The Stanford Cardinal football program hasn’t realized much success in recent years. But on Saturday, the program made a significant step in potentially returning to prosperity by bringing back one of the greatest players to ever wear a Stanford uniform.
Former Stanford Cardinal quarterback Andrew Luck has been away from the public eye after prematurely retiring from the NFL in 2019 due to a litany of injuries he sustained over the years.
That all changed on Saturday. According to a report from ESPN’s Pete Thamel, Luck said in a phone interview that he has accepted a position as the general manager of the Stanford football program.
Typically, general manager isn’t a position in collegiate sports. But this is something we have seen more frequently from programs around the country for a particular sport. Most recently, we saw former ESPN NBA insider Adrian Wojnarowski take the general manager position for his alma mater’s men’s basketball program, the St. Bonaventure Bonnies.
If there is anyone who can potentially help Stanford return back to being a powerhouse in college football, it would certainly be someone like Luck on paper.
While it is obviously unclear what kind of a talent evaluator Luck will be, he was one of the best players in the history of college football, finishing as a runner-up for the Heisman Trophy twice in his three years at the program.
Luck was always one of the smartest players on the field in any game that he played. So perhaps this new job could be the perfect fit for him.
In a statement, Luck shared his excitement about returning to his alma mater, saying that Stanford has “the best athletic department in the country”.
“I’m excited,” Luck told ESPN. “I think Stanford is taking an assertive and innovative step. We’re undoubtedly the best athletic department in college sports. We have to re-prove it in football, and we’re excited to be part of that challenge.”
Regardless of whether Luck plays a significant role in the matter, Stanford needs to turn around their program in a major way, as this is set to be their sixth losing season over the past seven years.
[ESPN]
