Jahki Howard: "Bet $100 he’s in the portal next year" "Good get": Fans divided as Auburn transfer Jahki Howard announces latest destination

"Bet $100 he’s in the portal next year" "Good get": Fans divided as Auburn transfer Jahki Howard announces latest destination

NCAA Basketball: Final Four National Semifinal-Florida at Auburn - Source: Imagn — Jahki Howard is transferring to Utah - Source: Imagn

Former Auburn Tigers wing Jahki Howard has found a new destination. The freshman will be transferring to the Utah Runnin' Utes for the upcoming college basketball season.

Howard, a 6-6, 185-pound forward, was a 4-star prospect coming out of high school, but he couldn't get on the court in his first year with the Tigers. Some fans believe moving to Utah will open an opportunity for Jahki Howard to bounce back.

"Good get for the utes," a fan said.

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"smart decision young man," another fan added.

"Hell yeah! Love seeing the Utes on the comeback!" another fan wrote.

In his only season at Auburn, Jahki Howard averaged 4.2 points, 1.1 rebounds, and 0.1 assists per game. He spent only 86 minutes on the court after the SEC schedule opened in January, sitting on the bench of one of the top teams in the nation.

After an underwhelming season with the Tigers, some fans are not convinced he will do better in Salt Lake City.

"Look I hope he does well and I mean no hate when I say this, but I bet $100 he’s in the portal next year too," a fan wrote.

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"He’ll be gone after a year," a fan added.

"UTAH??" another fan wrote.

Besides Jahki Howard, the Utes have also added Elijah Moore, James Okonkwo, and Terrence Brown through the portal. They will also have a new head coach in Alex Jensen, who was a part of the Utes team that made a run to the NCAA Championship game in 1998.

Howard will add athleticism to a program that has struggled lately and hasn't made the NCAA Tournament since 2016 and has failed to advance past the first weekend since 2015.

How many Tigers joined Jahki Howard in the portal?

Bruce Pearl will have his work cut out for him as the Auburn Tigers will lose a handful of players from their Final Four team. Jahki Howard is one of four players to enter the transfer portal.

Chad Baker-Mazara, Addarin Scott, and JP Pegues also entered the portal. Baker-Mazara was the only starter remaining on the squad. He was second on the team in scoring with 12.3 points per game, as well as three rebounds, 2.7 assists, and 1.2 steals.

Besides the four players transferring, star forward Johni Broome and Dylan Cardwell graduated, while sixth man Tahaad Pettiford will test the NBA Draft, but could still go back to Auburn.

Pearl has added KeyShawn Hall, Abdul Bashir, Emeka Operum, and KeShawn Murphy through the portal.

About the author

Allan Wolburg Robles is a College Sports journalist at Sportskeeda with over 17 years of experience in the field writing for publications including Reforma, Yahoo! OddsShark and Apuesta. Allan studied Communications at Anáhuac University, where he learned what would become the basis of a trade that was already a dream of his before starting college.

His favorite team is Army West Point as when he was young, Allan lived in West Point for a couple of years, went to pretty much every home game, a couple of Army-Navy games and even got to meet some of the players.

Allan's favorite players of all time include Tommie Frazier, who was unbelievable during the Nebraska dynasty of the early 90's. Tim Tebow was also a favorite, mainly because of his leadership skills, although he was also awesome on the football field. As a fan of defensive football, (or what's left of it), Sean Taylor could take over a game for Miami.

Allan has always considered himself a student of the game more than a fan of it. So the historical part and evolution of the game, as well as the ins and outs of what happens on the field, and being able to put it into words for the audience, are his biggest strengths.

Besides sports, Allan enjoys reading books, watching movies and spending time with his dogs.

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