Dayne Crist: Penn State and Schools That Need the Former Notre Dame QB

It looks like once promising quarterback prospect Dayne Crist will be finishing up his collegiate career at another school. No more Notre Dame.

Fighting Irish head football coach Brian Kelly told the Chicago Tribune:

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Dayne and I had a good conversation Friday and I have granted him permission to speak to other schools. Dayne has been a valuable member of our team the last two years and if he feels he needs to look for a better situation then I think we owe that to him.

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That means he is basically a free agent in terms of the college football world. Teams will be lining up for a chance to recruit this star, but these are three schools that may interest Crist.

Penn State—The Penn State Nittany Lions had two quarterbacks this season in Rob Bolden and Matthew McGloin, but neither was worth the grief they caused.

With Crist on the Lions team, the stellar run game would alleviate much of the pressure on the QB and allow him to thrive in Happy Valley.

While the sex scandal may scare any player or recruit, there is an aura around Penn State that nothing can taint. Penn State is a football school; Crist could lead this storied program to redemption.

Wisconsin—There have already been talks that Crist is thinking about a few schools in 2012. Wisconsin is reportedly one of them.

With Russell Wilson leaving for the NFL, Wisconsin will be looking for someone to take over the helm while they find their next star. That’s where the natural fit with Crist would come in.

As a one-year gap stop, Crist just has to worry about playing the game and not worry so much about the other distractions like at Notre Dame. With all the weapons the Badgers will back next season, Crist would be smart to head to Wisconsin.

Utah—Another school being thrown around for Crist to be considering is the Utah Utes. While the jump from South Bend to Utah is a wild one, this might be the best fit for him.

There will be returning plenty of starters on offense and Crist would be able to shine in an offensive that has been screaming for a star.

If Crist takes this last opportunity serious, he could perform well enough at Utah to earn himself a late-round draft pick. That would be a nice end to his college career.

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