GRAND FORKS — New UND head football coach Eric Schmidt won’t be the only one making the move from San Diego State to Grand Forks this offseason.

The Fighting Hawks have secured the commitment of San Diego State quarterback Javance Tupou’ata-Johnson, the transfer announced Monday night on social media.

Tupou’ata-Johnson, a 6-foot-4, 220-pound dual-threat athlete, made a visit to UND over the weekend. He has three seasons of eligibility remaining.

Tupou’ata-Johnson, an Oakland, Calif., native, made one start during his redshirt freshman season in 2024, going 13-for-29 for 156 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions in a loss to Cal.

In four games of action last season, he also had 18 carries for 37 yards.

Tupou’ata-Johnson was a major recruiting steal for San Diego State out of high school. He chose the Aztecs over offers from Oregon, Florida State, BYU, Arizona State, Kansas, Pittsburgh, Nevada and San Jose State.

According to MaxPreps, he threw for 1,679 yards and 15 touchdown passes as a high school senior, while rushing for 803 yards and 13 touchdowns.

Tupou’ata-Johnson spent last season behind SDSU starter Danny O’Neil, who recently transferred to Wisconsin.

Schmidt was defensive coordinator at San Diego State in 2024. Earlier this month, UND announced it was bringing back the alum and former defensive coordinator to take over for Bubba Schweigert, who is transitioning into an athletic department role after 11 seasons as head coach in Grand Forks.

Derrick Tuskan / San Diego State athletics

UND’s 2024 starting quarterback Simon Romfo, a junior last season, finished seventh in the Missouri Valley Football Conference in yards per game at 170.9.

The former Langdon-Edmore-Munich standout saw ups and downs in his first season as starter. Offensive coordinator Isaac Fruechte was also in his first season calling plays in Grand Forks.

Shortly after his press conference as new head coach, Schmidt announced he would retain Fruechte, who had been labeled as interim head coach after Schweigert’s move to step down.

One of the quarterbacks expected to battle Romfo for playing time in 2024, Trey Feeney, left the program after fall camp following the decision to label Romfo as starting quarterback.

Jerry Kaminski, Jack Sulik and Cole Hentges each return from the 2024 roster and Etienne Higgins joins the mix as an intriguing 2025 prospect out of Council Bluffs, Iowa.

After starting the 2024 season 5-2 and climbing to a Top 10 FCS national ranking, UND closed the year on a five-game losing skid and finished winless on the road.

Tupou’ata-Johnson is the fifth known verbal commitment out of the transfer portal since Schmidt arrived at UND.

He joins St. Thomas defensive lineman Emmanuel Olagbaju, Northern Arizona wide receiver BJ Fleming, Mt. San Jacinto junior college safety Nate Frankfather and Winona State defensive lineman Kyjuan Vengrowsky.