Spring Intel: QB Battles, Line Questions, and Offseason Buzz
Hosts: Ty Hildenbrandt & Dan Rubenstein Date: April 14, 2026
[!note] Episode Concept Ty and Dan run through the spring storylines that have captured their attention — a tour of quarterback battles (Florida State, Arizona State, Florida, Alabama), offensive line questions (Notre Dame, Miami, Oregon), and rapid-fire vibes checks on Colorado, TCU, and Oklahoma State. Framed loosely around a recurring Guy Fieri "I can't wait to see this" drop.
Cold Open — Flag Football & The Olympics
Dan's first-grader wrapped game one of the flag football season. No blitzing, no lines, glorified seven-on-seven with "go routes and turn around at random points." That leads into a riff on the recent NFL vs. pro flag football exhibition (Tom Brady, Joe Burrow involved) and the 2028 LA Olympics, where flag football becomes an official sport. Ty and Dan agree: the pro flag players dominated. "NFL Blitz versus guys playing a simulation version of a video game in Madden." Unlikely any actual NFL talent ends up on Team USA's 2028 roster.
Framing: Spring Is Here
Spring football is afoot. The spring game tent-pole era is fading — coaches are paranoid about the portal, even with no official spring window anymore — but coverage has never been heavier. More Substacks, more podcasts, more information than ever leaking out of closed practices.
Ty
"The intel that has led me down the path of intrigue, that has me genuinely in most cases optimistic, in some cases just very curious as to what happens next."
The recurring bit: a Guy Fieri "I can't wait to see this" drop between segments. ("Would watch Guy Fieri in a Scorsese movie. I'm open to it.")
Quarterback Quandaries
Florida State — Ashton Daniels vs. Kevin Sperry
Mike Norvell is on the hot seat. Gus Malzahn walked away, so Norvell is calling plays himself. Two-horse race: Ashton Daniels (Auburn transfer, formerly Stanford — scrambler, bigger frame) vs. Kevin Sperry (pocket passer). Early assumption was this was Daniels' job, but Norvell's tone has shifted — it's now genuinely neck-and-neck heading into fall camp.
Dan
"What has Norvell shown any of us at this point that we should be confident that his next pick as a transfer quarterback is going to be the guy? I haven't seen it."
Post-Jordan Travis track record at FSU is grim: DJ Uiagalelei, Thomas Castellanos, now Daniels (maybe). Offensive line brought in wholesale via the portal — "smells like trouble." Schedule includes Alabama, Miami, Florida, SMU, Louisville, Clemson.
Arizona State — Four-Way Race
A legitimate four-way quarterback battle: - Cutter Boley (Kentucky transfer) — assumed starter, struggled with interceptions early in spring - Jake Fette (true freshman) — consistent, mobile, good touch, publicly praised by Kenny Dillingham - Cam Dyer — back from ACL, flashed in spring - Mikey Keene — still around; UCF → Fresno State → Michigan → ASU. "The human embodiment of modern conference realignment."
Dan
"He has gone from a school touching the Atlantic Ocean, touching the Pacific Ocean, touching Canada, and now touching Mexico. Just all bases covered in this great land."
Ty still leans Boley (Dillingham recruited him going back to Oregon days), but it's going into fall. Weapons: Omarion Miller and Reed Harris at WR. Raleek Brown lost to Texas. Zero returning offensive line starters — biggest question on the team. Dillingham quotes hint the group looks soft physically. Texas A&M on Sept. 12.
Florida — Aaron Philo vs. Tramell Jones Jr.
Assumed coming in: Aaron Philo gets the nod, given his connection to new OC Buster Faulkner (down from Georgia Tech). But Tramell Jones Jr. arguably won the spring game — two TDs, no picks, 75-yard TD connection, athletic edge. Philo threw two picks; Jon Sumrall waved them off.
Dan's wrinkle: Tramell Jones is ~5'11"–6'0". How much of Faulkner's run-oriented offense depends on a QB who can run the way Haynes King did? Georgia Tech was balanced last year, struggled in the red zone. Dallas Wilson out; injuries complicating reads.
Alabama — Keelon Russell vs. Austin Mack
Per Dan, the A-Day game produced a "unified opinion": Keelon Russell looks like the guy. Speed of operation, ability to improvise, five-star ceiling visible. Austin Mack was dinged up, threw fewer passes — gets the benefit of the doubt, but visually Russell was the more authoritative presence.
New WR looks: Ryan Coleman-Williams (formerly Ryan Williams) — "RCW. Get that in your lexicon." True freshman Cederian Morgan turning heads. Secondary is in great shape. OL and LB are big questions; the running game is 1B behind the QB race.
Notre Dame — No QB Drama, But Plenty to Watch
CJ Carr is entrenched and looking more vocal/intense this spring. Three position groups to monitor:
Running Back — Jeremiyah Love (top-10 NFL pick incoming) and Jadarian Price (first three rounds) both gone. Aneyas Williams nicked up, Kedren Young still rehabbing. Nolan James Jr. has emerged as the spring standout. "Remember that name."
Offensive Line — Will Black sliding in at left tackle; Anthonie Knapp moving inside to guard. Defensive players raving about Black — "franchise left tackle" talk. Some homerism to discount, but cross-unit praise is what you want to hear. Charles Jagusah's perpetual injury saga continues.
Wide Receiver — Jaden Greathouse still not healthy (nine targets, four catches in 2025). Two portal adds from Ohio State. The name popping in spring: Bubba Frazier. ~5'10", not the highest-rated recruit in the class, but Notre Dame's own secondary can't cover him. "A problem. A problem. A problem."
Oregon — Returns, Returns, Returns
Coordinators promoted from within: Chris Hampton and Drew Mehringer. Receiver room is a strength — Dakorien Moore, Evan Stewart, Jeremiah McClellan all back. Jamari Johnson steps in for Kenyon Sadiq at TE. Koi Perich (Minnesota transfer) joins a corner room that could be one of the best duos in the country with Brandon Finney and Ify Obidegwu. All four starting D-line pieces return.
The question: offensive line. Replacing both tackles and a guard. Transfer from Yale in the mix; two incoming freshmen built "like angry vending machines" — rotation pieces, not immediate starters. Defense ahead of offense in the spring scrimmage, as expected with mix-and-match lines.
Evan Stewart health is the wild card. First spring he's actually played at Oregon. If he stays on the field, Dante Moore becomes significantly more dangerous.
Running back depth: Jordon Davison, Dierre Hill, four or five deep.
Miami — Can the New OL Hold Up?
Ty's mea culpa: whiffed on Miami last season — expected a slowdown from Cam Ward to Carson Beck, didn't account for the offensive line or Malachi Toney as a true freshman.
2026: Darian Mensah is as advertised — accurate, processes well, slots somewhere between Cam Ward and Carson Beck in the Shannon Dawson system. Toney back for a true sophomore season. Cooper Barkate (Harvard → Duke → Miami) joins Mensah. Mark Fletcher back.
The question mark is the entire offensive line, rebuilt almost from scratch. The big bet: Jackson Cantwell, true freshman, "NFL player" body/brain — projected to start immediately at tackle, Mario Cristobal/Alex Mirabal Penei Sewell blueprint. Defense loses Rueben Bain and Mesidor (~22 sacks walking out the door, both getting drafted). Damon Wilson (Mizzou transfer) the primary replacement. Not closing the gap alone, but talent at all three levels.
Rapid-Fire Vibes
Colorado — Vibes Off
Coming out of the tunnel for the spring game, "they looked like a high school team." Brendan Marion called it clickbait, but the eye test wasn't encouraging. Spring game crowd at Folsom Field "kind of looked like a White Sox game in mid-August." Coach Prime vibes dimmer than the last two years.
TCU — Jaden Craig's Arm Strength
Reports of Jaden Craig (Harvard transfer) under-throwing passes. Some in the TCU world suggesting the offense may need to tweak if he's the unquestioned starter — shorter routes, "pickleball," less downfield shot-taking. He doesn't turn the ball over like Josh Hoover did, and he's a bigger runner. But arm-strength allusions aren't the ideal spring first impression when stepping up from the Ivy League to the Big 12.
Oklahoma State — Vibes Surprisingly Good
Gundy era was done; Eric Morris + Drew Mestemaker + Caleb Hawkins make the offense look obvious upside. The surprise: reports of optimism on the defensive front. DC Skyler Cassity (highest-paid assistant on staff) came with Morris from North Texas, where he jumped the defense from 114th to 64th nationally in one year. Starting point is grim — 33 points/game, 400+ yards allowed in 2025. Bill Connelly projects the defense around 52nd.
Ty's honest wrestle: are the vibes good because it's genuinely good, or because last year was so bad that competent = upgrade? Either way, Big 12 is wide open. Might see some 38–33s.
Closing Notes
NFL Draft coming up in ~1.5 weeks. Draft shows incoming. Dan nerds out briefly on Mike Macdonald's pass-rush and front-overload concepts trickling down into college defenses. "Scheme to see in college, the best of them anyway, given the personnel moving up, that stuff tends to find its way, filter ever so slightly into the NFL."
Back later in the week. Say solid.
Teams Mentioned
Florida State, Arizona State, Florida, Alabama, Notre Dame, Oregon, Miami, Colorado, TCU, Oklahoma State, Texas A&M, Kentucky, Stanford, Auburn, Duke, Minnesota, North Texas, UCF, Fresno State, Michigan, Mizzou, Nebraska, UCLA, Washington, SMU, Louisville, Clemson, Navy, Rice, Purdue, Boston College, Michigan State, Harvard, Yale, UAB, Vanderbilt
People Mentioned
Dan Rubenstein, Ty Hildenbrandt, Mike Norvell, Gus Malzahn, Ashton Daniels, Kevin Sperry, Jordan Travis, DJ Uiagalelei, Thomas Castellanos, Kenny Dillingham, Cutter Boley, Jake Fette, Cam Dyer, Mikey Keene, Omarion Miller, Reed Harris, Raleek Brown, Aaron Philo, Tramell Jones Jr., Buster Faulkner, Jon Sumrall, Haynes King, Dallas Wilson, Keelon Russell, Austin Mack, Kalen DeBoer, Jalen Milroe, Ty Simpson, Ryan Coleman-Williams, Cederian Morgan, CJ Carr, Jeremiyah Love, Jadarian Price, Aneyas Williams, Kedren Young, Nolan James Jr., Will Black, Anthonie Knapp, Charles Jagusah, Jaden Greathouse, Bubba Frazier, Chris Hampton, Drew Mehringer, Dakorien Moore, Evan Stewart, Jeremiah McClellan, Kenyon Sadiq, Jamari Johnson, Koi Perich, Brandon Finney, Ify Obidegwu, Dante Moore, Jordon Davison, Dierre Hill, Cam Ward, Carson Beck, Darian Mensah, Malachi Toney, Shannon Dawson, Cooper Barkate, Mark Fletcher, Jackson Cantwell, Mario Cristobal, Alex Mirabal, Penei Sewell, Rueben Bain, Mesidor, Damon Wilson, Jared Curtis, Jaden Craig, Josh Hoover, Sonny Dykes, Kurt Cignetti, Mike Gundy, Eric Morris, Drew Mestemaker, Caleb Hawkins, Skyler Cassity, Bill Connelly, Steve Sarkisian, Brendan Marion, Deion Sanders, Tom Brady, Joe Burrow, Justin Jefferson, Matt Rhule, Dylan Raiola, Sam Leavitt, Iverson Hooks, Jesse Palmer, Guy Fieri
Recurring Concepts
The Solid Verbal · "I can't wait to see this" (Guy Fieri drop) · Vibe season · Verballer Hood