Hilton Magic...
Iowa State is kicking off its spring drills this morning. Monday, coach Paul Rhoads met with the media to discuss his team. Among the topics was an update on defensive end Mitchell Meyer, who was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma in February. Rhoads said Meyer has had two chemotherapy treatments, and his spirits are high.
The Cyclones also released a depth chart Monday, with few surprises. Perhaps the most intriguing position battle this spring will be at running back, where Iowa State is replacing Aaron Wimberly, who graduated, and DeVondrick Nealy, who left the team. Upperclassman Tyler Brown is atop the two-deep at running back, but the back creating the most buzz is redshirt freshman Mike Warren. "Mike is a guy we believe is going to be a 200-pound-plus back, which is where we want to be with our backs -- and where we haven't been in the past," Rhoads said. The Des Moines Register's Tommy Birch has more notes from Rhoads' news conference, including the plan for wideout Quenton Bundrage, who is coming back from a season-ending knee injury.
The Waco Tribune-Herald's John Werner has a feature on Baylor quarterback Seth Russell, who is the favorite to succeed Bryce Petty. Assuming Russell does win the job, it will be interesting to see how Art and Kendal Briles tailor the offense to fit Russell's skill set. Russell isn't a track star the way Robert Griffin III was. But he's more athletic than Petty, with a 40-yard dash time of 4.48 seconds. The Bears could be running the quarterback more next season than they have in recent years. In other news, the Bears had an interesting visitor to their practice Monday.
TCU coach Gary Patterson discussed his philosophy for hiring assistants with the Fort Worth Star-Telegram's Carlos Mendez. "So many people are so easy to let people go, to lose knowledge of your program, how you recruit," Patterson said. "I've never been someone to believe you do that." It's little wonder that Patterson promoted four of his coaches last week, including Chad Glasgow and DeMontie Cross to co-defensive coordinators. Patterson hasn't been afraid to go out and hire assistants from the outside when the occasion has called for it (see: Doug Meacham and Sonny Cumbie). But his philosophy of promoting from within has fostered TCU's coveted continuity.
The Tulsa World's Bill Haisten acknowledged the rumor that Oklahoma State quarterback Daxx Garman is exploring a transfer. Haisten noted there will be no official update on Garman from Oklahoma State until the start of its spring practice next week. But a source told me over the weekend that at this point it's a "strong possibility" Garman transfers. Though he has already transferred before (from Arizona to Oklahoma State), it's hard to fault Garman for at least considering this option. Though Garman started eight games last season, Mason Rudolph has established himself as the quarterback of the future in Stillwater. The Cowboys also have J.W. Walsh coming back, which has Garman staring at the prospect of falling to third string on the depth chart.