This certainly has the potential to end well in the comments section -- and by “end well” I mean “be a train wreck.”
As everybody knows, one of the biggest storylines in college football throughout the offseason has been Ohio State’s three-headed quarterback competition, which won’t commence in earnest until summer camp rolls around in August. And not only will it be a three-man battle, it will include what may well be the most talented collection of quarterbacks ever assembled on one team at the collegiate level: Cardale Jones, the hero of the Buckeyes’ postseason run viewed as one of a handful of preseason contenders for the 2015 Heisman Trophy; J.T. Barrett, the 2014 starter who led the Buckeyes to the cusp of a Big Ten title and spot in the College Football Playoff before fracturing his ankle in the regular-season finale against Michigan; and Braxton Miller, the two-time Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year who was one of the favorites for the 2014 Heisman before reinjuring his shoulder during summer camp last August and missing the entire season.
With that as a backdrop, and as relayed by our own JJ Stankevitz for his main gig at CSNChicago, Brian Kelly was asked during a Wednesday press conference which unit’s depth on his Notre Dame squad has pleased him the most. Unprompted, the Irish head coach brought up OSU’s quarterback situation in pumping up his own group of signal-callers, Everett Golson and Malik Zaire.
“At the quarterback position, maybe other than Ohio State, I would take our two quarterbacks,” Kelly said. “And I would take our two over Ohio State’s. In terms of depth, I don’t know if anybody has a better situation than we do in terms of the two quarterbacks we have.”
The fact that Kelly pumped up his own players publicly isn’t a surprise as coaches all across the country do it on an almost daily basis, especially in the spring. The fact that Kelly, unsolicited, brought up OSU and claimed he’d take his guys over Urban Meyer‘s, though, is head-scratching and chuckle-inducing to say the least.
While Golson/Zaire are far from middle school-level talents, they’re also far from the Jones/Barrett/Miller triumvirate when it comes to on-field production and success -- 38-3 with that starting trio the past three years, three division titles, one conference championship, one national championship. Granted, Golson helped lead the Irish to the 2012 BCS title game, but still, there’s not a coach in the country who, if he’s being honest with himself, wouldn’t trade his situation depth-wise for the Buckeyes’.
It’s interesting to note that Kelly’s very public praise comes amidst rumors that bubbled yet again to the surface that Golson may be considering a transfer. Maybe it’s merely a coincidence, but maybe it’s Kelly’s way of publicly telling Golson that he does indeed want him in South Bend -- and, in the process, leaving him more than one viable option at the position heading into the new season.