This is Peter King on Monday, essentially echoing what I've believed about Luck for a long time:
Quote:
Carolina's not feeling Lucky this morning.
I heard reliably earlier in the week that Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck, the unquestioned top prospect in the draft should he choose to bypass his final two years of eligibility, was thinking about staying in school rather than being this year's Sam Bradford. As I said on NBC last night, Stanford coach Jim Harbaugh told me he thought Luck, a redshirt sophomore, was leaning toward staying for a fourth year.
I said to Harbaugh Sunday that I'd heard the Luck family (his dad, Oliver Luck, is a former NFL quarterback) was concerned with the fact that drafted players, because of the prospect of a protracted work stoppage, might not even see their playbook or start practice 'til Labor Day -- or later. If that's the case, why wouldn't Luck stay for his fourth year at Stanford and play, whether Harbaugh (who is rumored to be a candidate for both pro and college head-coaching jobs after turning around the Cardinal) is there to coach him or not?
"I don't think that's the correct logic,'' Harbaugh told me from his home in northern California. "But I do think it's more likely he'd come back. If I had to bet one way or the other, I'd bet he's coming back. He loves college. He loves the college life. He's such a good kid -- and so smart. He's got a 3.5 GPA in Architectural Engineering, and all along his plan has been to go to college for four years, get his degree, then figure out what to do with his life. This is a kid who has a plan. And he's a kid who's not the big-man-on-campus type. He just fits in.''
So it's not rock solid Luck stays. Stanford plays Virginia Tech in the Something Or Other Orange Bowl (who can keep straight all these sponsors?) next Monday, and maybe the kid figures he's done everything he could in college football and wants to move on. But it doesn't sound like it. That'd be terrible news for the Panthers, obviously. Carolina will be choosing first when the draft begins April 28.
Carolinians will be even more disappointed if he stays after hearing Harbaugh's assessment of him. "I'm absolutely convinced he'll make it in the NFL,'' Harbaugh said. "He's got no negatives. He's athletic -- he'll run the 40 in the high 4.5s. He's instinctive. He's accurate. He's got great touch on the ball. He throws lasers when he wants to. I think he's got a photographic memory, though he doesn't think so. And he's the anti-celebrity quarterback. He'll be perfect for the NFL.''
So we'll see what Luck does. But it sounds like another underclassman, Clemson pass-rusher Da'Quan Bowers, might be moving into the first-pick-in-the-draft neighborhood if Luck stays at Stanford.
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But if Luck doesn't come out, it weakens the entire draft class considerably at the quarterback position. Now, don't get me wrong, we have to come out of the draft with SOMETHING at the position, just to avoid a situation like the one we are currently in. But something can be Christian Ponder in the second round, or it can be Scott Tolzien in the 5th. If you end up with a disaster season, maybe WE'RE the team that lands Andrew Luck. Or maybe you win and make the playoffs.
For what it's worth, Luck's closest comparable from my college passer spreadsheet is...Aaron Rodgers. If he comes out right now. But there's also a litany of poorer prospects not far behind, which concerns me some.