Longhorns Maalik Murphy's Bidding War New Norm In College Football Recruiting
A giant exhale bellowed among the Texas Longhorns crowd last week when the news broke. A quarterback who once was viewed as the second option could now be headed out the door.
According to 247Sports, Longhorns redshirt freshman Maalik Murphy officially decided to return to the Forty Acres for a second season. That didn't mean offers weren't stockpiling inch by inch as the days continued to pile up.
Murphy, a pocket-passing playmaker with a howitzer attached to his right shoulder for an arm, fielded calls — plenty, for that matter. Several programs from the SEC inquired if the California kid would be willing to leave the saddle of backup duty to take on the reins as their starter. Per 247Sports, so did at least one school from the Big Ten and Pac-12.
But Murphy is a loyal soldier. He's committed not just to Texas but also to Steve Sarkisian for the long run. And thanks to the benefits of name, image, and likeness (NIL), the Longhorns were able to reach a deal that would keep arguably college football's top backup in waiting for another season.
Good for Texas. Good for Murphy. Good for all of college football.
Welcome to the new norm of the NIL, where tampering and bombardments of recruiting are no longer illegal, just instead frowned upon.
Recruiting has always been a non-stop, bustling job for coaches. They'll wake up, go to practice, watch the tape, call a recruit or two to discuss their future, return to film study and sneak in a time to eat and tuck in the kids at night before restarting the cycle hours later.
Now add internal recruiting to the mix as well. Not only are coaches required to bring prospects into the program, but they're also expected to keep them from leaving.
Murphy, who dazzled in his first appearance donning a burnt orange logo on his helmet, is a prime example of the new college football waves. His jaw-dropping passes and persistent read in the Orange-White game towered the headlines both locally and on a broader spectrum.
Murphy's best pass of the afternoon came on a 76-yard score to freshman Johntay Cook. If the consistency is already there with a player on the rise, what could be at Murphy's disposal with a proven commodity?
“I think the sky’s the limit for the guy,” Sarkisian said following the spring game. “He is really talented, and I thought he showed today by making some of the throws that he did.”
With players now eligible to play on a one-time transfer tag, teams will always covet quarterbacks in rocky situations. After Murphy finished 9 of 13 for 165 yards and a score, who wouldn't be dialing his digits to ask if he'd be willing to switch zip codes?
Texas can offer Murphy more money. Other programs can offer the one thing Sarkisian can't; guaranteed first-team reps. Murphy is more than capable of not just starting for an FBS school, but Power Five programs would be elated to have a prospect with the build of Vince Young and the mechanics of Colt McCoy leading the huddle.
For now, Murphy will stay in Austin. He'll compete with Quinn Ewers for starting job despite Sarkisian announcing the latter as his QB1 for the Week 1 opener against Rice. An announcement is nothing more than a short-stinted proclamation. Hudson Card was announced as the starter in 2021, and that lasted all of six quarters.
Ewers, who won Big 12 Newcomer of the Year, will retain the starting job so long as he puts up adequate numbers. Anything over impressive, and perhaps he declares for the NFL draft next spring, thus opening the door for both Murphy and football golden boy Arch Manning to compete for the starting job.
Should Murphy win the job outright? Excellent. Sarkisian will have to do some convincing to keep Manning waiting in the wings. He has the entire Manning clan under his watch, so convincing the nephew of two Super Bowl-winning quarterbacks around campus doesn't seem too hard on paper.
If Murphy loses to Manning, it's a win for all sides. Sarkisian has mentioned perpetually throughout the spring that Manning won't be thrown into the fire until his ready. Should he win the title in an offseason before the Longhorns join the SEC, he's prepared to become the headliner of a program looking for its first national title in nearly two decades.
And for Murphy? Don't call it a loss; consider it more so a reason to up the asking price with NIL deals. Texas was willing to throw sums of cash his way to keep him as the No. 2 option.
How much would a program pay to anoint him QB1 after another strong spring showing?
Texas is among the first profitable program to go through the NIL's new "tampering" issues. It won't be the last. Those with big boosters and even bigger pockets can keep players around and have them sit for a season or two. Those without ample revenue will have to get creative.
Unfair? Perhaps in some ways, but money talks regardless of profession. Green is a universal language and everyone wants to be fluent in the Grants and Benjamins.
Murphy could end up being the answer to Texas' conundrum of being "back" for good. The program could just be a stepping stone in Murphy's career as he leaves and leads another roster deeper into the College Football Playoff picture.
No matter Murphy's future, he's here to stay for now — just like the recent changes to recruiting in college football.
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