3-Point Stance: Overpaid Coaches, Breakout Offensive Linemen, Dream NIL Deals

National Columnist Mike Farrell is here with the 3-Point Stance looking at overpaid coaches, some offensive linemen who won’t be overshadowed this season and five perfect NIL deals that need to happen.

Overpaid Coaches

— I did the bargain basement coaches last time led by Dave Doeren at NC State but what about coaches who are stealing money? It’s no surprise who tops this list.

1. Jimbo Fisher, Texas A&M

— There is no argument here at all. Fisher has been a massive disappointment at A&M and last year’s losing record is ridiculous. $9 million a year? C’mon.

Sep 24, 2022; Arlington, Texas, USA; Texas A&M Aggies head coach Jimbo Fisher points at the scoreboard during the second quarter against the Arkansas Razorbacks at AT&T Stadium.

2. Mel Tucker, Michigan State

— This was a dumb deal for the Spartans. Tucker had one good year and they panicked when LSU came calling so now he’s making $9.5 million a year? For what? He could be fired in a couple of years.

Oct 1, 2022; College Park, Maryland, USA; Michigan State Spartans head coach Mel Tucker looks down the field during the first half against the Maryland Terrapins at Capital One Field at Maryland Stadium.

3. Lane Kiffin, Ole Miss

— No offense to Kiffin as I like him for college football, but $9 million a year? This Auburn and Ole Miss bidding war was confusing as his team stumbled to a poor finish this past season.

Oct 8, 2022; Nashville, Tennessee, USA; Mississippi Rebels head coach Lane Kiffin during the first half against the Vanderbilt Commodores at FirstBank Stadium.

4. Ryan Day, Ohio State

— I like Day but he’s paid $9.5 million a year to do three things — beat Michigan, win the Big Ten and win a natty. He hasn’t done any of those things in the last couple of years.

Nov 26, 2022; Columbus, Ohio, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes head coach Ryan Day yells during the first half of the NCAA football game against the Michigan Wolverines at Ohio Stadium.

5. James Frankin, Penn State

— $7 million makes him the pauper on this list but it’s still a lot of money and he hasn’t sniffed a Big Ten title since 2016. He’s a very good coach but it’s time to win big at Penn State.

Sep 24, 2022; University Park, Pennsylvania, USA; Penn State Nittany Lions head coach James Franklin gestures from the sidelines during the fourth quarter against the Central Michigan Chippewas at Beaver Stadium. Penn State defeated Central Michigan 33-14.

Offensive Linemen Stepping Into the Spotlight

— We continue our series of players ready to bust out of the shadows this season with the offensive line.

1. Olu Fashanu, Penn State

Overshadowed by: Peter Skoronski, Paris Johnson

The extraordinarily athletic Nittany Lion left tackle opted to come back for his senior season despite being considered a borderline first-round pick. With arguably the draft’s two top tackles now gone from the Big Ten, don’t be surprised if Fashanu is an early contender for the Outland Trophy.

Sep 17, 2022; Auburn, Alabama, USA; Penn State Nittany Lions running back Nicholas Singleton (10) celebrates with offensive lineman Olumuyiwa Fashanu (74) after scoring a touchdown against the Auburn Tigers during the third quarter at Jordan-Hare Stadium.

2. JC Latham, Alabama

Overshadowed by: Broderick Jones, Darnell Wright

Latham was outstanding as a redshirt freshman in 2022, and now with Tyler Steen off to the NFL, he should kick over to the left tackle. He has the upside of being not only the best tackle in the SEC but the best in the country.

Sep 4, 2021; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Alabama Crimson Tide offensive lineman JC Latham (65) blocks against the Miami Hurricanes at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

3. Beaux Limmer, Arkansas

Overshadowed by: O’Cyrus Torrence, Warren McClendon, Emil Ekiyor

The SEC has no shortage of interior offensive linemen, but Limmer is arguably the best one that no one talks about. And it shouldn’t be a surprise that he’s a Razorback, as we all know that they have a long tradition of developing burly, physical blockers. Limmer, though, is much lighter on his feet than most and has a chance to become the top IOL taken in next year’s draft.

https://twitter.com/Chad_Maxwick/status/1621724845904986112

4. Justin Dedich, USC

Overshadowed by: Andrew Voorhees, Brett Neilon, Atonio Mafi

Dedich wasn’t even the best lineman on his own team last year – that would be Voorhess or Neilon – but he was still outstanding in his own right, leading the Power 5 in pass blocking grade per PFF in 2022. Now the unquestioned leader of the Trojans’ line, he has a chance to show why he has the potential to be an elite interior player.

https://twitter.com/RussNFLDraft/status/1567491623587651589

Dream NIL Deals

— And finally here are some dream NIL deals we’d love to see (part one).

One of the upsides of the NIL era is that we’ve seen some really creative deals done between businesses and players. My personal favorite was Decoldest Crawford partnering with a local Air Conditioning company to capitalize on his unique name.

Let’s ponder what could be…

1. QB JT Daniels, Rice

Sponsor: Atlas Van Lines

It’s only fitting that the former five-star quarterback gets endorsed by a moving company. After all, he’s now on his fourth school, and has gone from California to Georgia to West Virginia and now to Texas.

Oct 29, 2022; Morgantown, West Virginia, USA; West Virginia Mountaineers quarterback JT Daniels (18) throws a pass during the second quarter against the TCU Horned Frogs at Mountaineer Field at Milan Puskar Stadium.

2. DB Kool-Aid McKinstry, Alabama

Sponsor: Kool-Aid

Do I really need to spell it out for you? The outstanding defensive back’s nickname since birth makes for a natural pairing. The ad campaigns are endless.

Oct 1, 2022; Fayetteville, Arkansas, USA; Alabama Crimson Tide defensive back Kool-Aid McKinstry (1) tackles Arkansas Razorbacks wide receiver Jadon Haselwood (9) in the first quarter at Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium.

3. LB Harold Perkins, LSU

Sponsor: Terminix

Simply put, Perkins is an exterminator on the field. As a freshman, you could make a great case that he was the all-around best defensive player in college football. He’ll kill any offensive, simply put.

LSU Tigers linebacker Harold Perkins Jr. (40) clobbers Florida Gators quarterback Anthony Richardson (15) shaking loose the ball as Florida takes on LSU at Steve Spurrier Field at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium in Gainesville, FL on Saturday, October 15, 2022. The play was ruled an incomplete pass.

4. RB Blake Corum and RB Donovan Edwards, Michigan

Sponsor: Doublemint Gum

The old adage “Double your pleasure, double your fun” is the perfect moniker for the best backfield duo in the country. Not only are they perfect complements to one another, but both have great personalities that would pop in a commercial.

Nov 5, 2022; Piscataway, New Jersey, USA; Michigan Wolverines running back Blake Corum (2) carries the ball against the Rutgers Scarlet Knights during the first half at SHI Stadium.

5. QB Cade Klubnik, Clemson

Sponsor: ServPro

The company known for coming into clean up messes after a storm is the perfect metaphor for what the highly touted sophomore has to do. He’ll need to clean up the mess left by DJ Uiagalelei in order to get Clemson back to the promised land.