Rice DL grad transfer Zach Abercrumbia is blowing up

College football players are transferring more than ever these days, especially in the graduate transfer ranks.

Once a student-athlete receives his four-year degree, he is able to transfer to any school without having to sit out a year. That is the plan for former Rice defensive lineman Zach Abercrumbia, who was an All-Conference player in 2018 for the Owls, as he recorded 55 tackles and 4.5 tackles for loss.

"It's a lot different," Abercrumbia said about the recruiting process this time around. "Now, you pick somewhere to go for basically six months, and as soon as you get there, you have to hit the ground running. You have to make sure it's a perfect match."

Abercrumbia entered the NCAA transfer portal in late-December and started hearing from schools right away. Then when he posted on social media to announce his departure from Rice on January 8, his recruitment blew up.

"As far as D1 schools goes -- Toledo, Tulane, SMU, Virginia Tech, Vanderbilt, Oregon State, Tulsa -- that was early on," explained Abercrumbia. "Then (after I announced my transfer) it picked up more traction -- Penn State, Mississippi State, Iowa, Memphis, and TCU as well."

As a graduate transfer, Abercrumbia is not in a rush to decide his next school. He will graduate from Rice this May and then enroll in his next home, so he just needs to make a decision by then. He can take five official visits.

"I'm not trying to rush, but I'm not trying to waste another school's time either," Abercrumbia said. "I know what goes in to recruiting a kid. Once I see who all is out there and don't see my list growing anymore, I'll go ahead and make a decision. Like I said, wherever I go, I want to hit the ground running."

After participating in this interview, Abercrumbia informed Rivals.com's Mike Singer that Michigan, Notre Dame, Northwestern, and Texas have reached out to him.

During the interview, Abercrumbia noted that SMU, Toledo, Mississippi State, and Memphis talked to him about taking an official visit.

"I haven't set in stone anything," he said about visits.

Abercrumbia noted that the head coaches from Memphis and SMU reached out to him, which meant a lot.

"It's not every day that the head coach is the first person you make contact with," he said.