Wilson's success could spark free- agent movement; more Mailbag

We begin with some personal news. While the Mailbag isn't going anywhere, this will be the last edition penned from New York.

Later this week I will be following my wife -- the true breadwinner in our household -- to Silicon Valley, where she recently accepted a cushy new job, and where I will now be a Pac-12-based college football writer. No one will ever be able to accuse me of East Coast bias again, unless it's the reverse kind. (Damn you, Mandel. You never wake up early enough to watch the Syracuse-Rutgers game!)

I know. It's a lot to digest, especially on top of this week's Arrested Development bombshell. But those who know us well think we're a natural fit for Northern California -- you know, the opposite of Missouri joining the SEC.

After nearly eight years here, I will dearly miss my New York friends and my SI.com office co-workers. (Though fear not, Mandel Initiative listeners: Mallory Rubin and I will continue the podcast.) I'm excited for this new life, but never in a million years would I have guessed I'd one day hold a Santa Clara, Calif., mailing address.

Just like a certain former ACC quarterback had no idea a year ago he'd be relocating to Madison.

After seeing Russell Wilson dominate Nebraska this weekend, and considering Cam Newton was also a free agent last year, do you think it will become more common for schools to start heavily recruiting upperclassmen quarterbacks?
-- Mike, Austin

Every coach who has a void at quarterback spends the offseason scouring for potential replacements; it's just that the pool is usually walk-ons and picked-over juco transfers. Newton was obviously a juco guy, but he was also a former five-star high school recruit who saw the field for a national championship Florida team. Even in that case, Auburn's coaches didn't know they were getting a future No. 1 draft pick. And Wilson became available under even more unusual circumstances: How often does a coach like N.C. State's Tom O'Brien willingly part with a talented three-year starter for non-disciplinary reasons? If Wilson hadn't been moonlighting as a second baseman, he never would have become a free agent.

But I do wonder whether Wilson's incredibly fruitful move may cause more qualified upperclassmen to start putting themselves on the market. I wasn't always a fan of the NCAA waiver that allowed Wilson to become immediately eligible. When Florida conveniently picked up Utah cornerback Ryan Smith in time for its 2006 BCS title run under the first year of the rule (before it was modified to be used on a case-by-case basis), the "rent-a-player" mentality did not feel very college-y. I came down hard on Ole Miss last year, and would again, for giving Jeremiah Masoli a landing spot following his suspension/dismissal from Oregon.

But after the Nebraska game, Bret Bielema offered a pretty reasoned defense of the practice. First, he pointed out that one of his own former players, running back Zach Brown, took advantage of the same rule this year. Buried behind Montee Ball and James White, Brown -- who got his degree last spring -- transferred to Pittsburgh, where he's the No. 2 tailback behind Ray Graham. In order to become a "free agent," one has to be a good student. In some distant idealistic world, that's what college sports is supposed to be about. So if a player like Wilson or Brown who feels he's stuck in the wrong program can be rewarded with a new opportunity by getting his degree, maybe that's a good thing.

And maybe a talented quarterback in a similar position watched Wilson play Saturday night and is now hitting the books to make himself available for next year's Auburn or Wisconsin.

Where do you think Tom O'Brien's decision to run off Russell Wilson ranks among the dumbest decisions in the history of college football?
-- J.D. Bolick, Denver, N.C.

Believe it or not, I understand what he was doing. It certainly looks dumb right now, but the fact is Wilson had offered little indication as of last spring that he'd be back for football season. Facing a possibility that his next quarterback, Mike Glennon, might transfer if made to wait on Wilson's decision, O'Brien did what he thought was best for his program's future. Unfortunately his current team is so bad in almost every area, I'm not sure how much future O'Brien has left. Even had Wilson stayed, he wouldn't be putting up the numbers he is in Madison if surrounded by the Wolfpack's underwhelming skill players, and he'd obviously be of no help to their horrendous, injury-plagued defense.

It's good for college football that we get to see what Wilson can do with a strong supporting cast. It's not so great for N.C. State. However, I've received numerous e-mails and tweets from Wolfpack fans who say they're rooting for Wilson and the Badgers. They say he's a good kid very deserving of this shot.

The dumbest quarterback handling I've ever seen remains Dirk Koetter in 2006 naming Sam Keller his starting quarterback one day, then changing to Rudy Carpenter the next, after which Keller transferred to Nebraska and all three of their careers went down the toilet.

I'm a Buckeyes fan -- have been since I was born -- but I found myself today, beginning to read an article about the latest OSU/NCAA news conference, staring at a picture of Gene Smith and saying "Haven't we had enough of this guy?" I guess what I am saying is -- haven't we had enough of this guy?
-- Jeff, Cleveland

I think everyone outside of Gordon Gee has had enough of Gene Smith. I understand his is not the only school with NCAA issues. I understand it's impossible to monitor every single booster and every single athlete 24/7. But Smith is at best completely naive about the extent of Ohio State's problems, and more realistically being disingenuous with the public, and perhaps even the NCAA, with his repeated insistence that the school has no "systemic" compliance issues. Just like Rick Neuheisel keeps telling us UCLA is close to turning things around.

First Smith stood there in December and said with a straight face that, after a cursory investigation, he was confident the Tatoo Five suspensions were an "isolated incident." It took my colleague George Dohrmann about 48 hours in Columbus last spring to find out that was hardly the case. Smith initially suspended Jim Tressel two games for an offense that anyone with the slightest understanding of NCAA infractions knew was a terminable offense. Then he once again assured us there was nothing more to see following OSU's infractions hearing in August, even though multiple credible media outlets have reported there was plenty more to see. And now, what do you know, there is.

Quite frankly, I'm sick of Smith's condescending "nothing more to see here" approach and his stance that this is all just the work of a few rogue individuals. That's how the individuals who got USC placed on double-secret probation and forced the athletic department to undergo a complete makeover acted. As athletic director, it's Smith's job to show some semblance of control over his department. Whether or not the NCAA ever alleges failure to monitor or lack of institutional control at Ohio State, the department could desperately use a change of leadership.

I love reading your columns each week. Although I have to say, it may be time to retire your Upset Special this season, much like you retired the Mailbag Crush.
-- Marc, Beirut, Lebanon

No question, I'm having an Oregon State-like season with the Upset Special (though I do have one more win than Mike Riley's club). But I'm not giving up. I've figured out where I'm going wrong. For one thing, I keep picking road teams. Never, ever pick road teams. I've also gone away from my Upset Special roots. I used to scour the weekend lineup for a completely off-the-radar game in which the home team was getting three points. This year it's been mostly high-profile games involving ranked teams. I'm going to go back to trying my hat with the Sun Belt.

As for the Mailbag Crush ... in honor of my move west, I'll unretire it for one week and once again give a nod to Pamela Adlon, one of the stars of ... Californication.