I'm going to punt the mailbag to tomorrow since I wanted to get this up tonight.
I'll start with the headline news, the biggest news of the day is the lack of portal entries from GT. QB Jeff Sims was a given, but other guys who declared their intention like Nate McCollum have not gone in yet. Guys like McCollum or rumored guys like Leo Blackburn or Jamie Felix are more likely to stay now that Key was hired. In addition, new GT NIL stuff is up and running that should help retain other players. Guys like LaMiles Brooks, Clayton Powell-Lee and Zach Pyron are locked in, the big thing now for Key is making sure guys like McCollum, Felix, and Blackburn stay put. Their teammates are also working hard to keep them in the fold. It is still fluid though with people throwing around insane dollars if they see a need so until you see the tweet from Nate saying he is back for sure, you have to wait and see.
I've heard several key guys have new NIL deals with GT including the ones mentioned above. Head Coach Brent Key stated his philosophy about protecting and developing what you have in-house and that is part of his NIL plan.
Dontae Smith is also in that group of guys with a GT degree who are considering staying. Even guys like Jaylon King who expected to bolt haven't yet. That will also be part of Key's plan, keeping as many of those guys around who are veterans with good experience instead of rolling the dice and hoping to hit on a player in the portal.
The other big thing for guys like Dontae, Nate or Leo will be the hire of the new OC. Key continues to interview candidates and per my sources has a few guys starting to stick out, but he has not offered the job to anyone yet. There are a couple of additional guys I expect him to speak with tomorrow and then I think he will start to narrow it down. Per my sources, he has interviewed over a dozen potential OCs, but only a handful have been in-person interviews.
I do not think the UAB OC Bryant Vincent will be a finalist per my sources. I know that name was discussed on here.
I still expect Chris Weinke to remain on staff as QB coach, whether he is the OC, or a Co-OC, or just a position coach.
As far as the rest of the staff goes, I think a lot of the guys will remain who filled in as interim coaches like JB Hall Jr (special teams) who was at the Key presser, Nathan Brock (OL), and Donald Hill-Eley (RB coach) but if they remain as on the field coaches, I don't know, it will likely depend on the OC hire and how he wants to staff it along with Key.
I'll start with the headline news, the biggest news of the day is the lack of portal entries from GT. QB Jeff Sims was a given, but other guys who declared their intention like Nate McCollum have not gone in yet. Guys like McCollum or rumored guys like Leo Blackburn or Jamie Felix are more likely to stay now that Key was hired. In addition, new GT NIL stuff is up and running that should help retain other players. Guys like LaMiles Brooks, Clayton Powell-Lee and Zach Pyron are locked in, the big thing now for Key is making sure guys like McCollum, Felix, and Blackburn stay put. Their teammates are also working hard to keep them in the fold. It is still fluid though with people throwing around insane dollars if they see a need so until you see the tweet from Nate saying he is back for sure, you have to wait and see.
I've heard several key guys have new NIL deals with GT including the ones mentioned above. Head Coach Brent Key stated his philosophy about protecting and developing what you have in-house and that is part of his NIL plan.
Dontae Smith is also in that group of guys with a GT degree who are considering staying. Even guys like Jaylon King who expected to bolt haven't yet. That will also be part of Key's plan, keeping as many of those guys around who are veterans with good experience instead of rolling the dice and hoping to hit on a player in the portal.
The other big thing for guys like Dontae, Nate or Leo will be the hire of the new OC. Key continues to interview candidates and per my sources has a few guys starting to stick out, but he has not offered the job to anyone yet. There are a couple of additional guys I expect him to speak with tomorrow and then I think he will start to narrow it down. Per my sources, he has interviewed over a dozen potential OCs, but only a handful have been in-person interviews.
I do not think the UAB OC Bryant Vincent will be a finalist per my sources. I know that name was discussed on here.
I still expect Chris Weinke to remain on staff as QB coach, whether he is the OC, or a Co-OC, or just a position coach.
As far as the rest of the staff goes, I think a lot of the guys will remain who filled in as interim coaches like JB Hall Jr (special teams) who was at the Key presser, Nathan Brock (OL), and Donald Hill-Eley (RB coach) but if they remain as on the field coaches, I don't know, it will likely depend on the OC hire and how he wants to staff it along with Key.
