Early on in his PSU tenure, James said he wants players to be in a position to earn their degrees in 3 years so that if it works out for them, they can complete their athletic and academic careers in that same time frame. He told us that we should expect the top tier players to be in a position to leave after 3 years. That has played out with a number of examples, and we as fans just need to expect it as the new norm. We certainly can assume Micah Parsons will leave after next season. Let's just hope he plays in 3 post-regular season games.
Hamler going is a good thing for him and for the program overall. Him playing in the bowl is the bonus for all involved, including us fans. Maybe he will split more time than usual, like Saquon did in the Fiesta a couple years ago. As for next season -- next high-impact player up. Better be recruiting and developing players well enough to support this approach!
We will see our guys play for just 3 years generally anyway.... some will play in years 1, 2, and 3; others in years 2, 3, and 4, and others in years 3, 4, and 5.
Some very good players will play in 4 seasons. Bonus!
And we can be happy for the pleasant surprises when top tier players stay beyond their 3 mandated post-HS years, ala Gesicki and Pat F. If Hamler stays, yay for us! Either way, yay for us that we got to see him play for the time we have.
