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. Nebraska is being targeted by the Big Ten.
Farrell’s take: FACT. It’s clear that the Huskers are getting the screws put to them by the Big Ten. They were the first to be vocal about the Big Ten originally not playing this season because of COVID-19 – and they were very vocal about it, even threatening to schedule their own games outside of the conference. That rattled some cages at the Big Ten office and when the league decided it would start its season on Oct. 24, the Huskers were rewarded for their defiance with Ohio State, Wisconsin and Penn State in their first four games.
Now the Badgers lose a few key players to COVID and the game against the Huskers suddenly is cancelled when the Huskers would have a very good chance to win. What if this wasn’t Wisconsin AD Barry Alvarez’s team? Alvarez is, after all, the puppet master of the Big Ten. What if it was Nebraska who was missing two QBs? You think the league would cancel a game against Wisconsin on Nebraska's behalf? No chance.
It’s clear this is a message to the Huskers for their daring take that we should actually play football this season and even though Nebraska helped save the football season in the Big Ten, this kind of punishment will continue for years to come. It’s petty and unprofessional, and the leadership at the Big Ten, Alvarez included, should be ashamed.
These are the people that postponed the season, got egg on their face when nearly everyone else played on, and then started the season so late that there is no wiggle room to postpone a game, as they could do in the Big 12, SEC and ACC. And it’s simply ridiculous.
Gorney's take: FICTION. I want to tread lightly here because I can see Farrell's point and the argument of many Nebraska faithful that the Huskers are being targeted by the Big Ten. Opening with Ohio State and now having the Wisconsin game canceled because of positive COVID tests for the Badgers, including coach Paul Chryst and star quarterback Graham Mertz, only reinforce some of those narratives.
But let's take a step back from the conspiracy theory world and let's remember that Wisconsin is still just getting its hands around exactly what numbers in terms of COVID-positive players it is dealing with and the state of Wisconsin has seen a major uptick in cases in recent days.
The Big Ten schedulers gave Nebraska a trip to Ohio State to start the season because of the off-season noise coming out of Lincoln. No doubt. But this Wisconsin situation is one where the conference is simply taking caution and not trying to still stick it to the Huskers.
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2. Trevor Lawrence will return to Clemson next season.
Farrell’s take: FICTION. Lawrence left the door open about returning for his senior season at Clemson this week. With the horribly dysfunctional NY Jets in the driver's seat for the No. 1 pick in April’s NFL Draft, his statement caused a buzz. I don’t think Lawrence is thrilled with the idea of playing for the Jets, but staying in college for another year for that would make zero sense.
He’s won a national title, he could win another and he’s a Heisman leader, so why come back? He could pull a John Elway or Eli Manning and refuse to play for the team with the pick, but that doesn’t seem like him either. He’s done after this season despite his recent comments leaving the door ajar.
Gorney’s take: FICTION. If there wasn’t a rule that Lawrence had to stay at Clemson for three seasons, as much as he loves it there, my guess is that he would have already left for the NFL because he has nothing else left to prove at the college level. He’s done it all and it’s time for him to move on to his next challenge - and make millions of dollars to do it.
Playing for the New York Jets might be enough for any smart person to stay in college for another year but Lawrence isn’t going to turn down the opportunity, so Clemson fans should enjoy him while he’s still there because it won’t be for long. And then he will be the No. 1 overall pick.
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3. DB Derrick Davis is a lock for Ohio State.
Farrell’s take: FICTION. There are so many rumors swirling around the Buckeyes after a recent visit weekend and Davis is a part of those. Much of the talk is regarding the 2022 class, but there are rumors out there that Davis is now a lock for the Buckeyes. I don’t believe that to be true.
He could very well end up at Ohio State. But his relationship with Penn State is longstanding and DBs coach Terry Smith is a Gateway HS legend from his coaching days at Davis’ high school. This one isn’t over but it’s close and trust me there’s no “lock” here.
Gorney’s take: FICTION. Davis is not an Ohio State lock yet, but if the Buckeyes come to Penn State this weekend and blow out the Nittany Lions, that could be the final nail in the coffin. I get the connections in Western Pennsylvania and it felt like Penn State has been the favorite for a while, but Davis had a great visit to Ohio State this past weekend and it could be surging. By no means is Penn State out of Davis’ recruitment, but this feels like it could be trending toward the Buckeyes now.
