Jason Garrett cites NIL and transfer portal obstacles as reason he backed out of consideration for Stanford job
The names being tossed around for the Stanford head coaching vacancy to replace David Shaw, ranged from people such as Greg Roman, who actually stepped down from his role with the Ravens on Thursday, to legendary Washington coach Chris Petersen.
The Cardinal went with offensive mastermind Troy Taylor from Sacramento State, but one name that appeared to be in the running and actually emerged as a surprise finalist was former Dallas Cowboys head coach, Jason Garrett.
The former NFL head coach and offensive coordinator announced on December 8 that he would instead stick with his NBC gig, and appeared to take himself out of the running. While it appeared that Taylor was far and away the favorite at that time, many were surprised and wondered if there was a reason we didn't know about as to why Garrett pulled back.
We learned that answer on Thursday when Garrett joined The Dan Patrick Show, where he explained he was "grateful for the opportunity" but upon looking more into it, didn't think it was a fit. He expanded upon why it wasn't a fit saying:
"It's an intriguing place," Garrett told Patrick. "I've always had great admiration for (Stanford). That's why I went out there and visited with them, to get a chance to talk with Andrew Luck, Condoleezza Rice, Bruce Dunlevie and Bernard Muir ... It was a really fun experience and stimulating experience. But at the end of it, the college landscape is changing. You embrace the standards at a place like Stanford. You want to coach those kinds of kids who are so driven. But with the transfer portal, NIL and other factors, it might be hard to win in an environment like that. I was grateful for the opportunity, but I am glad I did what I did."
Considering he was fired from his last two gigs in the NFL by teams who both are in the middle of playoff runs right now, and on top of that had no college coaching experience, Garrett to Stanford likely wasn't the play regardless of his thoughts on NIL and the transfer portal. Two things that Troy Taylor has ensured that he and the program will utilize, and while the coach can't control NIL deals, he can control the amount of effort put into transfer portal acquisitions.
The Cardinal have already added a key linebacker transfer and are in good standing to land two Ivy League offensive lineman transfers after this weekend.
Garrett did say that he hopes the NCAA can figure out a way to contain NIL a tad saying:
"I really am hoping they somehow put some curbs on these things. I don't know how they would do it. NIL is a good thing in concept. But hopefully it is used in the right way, in benefit of the kids and not too much in recruiting and transfers. That's a bad thing with NIL. Hopefully they get that all sorted out."
Stanford has long faced criticism of their inability to use the portal, but in just a few short weeks, Taylor has shown it's possible and just requires effort. The Cardinal are in the midst of winter workouts before spring ball begins to heat up, which will feature a handful of intense position battles.
