Clemson transfer Scott Pagano heard from 37 schools. He now has 7 favorites

At the end of last week, Clemson defensive tackle Scott Pagano announced that he would be transferring after three seasons with the Tigers. Pagano, who is a graduate transfer eligible to play immediately, reportedly has talked with 37 teams since his transfer was announced. A few of days into his transfer process, Pagano has shortened that list to seven schools, per Clemson 247.

Over the weekend, Pagano fielded calls and did his research.

He's already trimmed that lengthy list of options down to seven programs: Oklahoma, Cal, Oregon, Nebraska, Notre Dame, Texas and Arkansas.

Pagano graduated from Clemson last December. During his Tiger career, Pagano registered 93 total tackles, including eight tackles for loss. He’s a former four-star recruit from Honolulu, Hawaii, who was part of Clemson’s 2013 class. On Friday, Tigers head coach Dabo Swinney released the following statement, which suggested Pagano had the intention of playing closer to the West Coast.

“I met with Scott Pagano yesterday," Swinney said Friday via Clemson 247Sports. "We had a good talk and he told me about his intentions to be a graduate transfer for his final year of eligibility. I told him to think about it overnight.

“We all wanted him to stay, but he said he had accomplished everything he wanted to do at Clemson. He came here to graduate and win a national championship and he achieved both within the last two months.

“He indicated to me that he wants to start his graduate degree and play his final year of college football, probably on the West Coast.”

We’ll have to see where Pagano winds up, but it’s obvious that there are several schools that have a need for him. If he does indeed want to move out West, Cal and Oregon look like viable options.