Let the Roster Wars Begin: USC's Tufele First to Bolt; Will Husky be Next?
Since the Pac-12 decided to pass on fall football, no University of Washington quarterback has circulated a petition calling for a reversal. No parent of a Husky player has organized a protest group.
Everyone seems to have quietly slunk away from a no-win situation, giving into the stark realities of the ongoing pandemic. The calm should not last long.
What comes next, unfortunately, should be uncomfortable upheaval for the Washington Huskies and the rest of the conference, as well as for the Big Ten. They're not playing and the rest of the Power 5 is pushing on without them.
Expect rapid-fire personnel moves, some that will be considered outlandish and disloyal, as Pac-12 players look out for their best football interests and other college programs thinking short term or NFL types thinking long term swoop in to sort through the roster rubble.
USC junior defensive lineman Jay Tufele, a first-team All-Pac-12 selection, is the first player defection, deciding on Wednesday to walk away from the Trojans and any rebound season to prepare for the 2021 NFL draft.
Next is Lane Kiffin, the former USC coach now at Mississippi, who on Wednesday suggested rather brazenly that any Pac-12 or Big Ten player who wants to transfer to a school that will have fall football should be able to do so without penalty.
In other words, come play immediately for him and the Rebels.
"Kids are having their schools or their conferences deciding to shut down, so they can't play, and a lot of them have a lot of money on the line with the next level, or they just want to play their last year," Kiffin said.
The next one hits close to home for Husky followers: Bleacher Report has come up with a list of 14 dream players who should transfer to the open conferences, matching them with specific teams.
The site has cornerback Elijah Molden going to Oklahoma State.
Again, that's just wishful thinking, never going to happen, right?
Bleacher Report's match-making assessment: "Adding him to a talented secondary that needs an elite force on the boundary would be huge for the Cowboys. Gundy's defensive-back corps already boasts Kolby Harvell-Peel and Rodarius Williams, and adding Molden would sew up that unit. The Washington defender could make a difference right away and shoot up draft boards if he held his own in a pass-happy Big 12."
Defensive end Joe Tryon, defensive tackle Levi Onwuzurike, offensive tackle Jaxson Kirkland and Molden would seem the most logical Husky candidates for displacement across the college landscape or right to the NFL because of their talent levels.
To combat potential player poaching, UW coach Jimmy Lake is reminding everyone under his care to make well-informed decisions, especially in regards to the NFL. He was under the impression the pros will push back next year's combine and draft to later dates because of the pandemic displacement.
There is nothing in writing about this.
Lake's better argument might be that all of the Power 5 conferences, no matter how full of bluster they might be right now about playing, eventually will be sitting out the fall because of anticipated coronavirus spikes.
After opening, North Carolina and Notre Dame already have abandoned in-person classes because of outbreaks among students.
The Fighting Irish went one better, pausing football practice on Wednesday and possibly on Thursday because of the rate of active cases on campus.
Roster wars?
You might want to hold off on making that big decision just yet.
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