Family Feud: Zeigler or Reed Could Be Top Transfer After Dad's Dismissal

If Trey Zeigler helps propel Pittsburgh back to the NCAA playoffs, the swingman might have the most impact of any player ever to transfer to another school after playing for his father before he was fired as coach. For some inexplicable reason, the NCAA granted a waiver allowing Trey to be immediately eligible with the Panthers in the aftermath of dad Ernie Zeigler's dismissal at Central Michigan.

Somewhat overlooked in this category because he sat out last season is Georgia Southern's Cliff Reed, who was the MEAC's Player of the Year in 2010-11 before his dad was axed by Bethune-Cookman. Reed was a redshirt at UCF before rejoining his father at GSU when he was hired as an assistant coach. The best player to date in this rare category probably is Joedy Gardner, who twice led Long Beach State in scoring in the mid-1980s after departing Northern Arizona.

Prominent playmaker sons of Sonny Allen (Southern Methodist to Nevada-Reno), Tubby Smith (Georgia to Kentucky), Gene Smithson (Illinois State to Wichita State), Eddie Sutton (Kentucky to Oklahoma State) and Ralph Willard (Western Kentucky to Pittsburgh) were transfers who sat out a redshirt season after their father voluntarily switched schools. A rare player who chose to stay put after his father was issued a pink slip was Canisius' Nick Macarchuk III in the late 1980s.

Billy Baron, who previously transferred from Virginia, was expected to be like Macarchuk at Rhode Island tagged along with his father after he was fired and wound up at Canisius. More than 100 NCAA Division I schools have had a father-son, coach-player combination. Following is a look at a handful of players who transferred to another DI school after his father was axed as coach: