Fact or Fiction: Swinney will go to NFL with Trevor Lawrence
National recruiting director Mike Farrell and national recruiting analyst Adam Gorney tackle three topics daily and determine whether they believe the statements or not.
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1. Dabo Swinney will leave for the NFL with Trevor Lawrence.
Farrell’s take: FICTION. This has become a rumor, especially when it comes to the Jacksonville Jaguars as they are projected to be the worst team in football and winner of the Tank for Trevor movement. And they will likely be in line for a new coach as well.
Rumors started last year that the Carolina Panthers targeted Dabo Swinney before hiring Matt Rhule and these rumors won’t go away when it comes to Swinney to the NFL. But he has it good at Clemson and is still in great shape to dominate the ACC for a long time with DJ Uiagalelei set to step in when Trevor Lawrence leaves. And it’s not like he doesn’t get paid well. I just can’t see him making that jump now.
Gorney’s take: FICTION. Until I see it, I’m going to chalk this one up to speculation and off-season chatter, but I will say this: It does make some sense. Swinney could continue to hitch his wagon to Lawrence. That’s not all. Swinney has done everything in college football from resurrecting a moribund program to winning national championships and beyond. A new challenge could be appealing for the 50-year-old coach and Jacksonville could put together a package that looks irresistible.
I don’t buy the argument that Swinney is comfortable at Clemson and that alone will be enough to keep him in college forever. Lots of coaches have left places for a lot less, or for another mountain to conquer or for something new to prove. That mentality is in the coaching DNA.
I’m not saying Swinney is out the door and I wouldn’t be shocked if he stayed at Clemson forever, but Jacksonville would make sense, especially if he’s given complete control to run everything. People who have covered Swinney for a long time believe there's zero chance he would leave for the NFL. They point to the fact that Swinney has it so good at Clemson and leaving for a new challenge isn't as appealing as having the grass as green as possible in his current situation. Some think even if Alabama came calling after Nick Saban retires, it might be a tough sell to leave.
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2. Voting to play football will help recruiting for Ohio State, Nebraska and Iowa.
Farrell’s take: FACT. In response to the Nebraska players' lawsuit against the Big Ten the conference admitted it came down to an 11-3 vote in favor of postponing the football season. The three that wanted to play? The Huskers, Buckeyes and Hawkeyes. And you can bet these three schools will use this to their advantage on the recruiting trail.
The Buckeyes don’t need much help, as they are recruiting off the hook, but prospects who are paying attention to all of this will start looking at Iowa and Nebraska a little closer because they wanted to ball. Player safety is important, but the bottom line for football players is that they want to play and the show of desire by these three programs is a big deal.
Gorney’s take: FICTION. I just don’t see this helping all that much on the recruiting trail, although those three Big Ten teams should be commended for trying to find a path forward this season.
As for the schools that voted not to play, that was not a decision from the coaching staff or the players but from the university presidents. Coaches will certainly make that clear on the recruiting trail. The fact is Ohio State, Nebraska and Iowa are still not playing, so I don’t see how this will be a recruiting edge. It absolutely helps teams in the ACC, SEC and Big 12 that have decided to play, but within the Big Ten, I don’t think any kid is going to pick Nebraska over Wisconsin or Iowa over Michigan because those university presidents said not to play.
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3. Ohio State's offer to Alex 'Sonny' Styles could impact Lorenzo Styles and his commitment to Notre Dame.
Farrell’s take: FICTION. In the class of 2023, Alex "Sonny" Styles from Ohio is a defensive back to pay attention to, and he just got an Ohio State offer. His brother, Lorenzo, is committed to Notre Dame as a 2021 prospect. So could this change things? I don’t think so. Notre Dame will eventually offer Sonny, and I expect he’ll follow his brother to South Bend.
Gorney’s take: FICTION. Ohio State is not going to give up on someone as talented as Lorenzo Styles, and it definitely hurts that he lives less than 30 minutes from campus but still picked Notre Dame over the Buckeyes. It’s also an interesting recruiting tactic to offer his brother to try to sway both of them into the Ohio State fold.
But the rumor is that Michigan would be the biggest threat to flip Styles, a high four-star receiver, so if the Wolverines get involved with the 2023 prospect as well they could have a shot. But I still think Styles sticks with Notre Dame and that can only be good news for eventually landing his younger brother as well.