'26 NC QB Faizon Brandon (Tennessee commit)

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#2,378
Dobbs 4 Heisman said:
True. I'm not saying the guy whose getting paid more money will be better. Just saying money talks. And the bigger salary guy will get the first shot at proving themselves.
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MarcoVol said:
‘23 class 5* QBs:
- Arch sat and didn’t transfer
- Nico sat, didn’t transfer bc of PT
- Moore started 5 games and transferred to sit
- Arnold sat then transferred after losing starting gig
- Nelson has gone from USC to Boise State to UTEP

‘24 class there were only three 5* QBs in the 247 composite. Raiola started, Lagway would’ve been #2 on the depth chart all year and didn’t transfer, and Sayin transferred bc Saban retired. Transferred to sit for a year btw.

‘25 class:
- Underwood will start @ Michigan
- Russell not the starter @ Bama
- St Clair not the starter @ OSU
- Longstreet not the starter @ USC
- Knight not the starter @ AUB

We’ll see who transfers out of those guys.
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You responded to a whole bunch of people after this post but never responded to this one…I wonder why…?
 
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#2,380
#2,380
JCVol00 said:
If we were to, we’d definitely have the right schedule for it. Our non conference schedule is already set:

September 5: vs Furman
September 12: @georgia tech
September 19: vs Kennesaw State

Definitely Would set up nicely for us to get him in a rhythm
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Georgia Tech will be tough. Key is building that program up.
 
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#2,384
AllThingsTN said:
You responded to a whole bunch of people after this post but never responded to this one…I wonder why…?
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Cause I mentioned how this was about the very top prospects who get paid the big bucks and how things have changed recently with NIL exploding.

For example, Bryce Underwood is getting paid $3 million this year as a true freshman and unsurprisingly he's expected to start. My argument is nobody will be paying millions of dollars for a kid to sit on the bench. The top recruits that get the big bucks will be expected to start day 1 going forward. Just like how most 1st round NFL picks are expected to start immediately nowadays.
 
#2,385
#2,385
Dobbs 4 Heisman said:
Cause I mentioned how this was about the very top prospects who get paid the big bucks and how things have changed recently with NIL exploding.

For example, Bryce Underwood is getting paid $3 million this year as a true freshman and unsurprisingly he's expected to start. My argument is nobody will be paying millions of dollars for a kid to sit on the bench. The top recruits that get the big bucks will be expected to start day 1 going forward. Just like how most 1st round NFL picks are expected to start immediately nowadays.
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So Keelon Russell, the #2 QB behind Underwood and #2 overall player in the entire country, is playing for a few sheckles therefore this rule does not apply?
 
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#2,386
#2,386
Dobbs 4 Heisman said:
Cause I mentioned how this was about the very top prospects who get paid the big bucks and how things have changed recently with NIL exploding.

For example, Bryce Underwood is getting paid $3 million this year as a true freshman and unsurprisingly he's expected to start. My argument is nobody will be paying millions of dollars for a kid to sit on the bench. The top recruits that get the big bucks will be expected to start day 1 going forward. Just like how most 1st round NFL picks are expected to start immediately nowadays.
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I am not sure I buy your argument that the highest paid QB will start but what I do agree with is college football is turning into the NFL in the aspect that you just aren't going to have two all-pro type QB's on the roster any longer. Does that mean Brandon starts next year and G-Mac transfer I don't know and more than likely none of us know until after fall camp next year. I think both of them remain on the roster through the 2026 season unless Brandon is named the starter after spring camp and then the wolves will start calling G-Mac.
 
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#2,387
#2,387
Dobbs 4 Heisman said:
That was before everyone was getting paid a lot. NIL has exploded the last two years and changed the game. The old college football mindset is over. The sport is now like the NFL.
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you are missing that teams spending first round draft picks on QB usually don't have starting quality QB play. look at this year.

Ward to the Titans is starting and the "competition" was Levis who hurt himself putting mayo in his coffee this offseason.

and Dart who is starting for the Giants, after Daniel Jones was finally off the team and they had no one else.

go back to '24:
Caleb Williams starts for the Bears over????
Jayden Daniels starts for the Commanders over???
Penix sat behind Cousins.
McCarthy sat/was injured
Bo Nix started over?

they start because there was no one else to start. if there was a starter, they sit.
 
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#2,388
#2,388
LouderVol said:
you are missing that teams spending first round draft picks on QB usually don't have starting quality QB play. look at this year.

Ward to the Titans is starting and the "competition" was Levis who hurt himself putting mayo in his coffee this offseason.

and Dart who is starting for the Giants, after Daniel Jones was finally off the team and they had no one else.

go back to '24:
Caleb Williams starts for the Bears over????
Jayden Daniels starts for the Commanders over???
Penix sat behind Cousins.
McCarthy sat/was injured
Bo Nix started over?

they start because there was no one else to start. if there was a starter, they sit.
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Just a point of clarification, Dart is not starting for the Giants, at least not to open the season. Russell Wilson is the named starter. Dart has certainly been impressive in the preseason, though.
 
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#2,389
MarcoVol said:
So Keelon Russell, the #2 QB behind Underwood and #2 overall player in the entire country, is playing for a few sheckles therefore this rule does not apply?
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Russell was a late riser in recruiting. He was originally a SMU commit and was in the 200s overall until very late in the process where they boosted him to #2 overall. Bryce Underwood on the other hand has been the #1 player in this class for several years now. I'm sure their NIL deals aren't close. Remember Underwood was an LSU commit until Michigan dropped a crazy bag to flip him. His payday is obscene even by today's NIL standards. Russell is probably barely making $1 mil/yr while Underwood is making $3 mil/yr.

If you're getting paid 3x the market rate for the average starting QB as a true freshman best believe you'll be playing.
 
#2,390
#2,390
LouderVol said:
you are missing that teams spending first round draft picks on QB usually don't have starting quality QB play. look at this year.

Ward to the Titans is starting and the "competition" was Levis who hurt himself putting mayo in his coffee this offseason.

and Dart who is starting for the Giants, after Daniel Jones was finally off the team and they had no one else.

go back to '24:
Caleb Williams starts for the Bears over????
Jayden Daniels starts for the Commanders over???
Penix sat behind Cousins.
McCarthy sat/was injured
Bo Nix started over?

they start because there was no one else to start. if there was a starter, they sit.
Click to expand...

Good point. Which is why you'll probably not see teams signing a 5-star QB every year or two as was the case for some in the past. The model will probably be to go all-in on a top QB recruit every 3 years. Which is what we did with when we planned on the transition from Nico to Faizon. Nico was gonna start this year and be off to the NFL. Then in the intervening years you'll sign a developmental guy like Merklinger. If he's good enough to start as an upperclassmen and can keep your top tier 5-star on the bench as a true freshman then some teams with large recruiting budgets will go with that model. But if he's not elite then the young guy will replace him at the first opportunity.

My main contention was with the idea a QB recruit like Bryce Underwood who is being paid $3 million a year (which is twice the rate for the average Power 4 starting QB) will be sitting on the bench for 2 years waiting to start. That scenario is simply not happening anymore. The money alone will dictate that a player like him gets on the field sooner rather than later.
 
#2,391
#2,391
Dobbs 4 Heisman said:
He'll win the job. We're not paying him to sit on the bench. In this day and age top recruits like him are the equivalent of 1st round picks. And if you know anything about how the NFL operates, first round picks don't sit on the bench.
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Nico didn't his FR year and got 2 million to sit. Heupel doesn't give a damn about what players are making.. Not sayiyFaizon won't win it, but CJH has no problem sitting a TR FR QB. Faizon may pick up the offense faster and know how to read defense's, unlike Nico.
 
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#2,392
jasonvol18 said:
Nico didn't his FR year and got 2 million to sit. Heupel doesn't give a damn about what players are making.. Not sayiyFaizon won't win it, but CJH has no problem sitting a TR FR QB. Faizon may pick up the offense faster and know how to read defense's, unlike Nico.
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The guy seems to think this is the NFL. You have roster full of high paid guys sitting the bench in college because that’s how it works. Impact freshmen are more the exception than the rule.
 
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#2,393
benholt06 said:
The guy seems to think this is the NFL. You have roster full of high paid guys sitting the bench in college because that’s how it works. Impact freshmen are more the exception than the rule.
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The question is how long is it sustainable to have high paid guys on the bench?? As this NIL shakes out I tend to agree with him that you will just not have the funds or resources to have rosters like Saban and Smart have had the last 6-8 years.

It isn't going to be long before a starting QB in the SEC ins paid 3-4 million a season so if you have two starting caliber QB's can the collective afford to shell out 6-8 million for the two?? The answer is likely not so then the question is would Brandon or G-Mac be willing to sit the bench for lets say 25% of their market value??
 
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#2,394
#2,394
jasonvol18 said:
Nico didn't his FR year and got 2 million to sit. Heupel doesn't give a damn about what players are making.. Not sayiyFaizon won't win it, but CJH has no problem sitting a TR FR QB. Faizon may pick up the offense faster and know how to read defense's, unlike Nico.
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That was before roster was costing $20+ million a year. Nico was the first real big NIL so the approach was still like the old days. Now Nico is no longer the outlier. Every team now has a million dollar QB and high six figure starters across the board.

I'm just telling you times have changed and to be prepared for it. Yall are stuck in the past when the investment cost in players was relatively small. Now the top college football teams are mini-NFL clubs. And I don't know of any NFL teams where the highest paid player is sitting on the bench collecting checks. He's usually playing.

If Faizon is our highest paid player in 2026 (which is almost certain to be true) then he won't be sitting on the bench for long. He'll be playing in some role at the very least and most likely will be the starter.
 
#2,395
#2,395
benholt06 said:
The guy seems to think this is the NFL. You have roster full of high paid guys sitting the bench in college because that’s how it works. Impact freshmen are more the exception than the rule.
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Give me evidence of highly paid guys sitting on the bench? Here's the average rate for starters at each position according to a report from ESPN: College football 2025: How much does each position cost?

Who are the $2 million/yr QBs sitting on the bench? Who are the $1 million/yr offensive tackles sitting on the bench? Bryce Underwood is getting paid $3 mil/yr and is starting as a true freshman. Also it's been rumored David Sanders Jr. is getting around $1 mil/yr and he's projected to start as a true freshman. By most accounts they were the two highest paid recruits in the 2025 class.

The guys who get paid the most will be expected to earn that salary on the field not sitting on the bench.
 
#2,396
#2,396
volfan411 said:
The question is how long is it sustainable to have high paid guys on the bench?? As this NIL shakes out I tend to agree with him that you will just not have the funds or resources to have rosters like Saban and Smart have had the last 6-8 years.

It isn't going to be long before a starting QB in the SEC ins paid 3-4 million a season so if you have two starting caliber QB's can the collective afford to shell out 6-8 million for the two?? The answer is likely not so then the question is would Brandon or G-Mac be willing to sit the bench for lets say 25% of their market value??
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Good to see someone else sees what's coming.

I would take it further and say its unlikely we see experienced depth at most positions anymore. The days of having multiple upperclassmen as your primary backups are over. This offseason is gonna be the new normal that every team will be looking forward to. You'll see the likes of a Squirrel White leaving because he can get paid more elsewhere and instead of replacing him with another expensive veteran, he'll be replaced by a young freshman or sophomore not getting paid as much. No different than in the NFL where veterans seeking big money are let go in free agency and replaced with cheaper guys from the draft.

The transfer portal is like free agency and recruiting is the draft. With 5-star recruits being the equivalent of 1st round picks given how much they cost. 5-stars will be counted on to play immediately like 1st round picks are expected to be immediate starters. While the rest of the lower ranked recruits will be expected to provide valuable depth immediately rather than sitting behind experienced guys who have been in the system for 3-4 years.

Its a new age in college football and some just don't want to accept it.
 
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#2,397
#2,397
Dobbs 4 Heisman said:
Give me evidence of highly paid guys sitting on the bench? Here's the average rate for starters at each position according to a report from ESPN: College football 2025: How much does each position cost?

Who are the $2 million/yr QBs sitting on the bench? Who are the $1 million/yr offensive tackles sitting on the bench? Bryce Underwood is getting paid $3 mil/yr and is starting as a true freshman. Also it's been rumored David Sanders Jr. is getting around $1 mil/yr and he's projected to start as a true freshman. By most accounts they were the two highest paid recruits in the 2025 class.

The guys who get paid the most will be expected to earn that salary on the field not sitting on the bench.
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You’ve named 2 players. What about every other 5* QB from the ‘25 class of which none of them are starting this year?

If the average for QB is $1-2 M, more than just Underwood would be around $2M or above, yes?
 
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