Tag: Malachi Nelson

USC is losing former five-star recruits at an alarming rate

We can’t ignore how many highly-touted recruits are leaving USC. It’s not the sign of a healthy program heading in the right direction.

They say that the key to building a successful program is signing lots of blue-chip recruits. That is true at USC football and other places, but it only works if the recruits actually stick around.

Perhaps no program is a bigger example of this right now than USC itself. In his first three recruiting cycles at USC, Lincoln Riley signed six players who were rated as a five-star by at least one of the four major recruiting services (247, On3, Rivals, and ESPN). Of those six, just one is still with the Trojans.

Last offseason, USC saw cornerback Domani Jackson, running back Raleek Brown, and quarterback Malachi Nelson transfer out. This year, the Trojans have lost wide receivers Zachariah Branch and Duce Robinson. (Several of them have also offered some snide comments following their departures.) Only wide receiver Makai Lemon remains with the team.

Now, each individual player had their own reasons for leaving. Some struggled to earn playing time, while others did not play well and left in search of a fresh start elsewhere.

Still, the fact that the Trojans have lost as many former highly-touted recruits as they have is an alarming sign. Clearly, Riley and his staff are struggling to develop and retain the talent that they are signing, which is a major problem.

It would be one thing if USC was continuing to win games despite the departures. But the Trojans are just 14-11 since the start of the 2023 season.

Riley and company will need to get these issues sorted out and start winning soon. Otherwise, they might not be around for much longer.

Former USC QB Malachi Nelson enters transfer portal again

Malachi Nelson watched his Boise State teammates make the College Football Playoff. Nelson wants playing time, so he’s back in the portal. The math is clear.

Less than a year after leaving USC football, Malachi Nelson is back in the transfer portal once again. After signing with the Trojans as a five-star recruit in the 2023 signing class, Nelson was seen as USC’s quarterback of the future. In his first season on campus, Nelson served as the Trojans’ third string quarterback behind Caleb Williams and Miller Moss. He appeared in one game and attempted just three passes, preserving his redshirt.

The expectation was that Nelson would compete with Moss for the starting job in 2024 following Williams’ departure. Instead, however, Nelson elected to enter the transfer portal. According to reports, Nelson did not want to have to compete for the job, and USC’s coaching staff was less than thrilled with his work ethic.

Nelson committed to Boise State. However, he lost the QB competition to Maddux Masden, who has since gone on to lead the Broncos to the College Football Playoff. As Boise State’s backup this season, Nelson completed 12 of his 17 pass attempts for 128 yards and one interception.

Now, while the Broncos are getting set for their playoff quarterfinal at the Fiesta Bowl on New Year’s Eve, Nelson is back in the portal yet again.

Ironically, Nelson’s path to the playing field would have been more clear had he stayed at USC. Moss started the first nine games of the season for the Trojans, but was replaced by UNLV trasnfer Jayden Maiava for the final three. Had Nelson stuck around, USC likely never would have pursued Maiava, and the former five-star may have gotten a shot to prove himself.

Instead, he will now be looking for his third school in three years.

Boise State’s Maddux Madsen, who was a 2-star recruit, wins QB battle over a former blue chip prospect

A former two-star recruit beat out a five-star recruit to win the starting quarterback job at Boise State.

It has been an improbable journey for Maddux Madsen, who was named the starting quarterback at Boise State this week.

The significance behind this is not only was Madsen a two-star recruit coming out of high school but he wasn’t even ranked as a quarterback recruit nationally by Rivals. And now two years later, he beat out a former USC quarterback in getting the starting job at Boise State.

And not just any quarterback, but one with quite the pedigree and hype in Malachi Nelson.

It was Nelson who was the presumptive favorite to win the starting quarterback job when he joined Boise State out of the transfer portal this past spring. After all, Nelson (who threw just three passes during his single season at USC) is a former five-star recruit.

On top of that, Nelson was also the top-ranked recruit in the nation in the class of 2023 according to ESPN. He played his high school football for Los Alamitos (Los Alamitos, California).

What a tremendous statement from Madsen in winning the starting job at Boise State. It will be interesting to see if Nelson sticks around or makes a move to try and win the starting job elsewhere.

Last season, Madsen completed 61.4 percent of his passes for 1,191 yards with nine touchdowns and three interceptions at Boise State.

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Maddux Madsen wins starting quarterback job at Boise State

Maddux Madsen won the Boise State Broncos starting quarterback job over USC transfer Malachi Nelson.

The Boise State Broncos held a quarterback battle throughout the spring and summer, but a report from ESPN’s Pete Thamel indicated the program tabbed redshirt sophomore Maddux Madsen the starter under center in Week 1.

Madsen has appeared in 10 games in his two seasons in Boise, and he beat out highly regarded USC transfer Malachi Nelson for the starting spot.

Nelson battled injury in his one season at USC, only appearing in four snaps for the Trojans – all in one game against San Jose State. He had an extremely decorated high school career, however, throwing for nearly 8,000 yards and 105 touchdowns at Los Alamitos High School in California.

Now he’ll continue to work on his game in a backup capacity, while Madsen seeks an opportunity to thrive in coach Spencer Danielson’s offense. Madsen appeared in nine games for the Broncos last year, finally stealing the starting job for good in the New Mexico game – before he suffered a season-ending injury in that contest after throwing for 202 yards and a pair of touchdowns.

Madsen’s familiarity with the offense and dual-threat ability as a runner gave him the edge in a competition that was close all summer according to the coaching staff.

The Broncos have a real chance to win 10 or more games and secure a spot in the College Football Playoff, which has a guaranteed slot for the best Group of Five conference champion.

Boise State opens at Georgia Southern before taking on the No. 3 Oregon Ducks in Week 2 at Autzen Stadium.

Former USC recruit Malachi Nelson loses Boise State starting QB job

This is a big surprise at Boise State. Malachi Nelson won’t be QB1, a least at the start of the season.

Boise State football’s quarterback battle between former USC Trojan Malachi Nelson and competitor Maddux Madsen has been officially won by Madsen. This is according to a report from ESPN’s Pete Thamel.

The Broncos have a good amount of hype coming into the 2024 season as one of the top Group of Five schools in the country, and they have College Football Playoff aspirations.

The 5-foot-11, 210-pound Madsen Maddux completed 81 passes for 1,191 yards, nine touchdowns and three interceptions last year for the Boise State Broncos while backing up Taylen Green, who recently transferred to the Arkansas Razorbacks.

Nelson arrived at USC as a freshman in 2023, playing behind Caleb Williams and Miller Moss. He threw three passes, completing one of them for no yards.

The former California Gatorade State Player of The Year in 2023 was the No. 11 overall recruit in the country in the 2023 recruiting class out of Los Alamitos High School in (California).

Nelson is still early in his career with four years of eligibility left at Boise State.

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Former USC QB Malachi Nelson remains on track to start at Boise State

Malachi Nelson enters the summer with big expectations at Boise State.

Malachi Nelson is about to embark on a new era at Boise State. He entered the transfer portal on December 18, 2023. He left USC after one season. He sat behind Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Caleb Williams and Miller Moss this past season and threw just three passes. The USC transfer was a unanimous five-star recruit listed as the No. 1-ranked recruit in the nation per ESPN. He was the No. 11 player overall and the No. 5 quarterback in the country according to the On3 Composite Rankings.

He was also named the Gatorade California Player of the Year in 2022. In his senior season Nelson threw for 2,898 yards, 35 touchdowns and 4 interceptions.

Nelson is the favorite to be the starting quarterback for the Boise State Broncos this season, but he will be competing with Maddux Madsen.

Madsen sat out the spring but played a lot last year, completing 61.4 percent of his throws for 1,191 yards and 9 touchdowns against three picks.

Nelson shined during the Broncos’ spring football showcase, going 9-for-16 for 137 yards with one touchdown and no interceptions.

He gives the Broncos a high-profile quarterback whom the staff hasn’t recently had. With four years of eligibility remaining, he could be a long-term solution for coach Spencer Danielson and offensive coordinator Dirk Koetter.

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Malachi Nelson, in 2024, will face three current Pac-12 schools

Malachi Nelson will play more Pac-12 schools at Boise State than he would have at USC in 2024.

The 2024 college football season will be especially notable for a lot of obvious reasons. One is the emergence of the new 12-team College Football Playoff. Another is the movement of various schools to new conferences. USC will be off to the Big Ten, along with three other current Pac-12 schools: UCLA, Washington, and Oregon.

In 2024, USC will face two of those three schools: Washington and UCLA. The Trojans will not face Oregon.

As a result, Malachi Nelson — who just transferred to Boise State from USC — will actually play more current Pac-12 schools this year as a member of the Broncos than he would have if he had stayed at USC and remained a Trojan.

Boise State’s 2024 schedule includes games against Oregon, Oregon State, and Washington State. Keep in mind that Washington State and Oregon State hammered out an agreement to play Mountain West schools in football for the coming year. They aren’t conference games, but this is a partnership between OSU and WSU — the so-called “Pac-2” — and the Mountain West.

It will be weird, and fascinating, for USC fans to see Malachi Nelson playing schools USC has commonly played for the past few decades, but which will no longer be part of USC’s conference, in 2024.

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Malachi Nelson will play Oregon in 2024, and USC won’t

How’s this for a plot twist?

The twists of fate in the Malachi Nelson story are numerous and remarkable. Get this: Nelson, who came to USC ostensibly to compete against the Oregon Ducks for Pac-12 championships, will get to play Oregon in the 2024 college football season. The USC Trojans will not play Oregon next season, unless the two schools meet in the 2024 Big Ten Championship Game.

How wild is that?

Nelson transferred from USC to Boise State on Saturday night. Guess what? Oregon and Boise State play each other on September 7, 2024. The game will be in Eugene’s Autzen Stadium.

We will see how much Malachi Nelson has evolved and grown as a quarterback on that day. Nelson, by transferring to Boise State, has instantly become the highest-rated football prospect to play for the Broncos. Remember: Boise State does not have a long history as a Division I program. The Broncos moved up to the FBS (formerly known as Division I-A) in 1996, under 30 years ago. It’s not that remarkable that the program has not had a player as highly-rated as Nelson, who brings his five stars to the blue turf of Idaho.

Boise State-Oregon was always an interesting 2024 game, but now the matchup takes on added significance for a lot of people, including USC fans who hope Nelson can derail the Ducks.

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Malachi Nelson was so hungry for playing time that he trusted a rookie head coach

Malachi Nelson wasn’t worried that first-year Boise State head coach Spencer Danielson has a lot to prove.

The Boise State Broncos struggled last season. They struggled so much, in fact, that they fired head coach Andy Avalos well before the end of the season. They promoted Spencer Danielson to the interim head coaching position. Players loved playing for Danielson. They proved it by storming to the Mountain West Championship Game and then winning that game over UNLV. The response to Danielson from the Boise State roster was so roundly and uniformly positive that Boise State made Danielson the permanent head coach, a wise decision. Danielson certainly earned his chance to lead the Broncos into 2024.

The fact that Danielson won over his players and got the best out of them in a handful of games is, in itself, impressive. However, it’s very different from leading a team from start to finish over the course of a full season.

USC has had experiences with interim coaches who do well and then make a bid for the permanent head coaching job. Clay Helton is an interim who successfully got the permanent job in 2015. Ed Orgeron wanted the permanent job a few years earlier after a strong interim stint, but USC went with Steve Sarkisian instead.

We can all agree: Spencer Danielson might be a really good head coach, but he has to prove it first.

This could have been a deterrent to Malachi Nelson when he considered where he would play in 2024. Clearly, Danielson’s unproven identity as a college head coach did not dissuade the USC transfer. Nelson and Danielson are linked to each other. Their uncertain futures will depend on the other’s success. It will be fascinating to see how this partnership unfolds in Idaho.

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Malachi Nelson’s transfer to Boise State seems to be motivated by one factor

NIL money was not Malachi Nelson’s point of focus in transferring to Boise State. That much seems clear.

The decision by Malachi Nelson to transfer to Boise State gives the Broncos their highest-rated player ever. Since recruiting services began, and since the star system came into existence, Boise State has never had a higher-ranked prospect than Nelson, who was a five-star prospect when USC brought him in as a freshman.

Given that Nelson was linked to Miami as a possible landing spot, the fact that Nelson chose Boise State reveals something obvious about his thought process. Miami is a very heavy hitter in the NIL space, with power brokers who can bring a very big bag to the table. Miami football is — on the field — a bad product, but Mario Cristobal pulled in several more blue-chip recruits than Lincoln Riley and USC for this cycle. Miami’s NIL clout played a big role in that.

Nelson’s pivot away from Miami is a statement in itself. The money wasn’t the top focus for the quarterback. He wanted to go to a school where he would play football as a starter in 2024. Playing time mattered most.

Nelson’s need for playing time — a perfectly reasonable desire from his point of view — was so acute that the quarterback entrusted his career to a first-year head coach, Spencer Danielson. Boise State fired Andy Avalos late in the 2023 season and appointed Danielson as the interim. Danielson won the Mountain West championship to lock down the permanent head coaching job. BSU did not look outside the program for Avalos’s replacement.

Malachi Nelson knew what he wanted. He got it. We wish him the best in 2024.

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