Friday Five: Lea to Vandy? Meyer to Texas? Decommitment Drama and More
College football hasn't offered a dull moment in 2020 and the last week takes it up a notch with legendary coaches like Urban Meyer and Bob Stoops back in the conversation along with more recruiting news and another high profile transfer.
As we do to wrap up the work week, SI All-American digs in on five of the biggest topics with our Friday Five.
1. Can Notre Dame Hold onto Lea?
Vanderbilt fired head coach Derek Mason last weekend, with athletic director Candace Storey Lee making the difficult decision. Mason was 27-55 in six years at the helm, including an 0-8 start to the 2020 season. While Vanderbilt does not have the winning pedigree as fellow SEC counterparts Alabama, LSU, Florida and Georgia, the Commodores have shown a tendency to rise up every so often and have make a solid run. Vandy’s job vacancy is the second SEC East opening to come about within the past few weeks, and just like the South Carolina job, there are whispers of various candidates aspiring to take over.
Notre Dame is in the middle of an excellent season, sitting with a 9-0 record, No. 2 in CFB Playoff Rankings. Defensive Coordinator Clark Lea has piloted a stout Irish defense and his body of work has made him a rising star in the coaching ranks. Furthermore, and perhaps even more interestingly enough, Lea is a Vanderbilt alum who was a fullback for the Commodores from 2002-2004. Certainly, Notre Dame head coach Brian Kelly and the Irish faithful will want to do everything they can to hold on to Lea in South Bend.
However, if Lea’s alma mater comes calling for him to return home as its new head coach, that could be tough for the Golden Domers’ defensive chief to turn down.
We all know what Bear Bryant famously said about alma maters and coaches.
2. Bob Stoops comes out of retirement...for a few days
Oklahoma’s athletic department has been rocked with positive COVID-19 cases, including many within the football program. The virus has not only affected the Sooners’ players, but also its support staff and coaching staff to the point where head coach Lincoln Riley needed help fielding a full coaching staff to get through practice this week.
Riley was so desperate for coaching assistance that he found some guy who lives in Norman by the name of Bob Stoops to help him this week. Stoops was at practice starting earlier this week and participating in on-field drills and meetings. Of course, it was Stoops who hired Riley to be his offensive coordinator before retiring and Riley ascending to head coach in Norman. Stoops is nothing short of a legend in the state and in college football, leading OU for 18 years and posting a 190-48 record, 10 Big 12 titles and a national championship in 2000.
Stoops is a “special assistant” in the Oklahoma athletic department, which technically helped him be in compliance to coach in an emergency such as this week. It’s not out of the question he won’t be on the OU game day staff tomorrow vs. Baylor.
3. Decommitments vs. Drops
Though it’s an evergreen topic, this cycle it feels as relevant as ever to remind college football fans, and recruits alike, that the decommitment season works both ways. Sure, some prospects are backing off of commitments on their own accord (look at Luke Altmyer, Jake Garcia, etc.) but the programs can initiate these moves as well. Often referred to as a ‘drop,’ programs sometimes change their opinion on a prospect because of performance, character or circumstance.
The performance aspect of a change of heart can involve a college’s perception or projection of the prospect. Perhaps they think Prospect X didn’t take the next step as a senior, aren’t satisfied with his body composition or simply replaced him in landing a prospect higher on their board at the same position. That leads into the ‘numbers’ element of a drop, often the excuse provided to prospects who no longer have a spot on a commitment list. It has more merit with the 2021 class because of roster uncertainty thanks to the 2020 college football season not affecting eligibility.
The issue may not be the move to drop a kid but the method in which he’s dropped. An SEC prospect recently announced he was back on the market, to our surprise, and we reached out to the prep coach. It turns out the team cooled on the prospect and all but ended all communication with him in hopes he would get the hint and de-commit. More commonly known as ghosting a recruit, it is the most cowardice way to move on from one. Others attempt to push for honesty in hinting at a prospect keeping his options open or asking to delay the enrollment process (grayshirt) depending on circumstances.
This week alone, 22 prospects in the class of 2021 decommitted from Power 5 programs. How many were on their own accord? The ratio is closer than one may assume.
4. Urban Meyer to Texas Talk
The Urban Meyer to Texas talk is increasing by the day and there is tangible reason to believe he could very well replace Tom Herman as the head man in Austin. He’s even considering which assistants may help him to bring Texas back (like for real, not just in some postgame interview after a meaningless bowl win). There’s no doubting the resume, recruiting prowess or even the ability to stay current based on how well-received Meyer is on television of late on FOX.
In reality, Meyer may be the only college football coach in the same conversation as the only other guy linked to this not-yet-officially-open gig, Nick Saban. The two are instant program changers with the rings, NFL draft picks and recruiting titles to back it up. Meyer has already done it in two, and let’s be honest, more difficult conferences than the current Big 12 in terms of talent and depth in the Big Ten and the SEC. Few would doubt the expectation he could do it at a place like UT.
The list of issues there speaks for itself in not running the conference or even being a clear No. 2 in the league to Oklahoma despite the rivalry between the two. Texas hasn’t won the Big 12 since 2009 and only has three titles compared to OU’s 12 since 1996. Baylor, Kansas State and even Nebraska, which left the league in 2011, all are right on UT’s “heels” with two conference crowns to their name during that time. That’s Texas’ company.
It isn’t much better on the recruiting trail even in the state of Texas, where Ohio State, Alabama, LSU, USC and of course Oklahoma have plucked Texans on a strong and consistent scale. Of the 14 SI99 members from the state of Texas, the Longhorns hold just one on the current commitment list and UT isn’t a favorite to land any of the uncommitted Texans on the list. Texas Tech and SMU can match UT’s sole pledge of SI99 Texans to date -- that's just not good enough on the 40 acres.
5. Everyone is Rooting for McKenzie Milton
How could you not? No need to dig into the life-changing injury he suffered a couple years back but the news of Milton hitting the transfer portal was even celebrated by UCF as he heads out the door, one of the rare feel-good stories in the sport of late.
Now the question becomes where will he end up? The obvious take may be the best as Scott Frost continues to look for answers at quarterback at his alma mater. Nebraska has just 902 yards through the air in five games, to which of course they’ve only won one. Milton, who averaged 263.1 yards per game from 2016-2018, would offer an immediate upgrade in experience and specific experience within Frost’s system.
In the Nebraska vs. the field, that group could include a bevy of programs from Florida State (which doesn’t have a quarterback committed), Hawaii (Milton’s home state school), UCLA (Chip Kelly and the fit) or a program like Syracuse (need) which is a shell of itself based on its current offensive system and has already been in touch with one transfer QB.
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