Class of 2023 QB Malachi Nelson (CA) TRANSFERRING TO SYRACUSE (1/16/26)

[ImperialOrange]

and if you do hit big on 30 of 65 in a year at least 20 of them will get poached the following season for bigger checks than Cuse will ever be able to offer.

 

[CbusCuse]

I truly hope I'm wrong but it hasn't clicked with 3 different staffs, so what would make us unique? In earnest I think a school like Syracuse needs to stop adding players and trim the roster ... get under 85 and get more juice out of NIL. In the NFL you work with a roster of 53, why not get down around 65 and spread the revenue share deeper and land more impactful players, you also can get more bang for your buck. It also allows a more focused coaching effort for the staff where you are literally now only coaching lets say 65 players vs 85 ... if the NCAA is going to behave more like the NFL we should get in front of that trend and operate in kind IMHO.

I posted earlier in this thread about his stops at USC and Boise State. Those were situations where he had established QB's on the roster ahead of him that were successful. It don't think it necessarily means things didn't "click" for him. He may just not have had an opportunity. Also according to two 2024 depth charts for Boise State that I could find, I want to note that it looks like he was QB2 for them when he was just a redshirt freshman. That means something as well.

I don't think you can operate that way with that few of players on a college roster. First off, the talent isn't as even across the board with your roster like it is in the pros. Many of your players are developmental. If you drop the ones lower on the projected depth chart, i don't think you gaining much NIL to spread around that it will make enough of a difference in what you can bring in starter wise. Those players are not getting much to begin with.

 

[kcsu]

I truly hope I'm wrong but it hasn't clicked with 3 different staffs, so what would make us unique? In earnest I think a school like Syracuse needs to stop adding players and trim the roster ... get under 85 and get more juice out of NIL. In the NFL you work with a roster of 53, why not get down around 65 and spread the revenue share deeper and land more impactful players, you also can get more bang for your buck. It also allows a more focused coaching effort for the staff where you are literally now only coaching lets say 65 players vs 85 ... if the NCAA is going to behave more like the NFL we should get in front of that trend and operate in kind IMHO.

I agree with your take and believe that other schools including SU should look at something less than 105. Syracuse and Fran are going to continue to rely on HS players to come in and compete on the two deep as true frosh. It is a cost-effective way to manage the roster. Money is going to go to retention 10-fold over acquisition and although scholarships do count against available funds bringing in a large talented hs class is a cost-effective way of finding the handful of starters and players that you want to retain. It's a different strategy than others have especially those with super deep pockets. Time will tell but I like what this staff is doing and believe that it is going to pay off with a team that can compete year in and year out.

 

[wfschrec]

I posted earlier in this thread about his stops at USC and Boise State. Those were situations where he had established QB's on the roster ahead of him that were successful. It don't think it necessarily means things didn't "click" for him. He may just not have had an opportunity. Also according to two 2024 depth charts for Boise State that I could find, I want to note that it looks like he was QB2 for them when he was just a redshirt freshman. That means something as well.

I don't think you can operate that way with that few of players on a college roster. First off, the talent isn't as even across the board with your roster like it is in the pros. Many of your players are developmental. If you drop the ones on the lower side from the roster, i don't think you gaining much NIL to spread around that it will make enough of a difference in what you can bring in starter wise. Those players are not getting much to begin with.

You are looking at it strictly from what a player is paid. There are a lot of auxiliary expenses that would be saved on that could better enhance the roster. As for Nelson again I hope I am wrong but he couldn't beat our Miller Moss who isn't a worldbeater and his UTEP stint just wasn't good statistically. A sub 50% completion percentage vs LA Tech, LA Monroe, and Liberty doesn't scream a situation problem .. that screams a Nelson problem. It was Ricky Collins level production at a lower level, I want Nelson to work out but I don't have high confidence. We have no idea how the Georgetown kid will translate to this level but I feel good with Odom and Angeli ... I just hope unlike 2025 we don't have to go 3 deep ... I don't like our odds.

 

[CbusCuse]

I agree with your take and believe that other schools including SU should look at something less than 105. Syracuse and Fran are going to continue to rely on HS players to come in and compete on the two deep as true frosh. It is a cost-effective way to manage the roster. Money is going to go to retention 10-fold over acquisition and although scholarships do count against available funds bringing in a large talented hs class is a cost-effective way of finding the handful of starters and players that you want to retain. It's a different strategy than others have especially those with super deep pockets. Time will tell but I like what this staff is doing and believe that it is going to pay off with a team that can compete year in and year out.

I understand maybe not going to 105, but even 85 seems a bit lite to me with how their really aren't any walk ons now. And it seems like the players that are later in the slots that would be dropped from the roster would be more developmental freshman. Those are really players you are not giving much money to, and if you can develop them you can hopefully get a good year out of them being productive before they would be expecting NIL money.

 

[CbusCuse]

You are looking at it strictly from what a player is paid. There are a lot of auxiliary expenses that would be saved on that could better enhance the roster. As for Nelson again I hope I am wrong but he couldn't beat our Miller Moss who isn't a worldbeater and his UTEP stint just wasn't good statistically. A sub 50% completion percentage vs LA Tech, LA Monroe, and Liberty doesn't scream a situation problem .. that screams a Nelson problem. It was Ricky Collins level production at a lower level, I want Nelson to work out but I don't have high confidence. We have no idea how the Georgetown kid will translate to this level but I feel good with Odom and Angeli ... I just hope unlike 2025 we don't have to go 3 deep ... I don't like our odds.

Miller Moss was QB2 for USC in 2023 as a redshirt Sophomore. Malachi Nelson was a true freshman. That doesn't seem like too much of an indictment to me. I'm certainly not saying Malachi is "likely" to be a starter for us or anything. But I certainly could see it happening and don't think its a real long shot at this point.

 

[wfschrec]

I understand maybe not going to 105, but even 85 seems a bit lite to me with how their really aren't any walk ons now. And it seems like the players that are later in the slots that would be dropped from the roster would be more developmental freshman. Those are really players you are not giving much money to, and if you can develop them you can hopefully get a good year out of them being productive before they would be expecting NIL money.

Why do you even need 85? How many total players saw the field in a really bad 2025? Maybe 60? Why not save the upfront cost and go after the higher end high school kids and use a bigger pay bucket to compete? Treat like the NFL ... plan to add roughly 10 a year through recruiting and use portal for the rest bringing in players trained and prepped at the collegiate level by other staffs. Don't become the farm team be a parent club.