Nebraska Football: Will Bubba Starling Ever Wear Husker Red?

In 2001, Joe Mauer was a high school senior who was facing a life-changing decision.  He was the best high school baseball player in the country.  He was also arguably the best high school football player in the country.  Oh yeah, he averaged 20 points per game as a senior on the basketball team too.

Mauer was a lock to be taken early in the first round of the Major League Baseball draft.  He also had signed a letter of intent to play football at Florida State University; a program that had just come off its third consecutive national championship game appearance.

Ten years later, Bubba Starling faces a similar decision.  Starling is the best high school baseball player in the country and the term prodigy probably is not an exaggeration.  He may not be as highly touted of a prospect in football as Mauer was, but Starling is certainly no slouch as he garnered offers from elite schools such as Alabama, Oklahoma, Notre Dame and Miami in addition to Nebraska.  

Oh yeah, like Mauer, Starling is a star on the basketball court as well.

The similarities between Starling and Mauer are striking, but Husker fans hope that Starling makes a different decision than Mauer did. Ultimately, Mauer spurned Florida State after getting drafted first overall by his hometown Minnesota Twins.  

This, obviously, has worked out well for Mauer as he is an MVP award winner and a three-time batting champion.  Meanwhile, it did not turn out well for Florida State as they struggled for the better part of the 2000s to find another serviceable signal-caller and saw their dynasty fall back to mediocrity.

Will Starling's fate be the same as Mauer's (and thus Nebraska's the same as Florida State's)?  

At this point, there is no way to tell for sure.  All indications are that Starling is not even sure yet what he will do.  There are a few things that we do know though and examining those things might provide some insight into the decision Starling will make sometime this summer.

First of all, Starling's ceiling is higher in baseball than it is in football.  Coming from an offense in high school that was almost exclusively run based, and heading to a run-heavy spread offense at Nebraska, Starling would have a hard time projecting to the NFL as a quarterback.  

Now, he might be a good enough athlete to catch on in the NFL at another position, and it might be possible that he could prove that he has what it takes to be an NFL quarterback.  

That is kind of the point though; his football future is filled with question marks while his prodigious skills in baseball have his future filled with dollar signs.  

While he by no means is a lock to become a Major Leaguer, he is a lock to get drafted in the first round and receive a signing bonus with a lot of zeroes written on the check (likely north of $5 million).  Simply put, Starling has essentially unlimited potential on the diamond.

Second, it is widely accepted that Starling's first love is, in fact, baseball.  He has stated that people underestimate how much he likes football, but even if football and baseball are deadlocked in his heart, it seems reasonable to think that $5 million dollars would be a more than adequate tiebreaker in baseball's favor.  

Money is not everything and a free education is extremely valuable, but for a kid whose dad lost his job in January, I have to believe that the security of knowing that he and his family could be set for life is definitely going to factor into his decision.

Third, the idea of playing for his hometown team, the Kansas City Royals could factor heavily into Starling's decision.  Starling is currently ranked as the No. 3 overall prospect in this year's baseball draft, but he could slide a couple spots as teams are as unsure as the rest of the world about what Starling's decision will be.

The Kansas City Royals have the fifth pick in the 2011 draft.  It is entirely possible that Starling will be sitting there waiting for them at that spot.  If the Royals pull the trigger on this local star, it might be too much for Starling to pass up.

In a recent story run by the Kansas City Star, the prospect of playing for the Royals was brought up and it left Starling speechless.  Clearly, if the Royals come calling, it would be difficult for him to turn the organization down.

Finally, choosing baseball now does not necessarily rule out football later.  Many college football players have come back from unsuccessful stints in professional baseball to have quality college football careers.  Most notably, Chris Weinke won the Heisman Trophy for Florida State after spending six years playing in the minor leagues.

Meanwhile, it is much harder for a player to choose college football (and college baseball) and then be considered a top professional baseball prospect after their eligibility is up.  

Major League teams often take fliers on college football stars (such as Jake Locker) just so they have possession of their rights should they ever quit football, but these shots in the dark do not have the dollar amounts attached to them that Starling is faced with right now.

If Starling chooses college athletics over professional baseball, he may get another shot at getting taken in the MLB draft, but that chance will almost certainly not manifest itself as the same golden opportunity he currently has in front of him.  

Furthermore, if Starling chooses to play both football and baseball at Nebraska, he will likely not end up being as good as he could be at either sport.

My prediction is that Starling will play professional baseball.  I believe that the Kansas City Royals will draft the kid from their own backyard and make him an offer he can't refuse.  

A lot of people claim they would turn down $5 million to play starting quarterback for the Huskers, but let's see them turn it down with the check sitting in front of them.  

At the end of the day though, it won't be about the money, although that certainly won't hurt.  It will be about Starling playing the sport he loves for the organization he grew up watching, and when you put it like that, you really can't blame him.