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Quinn Ewers hits the open market
Quinn Ewers got a pickup truck, over $1 million, and only had to hand the ball off twice during his honeymoon with Ohio State.
Last Friday he entered a transfer portal stocked with talent and permanently removed himself from the shadow of CJ Stroud who will be in New York for the Heisman Trophy ceremony after a stellar first season as the starter at Ohio State.
The open competition for Ewers was immediately narrowed down to a few Texas schools. Texas Head Coach Steve Sarkisian was the first to court Ewers at his home in South Lake.
That was followed by a visit to Lubbock and on Sunday and a rendevous with Sonny Dykes at TCU on Monday.
Texas Tech began the week by hiring Zack Kittley, a QB guru who helped groom Patrick Mahomes, a move that is really a win for Red Raiders regardless of who they have under center in 2022. Mahomes has a relationship with Ewers has openly pushed for the prodigy to sign at pick Lubbock.
TCU and Dykes were kinds of a last-minute addition to the Ewers sweepstakes but the QB-play SMU has gotten under Dykes tenure makes a meeting with the Horned Frogs worth the time and the short drive to Fort Worth for a visit.
But the quiet, almost calculated silence from Sarkisian and everyone tied to the athletic department in Austin makes me feel like theirs something there.
No doubt the NIL money which propelled Ewers to college a year early will play a factor in the decision.
Also, no doubt that amount would be the largest at Texas.
This week Texas announced another initiative that will pay offensive linemen an additional $50,000 per season on top of any other NIL deals they can ink while playing at UT. I can only imagine what a name and imagine like Quinn Ewers can haul in at the highest revenue-generating school in America.
KELLY TO THE BAYOU
Notre Dame loses Kelly to LSU in the latest shocker in the coaching carousel.
Brian Kelly leaving Notre Dame may seem like a shock. It's not. Kelly has proven to be a great coach at every level he's coached. He's won championships at Grand Valley State, played in a new years day bowl at Cincinnati, and taken Notre Dame to the College Football Playoff multiple times.
But at Notre Dame, winning a championship has its own unique set of challenges. But even a coach as accomplished as Kelly couldn't out-coach or out-recruit the academic standards of Notre Dame. The differences in depth jump off the screen when the Irish were on the field with Alabama and Clemson.
Despite the College Football Playoff appearances, the discipline that Kelly has instilled and the level he has been able to bring his players to without ever having a "dudes" like Saban or Dabo has at quarterback. Or being able to get stops without having 5-star recruits stacked all over his defense, his performance as head coach at Notre Dame has been remarkable, to say the least.
For Kelly, who turned 60 last month, being able to recruit just about anybody to play for him at LSU should put fear in the hearts of every defense in the SEC. No more trying to get a kid in, which was a hurdle that even the head coach at Notre Dame couldn't clear.
Les Miles and Coach O were ultimately able to bring a championship to the Death Vally. Both were flash in the pan moments that ended as quickly as they happened. No dynasties were formed. Kelly could change that sooner than later.
WHY LINCOLN RILEY MADE THE RIGHT MOVE
Lincoln Riley's no-brainer shocked the college football world.
Lincoln Riley's "banana in the tailpipe" doop of Oklahoma wasn't just a business move. Though USC absolutely made him offers Oklahoma couldn't match, it ultimately was the best career move he could make. With a move to the SEC looming, Riley had to know the resources Oklahoma has, though they have dominated the Big 12 in his tenure, aren't nearly enough to compete for championships in the SEC.
The unknowns about the move surely played a role in the decision as well. Will the SEC split into broader East/West divisions? Will they utilize a pod system of four teams per region? If so, will OU be grouped with Texas, A&M, and LSU? Or Missouri, Arkansas, and Texas?
No one knows.
And for Riley, arguably the most powerful man in Oklahoma to not know, brings a certain level of vulnerability that is uncommon for a man who runs the most powerful; and prestigious program in his state. All great coaches are control freaks, but in this instance, Riley had little to none.
USC coming in with a clear vision of where they will be, a very fertile recruiting region, a national brand, and a friendly schedule is a more attractive situation. The money and perks just sealed the deal.
Riley was able to dominate the Big 12 and piece together recruiting classes that lead him to four straight conference championships (2017-2020) and three straight College Football Playoffs (2017-2020).
With his ties to the state of Texas, he's from the Lone Star State, played at Texas Tech, his younger brother spent last season recruiting the best players in Dallas to commit to SMU, he was also one of the keynote speakers at the Texas High School Coaches Association 2021 Conference in San Antonio, plus the recruits in his new home base, he could be right back in the CFP as soon as 2022.