You know who could be the big loser out of a Golson transfer? Gunner Kiel. Obviously it's tough to say where he would have been on the depth chart the last two years, especially if he didn't get along with Chuck Martin while he was here, but with Golson out of the picture I wonder if Kiel would have had first crack as the replacement this year instead of Zaire. Kiel's transfer came before Golson's suspension and he possibly could have gotten snaps in a competition with Rees that fall, and he certainly could have been in the mix if he was still on the depth chart for LSU.
Hindsight is 20/20 of course, so there's no way Kiel could have known Golson would get booted for a year, then return and flame out, but thinking Golson had solidified the QB position for the next 3 years is likely what pushed him to Cinci. College football is a fickle mistress.