Dayne Crist during his visit to Kansas
It’s not too often you hear college quarterbacks referred to as free agents but that’s exactly what quarterback Dayne Crist is—and a highly sought after one at that. Since informing Notre Dame several weeks back that he intended to play his final year of eligibility on another campus, Crist has hit the road to find his new stomping ground.
Crist has been down this road before. He was one of the most coveted quarterbacks to come out of the high school class of 2008 but Crist says this time he is more equipped to make the best decision.
“I’ve been through recruiting before and I think this second time around I have a better feel for everything”, Crist told TheShiver.com Tuesday evening. “I can kind of see through some of the other stuff that I may not have when I was a 17-18 years old kid”.
Crist has good reason to take his time and be diligent. Although his career at Notre Dame started with a lot of promise, it was filled with injuries and an overall feeling of disappointment. Luckily for the redshirt senior, the NCAA eligibility rules allow him to transfer and play in the same year because he is graduating later this month and did not play his freshman season.
After making a visit to Kansas this past weekend, Crist headed north to meet with the coaches at Delaware University. Later this week, Crist says he will take a trip to Wisconsin University. Christ did however say he will be making an unofficial visit to another school but that he wanted to respect that schools wishes to remain private.
Although Kansas has not been a top landing spot for 5-star prospects in the past, the hiring of Charlie Wies has changed some things.
“I’ve been very meticulous in the terms of my research and selection process. I’ve done all my homework. This is a decision that I can’t afford to get wrong. I’ve got to hit a home run with my pick.”
Whether or not Kansas is a home run or just a dribbler up the middle will not be known until Crist arrives at his final destination but Kansas has a lot to offer.
“I’m looking for an opportunity to come in and play more than anything.”
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In combination to Weis, Kansas just added quarterback coach Ron Powlus who also has some connections to Crist.
“He was my quarterback coach at Notre Dame”, said Crist. “That’s someone I’m familiar with and comfortable with in terms of coaching style, terminology, and verbiage. That’s all stuff that is very important to me.”
But Crist knows Wies’ history with quarterbacks and knows what signing at Kansas could do for his football career.
“What (Weis) has been able to do with quarterbacks really stands out. After I found out he got the job at Kansas that became a very intriguing place for me. Its somewhere where I feel I can be successful.”
On his visit this last weekend, Crist was treated to marquee seats with the Kansas students when the Jayhawks defeated the #2 Ohio State Buckeye’s. Although Crist said he may never see another basketball environment like he saw Saturday, he is looking past the smoke and mirror recruiting techniques.
“That was awesome“, said Crist of the experience. “It’s something that’s cool but this is a business decision for me.”
Christ will make his final decision in the next week.
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