every game at wide receiver since Rashard Higgins in 2013, Wright’s first career catch was a 39-yard touchdown against Colorado in Week 1 and from there he managed to put together an impressive campaign that ended with 57 receptions for 805 yards and four touchdowns. He also carried the ball 17 times for 214 yards and two more scores. As a result of his stellar freshman season, Wright was named a Freshman All-American by both ESPN and the FWAA.

Wright continued to impress as a sophomore under offensive coordinator Joey Lynch in 2020, recording 20 catches for 315 yards in the three games that he was available. 

And despite battling injuries in 2021, the 5-foot-8, 175-pound wide receiver from Navarre, FLA. finished second on the roster with 43 receptions for 538 yards and three touchdown receptions in nine games played. 

Coming into the 2022 season, most fans expected Wright to be in for a big year under Jay Norvell, thinking that if he was able to produce in a run-first offense under Steve Addazio then he should be able to ball out in the Air Raid. In the first two games though, Wright hardly saw the field at all, and he did not record a reception. 

Ultimately, given the lack of playing time in the first two games, it’s not shocking that Wright is choosing to finish his collegiate career elsewhere. It’s disappointing to see a quality player and person like him leave Fort Collins, but the truth is that sometimes it just does not work out with old players and new coaches. 

Clearly Wright is a phenomenally talented individual, but wide receiver is arguably the deepest position on the team. And frankly, Melquan Stovall is this staff’s guy — he’s a similar style player that’s been in the system for over three years — and at least going into the season, the coaches had more faith in him to execute. 

Nobody can fault Wright for wanting a bigger role, as he’s shown throughout his career that he is more than capable of being a productive starting receiver in the FBS. I know that I will certainly be cheering for him to succeed wherever his next stop is. The fortunate thing for CSU fans is that the Rams now have a room full of up-and-coming pass catchers. With a veteran now out of the mix, it opens up an opportunity for one of the freshmen to potentially see some more playing time this fall. 

Norvell spoke on Monday about the importance of getting more receivers involved in the offense. We’ll see if that happens in the coming weeks.