Charting the wildest offseason of college football movement ever

No quarterback room expected as many twists and turns as the one in Baton Rouge. After coach Ed Orgeron was fired in October, LSU’s starters for each of the past two seasons, Max Johnson and Myles Brennan, both entered the portal. Johnson ultimately went to Texas A&M, but Brennan, after a call from new coach Brian Kelly, decided to return, setting up a three-person competition with sophomore Garrett Nussmeier and four-star freshman Walker Howard.

Then the spring arrived, and Arizona State dual-threat Jayden Daniels hit the portal unexpectedly. Kelly was hesitant at first to pursue Daniels but couldn’t pass up signing someone with three years of starting experience and 45 career touchdowns (32 passing, 13 rushing). “It was about competition,” Kelly said.

Daniels, Brennan and Nussmeier split reps during the spring game, with each QB throwing a touchdown pass, but after less than two weeks of preseason camp, Brennan, a sixth-year senior, announced that he was stepping away from football.