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Alex Hornibrook leaving Wisconsin football program after three seasons

The pool of candidates to be the starting quarterback for Wisconsin in 2019 has shrunk by one, but the intrigue about the eventual starter has increased significantly. School officials announced Wednesday that Alex Hornibrook, who started 32 games during the previous three seasons, has left the program. Hornibrook said he will continue his career at another school. “Alex informed us of his decision to leave the team earlier today,” Wisconsin coach Paul Chryst said in a release. “He contributed to a lot of our recent success and we want to thank him for all he did for our program. We wish him the best of luck.” Hornibrook, who will be a redshirt senior, battled lingering issues related to a concussion last season. According to a source, those issues continued after the season. The candidates to win the starting job include Jack Coan, who started four games in place of Hornibrook last season; Danny Vanden Boom, who played sparingly in three games last season; Chase Wolf, who will be a redshirt freshman. Touted freshman recruit Graham Mertz enrolled at Wisconsin and is set to participate in spring practice. Spring practice is set to open on March 26. Hornibrook shared his thoughts on his Instagram account: "I would like to thank the University of Wisconsin, the football coaches, the training staff, my teammates an the fans for four great years as a Badger. "I have decided that after I graduate from the UW School of Business in May, I will transfer to a new school to play my final season of college football." Wisconsin compiled a 26-6 mark in games Hornibrook started, including a 20-4 record in Big Ten games. His .813 winning percentage is the best of any quarterback in program history. He started nine games as a junior last season, throwing for 1,532 yards and 13 touchdowns. He ranks in a tie for third all-time at Wisconsin in touchdown passes (47), fourth in completion percentage (60.5%) and fifth in passing yards (5,438).