Former UCLA 4-star quarterback committs to Division II HBCU

After winning the CIAA championship last fall, Maurice Flowers and Johnson C. Smith are reloading at the quarterback position. The Golden Bulls have earned the commitment of former four-star UCLA quarterback Parker McQuarrie. McQuarrie announced his commitment on his social media accounts.

“Committed to play QB at Johnson C. Smith University to finish my college career with 2 seasons left,” he said on Sunday.

As a four-star in high school, McQuarrie had interest from Power Five contenders such as Michigan and Miami, but ultimately chose to commit to UCLA in April 2019. While playing at St. Paul’s School in Concord, New Hampshire, he helped the Pelicans win back-to-back state championships, which solidified his high status in recruiting. He stayed two years with UCLA but didn’t play. He then transferred to Independence Community College and then New Haven, where he only played one game against Lincoln University of California.

But as New Haven planed a move up to the Division I ranks, McQuarrie decided to enter the transfer portal due to the uncertainty of the program, which he announced in May 2025.

“Entering the Transfer Portal due to scheduling uncertainty at the University Of New Haven, following our D1 transition,” he said in part in his transfer portal announcement.

He now lands at a Johnson C. Smith program that won its first CIAA championship since 1969.

Under center was Kelvin Durham, a former Fort Valley State University quarterback who joined the Wildcats when Maurice Flowers was head coach at the institution in the 2021 season. He stayed at Fort Valley State after former Fort Valley State head coach Shawn Gibbs took over the team in 2022. Following Gibbs’s departure from Fort Valley State to lead North Carolina A&T, Durham entered the transfer portal and elected to play his final season with Flowers at Johnson C. Smith.

Durham finished the 2025 season throwing for 1,611 yards and 11 touchdowns on 64% completion; he also rushed for 162 yards and 5 touchdowns. The quarterback position is set to be a big question for the Golden Bulls as Durham exits the program.

Also of note, two quarterbacks departed Johnson C. Smith following spring practice. McQuarrie—a 220-pound, 6’7″ quarterback with championship experience at the high school level—could certainly prove to be an interesting piece in Johnson C. Smith’s plans to repeat as champions.

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