7 in-Season College Football Trades We Wish Could Happen
College football teams don't have the luxury of looking elsewhere to replenish their rosters when injuries, disciplinary issues or poor play cause the starting lineup to undergo a change. Other than hoping to find a student with untapped athletic ability walking around on campus, they are stuck with what they began the season with and have to hope it's enough to make through the year.
If college teams were able to trade with each other to help fill needs, imagine the kind of deals that could get made.
Putting aside the logistics regarding credit transfers and degree pursuit—in other words, treating college football players like professional athletes instead of students—there are some swaps that figure to help both sides out.
Take a look at some of the in-season trades we'd love to see this year, then give us your projected transactions in the comments section.
Florida DB Jalen Tabor for Oregon WR Byron Marshall
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Florida has very good depth in its secondary—or at least it did before sophomore defensive back Jalen Tabor was suspended for Saturday's game against Tennessee—but is still looking for playmakers to turn coach Jim McElwain's offense into one that can produce on a consistent basis.
The Gators are coming off a 14-9 win at Kentucky, a game in which they had only 245 yards of total offense and only 125 passing yards. Quarterback Will Grier only completed three passes for more than 10 yards, and through three games the team's leading receiver (tight end DeAndre Goolsby) has six catches for 132 yards.
Oregon has no shortage of wide receivers, a corps that's benefited from the return of some injured players while also having converted running back Byron Marshall available to shift back and forth between running routes and taking handoffs in the backfield. Marshall, a senior, has eight catches for 119 yards and two touchdowns this season and in his career has both 1,000-yard receiving and rushing seasons.
The same can't be said for the Ducks' back line on defense, which is young and inexperienced and through three games has allowed 948 passing yards, 10 TDs and 36 plays of 10 or more yards, tied for 119th in FBS.
Tabor is only scheduled to sit out one game for Florida, and though the suspension is reportedly because he refused to take a drug test, per Brett McMurphy of ESPN, he might be in need of a change of scenery. Sending him to Oregon would help both teams, as Tabor could solidify the Ducks secondary while giving the Gators a dynamic offensive weapon that would allow them to make big plays.
Georgia RB Keith Marshall for Washington State WR Dom Mitchell
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Another year, another overabundance of running backs that Georgia has at its disposal. Through three games in 2014, the Bulldogs rank 12th in rushing at 256.7 yards per game, and though sophomore Nick Chubb (468 yards) is the main ball-carrier, he's one of three backs with at least 100 yards along with sophomore Sony Michel and senior Keith Marshall.
If only Georgia also had as many options for big production from the receiving corps. Though quarterback Greyson Lambert is coming off a record-setting 24-of-25 performance last week against South Carolina, he has been mostly limited to shorter routes to senior Malcolm Mitchell, the only player with more than seven receptions in 2015.
The Bulldogs might be leery of giving up one of their backup rushers after what happened in 2014, when workhorse Todd Gurley was first suspended by the NCAA and then lost for the year to a knee injury and other backs also got banged up. But if it were possible to pick up a deep threat for Lambert to stretch the field, it might be worth it.
Washington State routinely has a wide variety of receiving targets for its Air Raid passing attack, and this season is no different. The Cougars' 362.7 passing yards per game have been spread around to six wideouts and two running backs who each have at least six receptions, and three players have tallied more than 200 yards so far this season.
The big-play receiver in that group is senior Dom Williams, who is averaging 16.15 yards per catch and has three touchdown catches of 25 or more yards. Twenty-two of his 130 career catches have gone for scores.
What WSU does not have, though, is a dependable running back. The Cougars have run for 260 yards and average fewer than four yards per carry.
Tulsa RB D'Angelo Brewer for Louisville DE Devonte Fields
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The influx of innovative offensive minds to the American Athletic Conference's West Division has made it so games between these teams are apt to be some of the highest-scoring of the season. New coaches at Houston, SMU and Tulsa are averaging 43, 29.7 and 41.7 points per game, respectively.
Tulsa's Philip Montgomery has seamlessly transitioned the offense he ran as Baylor's coordinator to his new program, and the Golden Hurricane are doing it with a balanced attack that averages more than 390 passing yards and 216 rushing yards per game. He's had the good fortune of getting strong ground production from a pair of backs, with senior Zack Langer running for 389 yards and five touchdowns and sophomore D'Angelo Brewer adding 238 yards with a score.
Brewer's yardage would make him the overwhelming leader at Louisville, which is off to its first 0-3 start since 1984 and is gaining a paltry 3.21 yards per carry on the ground. Junior Brandon Radcliff has just 164 yards, 34 more than quarterback Lamar Jackson, who along with Kyle Bolin and Reggie Bonnafon have combined for only two TD passes and five interceptions.
If Louisville had a more dependable rushing option it could translate to more efficient passing, and grabbing Brewer from Tulsa would help this effort.
In return, the Cardinals could give up one of the defensive linemen that are part of their rotation but whom has yet to make the impact everyone hoped. Junior Devonte Fields, the former TCU star whose career took him to junior college in 2014 after being dismissed from TCU, has yet to record a sack this season but has three tackles for loss.
Tulsa is allowing more than 575 yards and 39 points per game, and its defensive line has three sacks and seven TFLs this year.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
Texas Tech QB Davis Webb for Missouri DE Terry Beckner Jr.
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Texas Tech is off to a surprising 3-0 start following a win last week at Arkansas, and among the many reasons for the Red Raiders' hot beginning is the play of sophomore quarterback Patrick Mahomes. He's thrown for 1,029 yards and nine touchdowns to go with four rushing scores, giving him a firm hold on the starting job and relegating junior Davis Webb to a backup role.
Webb has 14 starts in his career, including a monster performance in the Holiday Bowl as a freshman in 2013 and he entered this season ranked ninth in passing and seventh in TD passes on the Tech all-time list. Few teams have the luxury of having someone with such experience and success as a second-stringer at quarterback, and many don't even have that at the top of their depth chart.
Take Missouri, for instance. Junior Maty Mauk has 21 career starts, including 17 in a row, yet his numbers are some of the worst of any full-time starter. In 2015, Mauk is averaging 158 yards per game with five TDs and four interceptions and for his career averages 192 yards per game.
With Mahomes firmly entrenched at Tech, Webb might entertain transferring to another program this offseason and if he did he'd likely join recent Red Raider transfers Michael Brewer (Virginia Tech) and Baker Mayfield (Oklahoma) who have thrived at their new destinations. If trades were possible, he'd make for a great in-season pickup for a a Missouri team that desperately needs a spark on offense and has plenty of defensive assets it could offer up in a trade.
Texas Tech wouldn't say no to adding one of the Tigers' many strong defensive linemen, since eight different players have a tackle for loss this season. A prized freshman like Terry Beckner Jr. might be hard to part with, but less so for an instant offensive upgrade.
TCU WR Kolby Listenbee for Utah LB Jason Whittingham
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If TCU loses any more defensive players, it might have to start converting some of its offensive standouts into two-way players. The Horned Frogs' defense had already faced experience issues coming into this season after notable stars from last year's team graduated or turned pro, but since training camp they've seen several others go down with significant injuries.
"If the current pace holds, TCU will be missing 32 defensive starters by bowl season," Sports On Earth's David Ubben wrote.
The Frogs are probably thinnest at linebacker, where it ended up starting a true freshman (Mike Freeze) in the season opener but he's since left the team for personal reasons. They've had 27 players make tackles on defense, six at linebacker, including several who weren't expected to see the field much this season.
If TCU could find a team willing to part with a solid defender in the middle, it could offer up one of its many great wide receivers, since quarterback Trevone Boykin has spread the ball around to a number of guys and having one less option wouldn't hurt much. Senior Kolby Listenbee is the Frogs' No. 2 target this season, with nine catches for 202 yards and two TDs, and the NCAA champion sprinter has averaged 19.6 yards per reception in his career.
Utah could stand to use a player that can open up its passing game, since the Utes have yet to find someone to replace the big-play ability they had in 2014 with Dres Anderson and Kaelin Clay. Freshman Britain Covey has looked good but he's averaging only 9.1 yards per catch, and Utah's second-leading receiver is running back Devontae Booker.
The Utes have one of the best linebacker groups in the country, with three top-notch starters in seniors Jared Norris, Gionni Paul and Jason Whittingham. Whittingham is the nephew of Utah coach Kyle Whittingham, but if TCU would give up Listenbee to get him it wouldn't be surprising to see team goals trump family ties.
Iowa State LB Jarnor Jones for North Carolina State TE Jaylen Samuels
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Though it only has one win to show for it, Iowa State has shown improvement from the 2014 team that went winless in the Big 12 and finished with a 2-10 record. The Cyclones could be 3-0 had they been able to play well down the stretch in losses to Iowa and Toledo, the last coming in double overtime.
Being able to finish has been an issue for ISU this season, particularly when it comes to running the ball in the red zone. It has only four touchdowns in 11 trips inside opponents' 20-yard line, and on run plays in the red zone it's gaining a paltry 0.58 yards per carry with two touchdowns on 11 attempts.
Freshman Mike Warren is averaging 5.14 yards per touch, but that rate plummets to 2.4 on five red-zone carries.
North Carolina State has been 10 of its 13 rushing TDs from the red zone, and five of those have come from sophomore Jaylen Samuels. A tight end by position, the 5'11", 236-pound Samuels has 15 catches and one TD through the air but has scored on the ground five of the 10 times he's taken the carry.
Samuels would give Iowa State a great short-yardage and goal-line option to enhance its offense, but the Cyclones would need to offer something NC State could use. The Wolfpack have had few flaws to this point, and their defense ranks second in yards allowed, but the ACC slate will prove tougher than what they've faced in Troy, Eastern Kentucky and Old Dominion.
ISU is allowing a respectable 362 yards per game and has some depth on defense. Junior linebacker Jarnor Jones is third on the team with 20 tackles, and the junior college transfer spent the 2012 season at NC State and did not play but now would give the Wolfpack an extra body to help slow down ACC offenses.
Alabama OC Lane Kiffin for Ohio State QB Cardale Jones
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Since we're operating with a fictional premise that would allow for collegiate athletes to be traded like Pokemon cards, we're not restricted by any real guidelines since none of this is possible. With that in mind, why limit ourselves to just swapping players when there's a blockbuster trade to be made between two of college football's blue bloods.
The scenario is simple: Ohio State has two great options at quarterback in junior Cardale Jones and sophomore J.T. Barrett but can't seem to stick to one. Jones is set to start for the seventh game in a row for the defending national champions, but he's averaging only 111.3 yards per game and has been benched for Barrett the last two weeks.
Bleacher Report's Ben Axelrod has suggested that the Buckeyes' offensive problems this season aren't solely a product of the quarterback situation. The loss of offensive coordinator Tom Herman—now head coach at Houston—also has played a role in the struggles, since co-coordinators Tim Beck and Ed Warinner are essentially trying to share a job that one person masterfully did a year ago.
"(Urban) Meyer has clearly seen something in the inner workings of his offensive staff that has required extra attention," Axelrod wrote. "Asked Monday if he was satisfied with Ohio State's play-calling when it came to getting the ball in the hands of the team's top playmakers, Meyer responded with a simple 'no.'"
To the south, Alabama has a proven play caller in coordinator Lane Kiffin, who took a career backup in Blake Sims last season and turned him into the most prolific passer in Crimson Tide history. He's yet to have the same success this year with Jake Coker, Cooper Bateman or his other options, and in last week's home loss to Ole Miss the quarterback play had a big impact on the outcome.
Alabama has already seen what Jones can do, as his second career start resulted in 286 yards of total offense in Ohio State's Sugar Bowl win over the Tide. If he were to come to Tuscaloosa for the rest of this season, he'd in no way be at risk of getting pulled midway through and would be a major force in the SEC.
And Nick Saban would probably be willing to part ways with Kiffin to get such a passer, calling the plays himself without an offensive coordinator on staff. Kiffin would, in turn, provide Meyer with an accomplished coordinator who could tap into his history of getting the most out of QBs to eliminate Ohio State's lackluster play.
Follow Brian J. Pedersen on Twitter at @realBJP.
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