If quarterback Keith Nichol ends up at Michigan State, he'll be enrolled and ready to go when the team's summer workouts begin on June 2.
Nichol, a former Lowell star, MSU verbal commitment and Oklahoma quarterback, is still considering a number of schools less than two weeks after deciding to transfer from Oklahoma. His father, Gary Nichol, said Monday that the list consists of MSU, Michigan, Wisconsin, Purdue, Louisville, Cincinnati, Arizona State and New Mexico State.
Keith's intent, Gary said, is to make a decision and enroll in time to fully take part in summer workouts. Every team's schedule is different, but in MSU's case, the timetable is less than two weeks.
"Wherever he ends up, he's gonna land on his feet,"
Gary Nichol said of his son, "and he's gonna have fun playing football again."
Nichol was a highly coveted prospect, a fleet-footed passer ranked the No. 6 dual-threat quarterback in the nation by Rivals.com. He verbally committed to former MSU coach John L. Smith in the summer of 2005.
After Smith was fired and Mark Dantonio hired to replace him in the fall of 2006, Nichol reopened his recruitment. He ultimately signed with Oklahoma. But he was beat out by redshirt freshman Sam Bradford last fall, and Bradford went on to have a huge season for the Sooners.
Nichol and Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops split amicably on May 9 with "a hug and a handshake" and a Stoops offer to leave the door open if Keith decided to come back, Gary said.
Since then, there has been much speculation about Nichol's future, including a report published last week that indicated Nichol had decided on MSU.
"A decision definitely hasn't been made yet,"
Gary Nichol said Monday.
But it appears MSU is a strong possibility, even though the Nichols received a lot of flak from fans for Keith's decision to switch from MSU to Oklahoma last year. Gary Nichol said last February that threatening letters had been sent to Lowell High.
"Despite all that, we've always been a Spartan family and we still are," Gary said. "And we have a real high opinion of Mark Dantonio and his coaching staff."
Asked if Keith had visited MSU or met with Dantonio since leaving Oklahoma, Gary declined comment. He said he wants his son to "be able to exhale" and go through this process as quietly as possible.
MSU coaches are not permitted by NCAA rule to speak about Nichol because he is a recruitable prospect.
After transferring, Nichol will have to sit out the 2008 season. He will be eligible to play as a sophomore in 2009.
If he comes to MSU, that will create an interesting situation in the race to replace current senior starter Brian Hoyer.
Redshirt freshmen Nick Foles and Kirk Cousins will be sophomores that season as well.
Foles and Cousins left spring ball in a virtual deadlock in the competition to be Hoyer's backup in 2008.
Quarterback Connor Dixon decided last week to transfer from MSU, but the Spartans have a 2009 verbal commitment from highly regarded Midland quarterback Andrew Maxwell.
If Nichol comes to MSU, Foles and Cousins still plan to stay and compete for the job, their fathers told the State Journal.
"He thinks (MSU) can go big-time places and he wants to be a part of it,"
Larry Foles said of Nick, who originally committed to Arizona State but switched to MSU after a coaching change. "He feels like, 'I'm not gonna fight the process anymore. I'm gonna deliver.'"
Said Don Cousins: "Whether Keith comes, whether Marc Sanchez transfers from USC, it's not gonna change Kirk's perspective."
