Yesterday, when I wrote about the dilemma that USC football quarterback Husan Longstreet faces regarding whether to stay at USC or take his talents elsewhere, I mentioned that Longstreet should pay attention to the cautionary tale of Malachi Nelson, a former top QB prospect who left USC after one season and has struggled ever since.
Cautionary Tale
“Malachi Nelson is a great example of this,” I wrote. “Nelson was an elite quarterback prospect at USC in 2023 who transferred to Boise State ahead of the 2024 season in hopes that he would start for the Broncos. He did not. Then, he transferred to UTEP this season and played poorly.”
“Experience is not always, or even typically, the best teacher for quarterbacks. You can’t be so confident in your strengths as a QB and so impatient to prove yourself on the field that you ignore your weaknesses and need for development.”
But the reasons why Nelson’s story should give Longstreet pause are deeper than just the fact that choosing to play for a smaller school over USC hasn’t worked out for Nelson. Let’s talk about just how deep this comparison goes.
Longstreet and Nelson have similar backgrounds
Malachi Nelson was widely considered the No. 1 recruit in the nation in the Class of 2023, a five-star quarterback from USC’s own backyard. Nelson spent his high school days at Los Alamitos High School in Southern California, only about a 30 minute drive from USC.
Husan Longstreet is also a top-ranked quarterback from Southern California. He attended Centennial High School in Corona, CA, practically in USC’s backyard. He was widely considered a five-star recruit, one of the best players in California and one of the best quarterbacks in the country by reputable outlets.
They’re not exactly the same player. Nelson is taller and thinner and Longstreet is considered more of a threat in the run game. But Longstreet does have a similar status to what Nelson had at the conclusion of his first year at USC: top ranked Southern California prospect who sat on the bench behind more established USC QBs.
Nelson became the backup at Boise State
USC fans know well that after the 2023 season, Malachi Nelson transferred to Boise State with hopes that he could become the starting quarterback for the Broncos. What happened instead is that he was beat out by Maddux Madsen and could only watch from the bench as Boise State made a run to the CFP.
But it’s not just the fact that happened, but how it happened that should give Longstreet pause.
Belief versus reality
Nelson likely believed that he was talented enough to start at a Group of 5 school without much of a competition. You can’t fault him for that logic. He was the No. 1 player in the country, recruited by QB guru Lincoln Riley to come to USC. He probably felt like he was doing a G5 school like Boise State a favor by coming to town.
But he lost the job to Maddux Madsen. Madsen is an important player in this story, because he is not the most naturally gifted player in the world but he had something that Nelson never has: program loyalty. He has played at Boise for the entirety of his four year career thus far. He had two years at Boise already under his belt before Nelson came to town.
The quarterback that had patiently learned the offense for two years and had 136 passing attempts under his belt beat out the quarterback who had 3 passing attempts and 0 years with the program under his belt. This shouldn’t be that surprising. It also shouldn’t be surprising that Spencer Danielson clearly loves Maddux Madsen as a human being. Relationships matter in this sport.
Longstreet is going to get a handout from any self-respecting program, just like Nelson didn’t. Longstreet should follow Madsen’s path, not Nelson’s: sticking around and building relationships.
Nelson benched for Skyler Locklear
But Nelson didn’t learn his lesson after leaving USC to try to get a starting opportunity at a smaller school. He did it again, going from Boise State to UTEP.
Nelson did win the starting job at UTEP…for 5 games. Then he was benched for Skyler Locklear after throwing four interceptions against Louisiana Tech.
Hard times
Again, considering where Locklear stood as a high school recruit, he has no business stealing a starting job from Nelson. He’s a former 0-star recruit who spent two years at Austin Peay before enrolling at UTEP.
But he had 10 games of experience at UTEP in 2024. When the Nelson experiment was failing to the tune of 4 interceptions, UTEP turned to the safe option of Locklear.
The Miners won only 1 game with Locklear under center, so it’s not like turning to him was a massive success. But, program loyalty paid off for Locklear again. He stuck around at UTEP even though a five star was coming to town, and as a result, he got 9 more games of DI experience under his belt.
Jaden Rashada: another Malachi Nelson?
Nelson is not the only example of a career path like this, either. Jaden Rashada, a top-10 quarterback in the class of 2023, has had similar issues earning a starting role at a variety of stops.
Rashada’s career history is dizzying. He initially commited to Miami, flipped his commitment to Florida, eventually enrolled at Arizona State after an NIL dispute, transferred to Georgia, and transferred to Sacramento State.
At Sacramento State in 2025, Rashada was not the starter. He attempted only 42 passes and had 1 touchdown and 1 interception. He’s in the transfer portal again.
Rashada was reportedly limited by a thumb injury this season, but the point still stands that he’s been all over the map and still has yet to earn consistent playing time despite his talent.
I fear these stories will become all too common in this era of NIL and the transfer portal.
Malachi Nelson is currently not in the portal — did he learn his lesson?
Perhaps the most surprising development in all of this is that Malachi Nelson is NOT in the transfer portal right now. Could he…be staying at the same program for another year? Has he finally found a home at UTEP despite being benched there this season?
Skyler Locklear is actually leaving UTEP via the portal so perhaps Nelson feels there is a clear path to starting for the Miners in 2026. They went 2-10 in 2025 so expectations are low and there’s really nowhere to go but up.
In fact, that specific development makes me wonder if Husan Longstreet should just talk to Malachi Nelson directly about all of this. I’m not confident that Nelson would give a ringing endorsement of USC, but if Nelson of all people is sticking with a 2-10 school where he threw more interceptions than touchdowns last season…then maybe there really is something to be said about program loyalty and being patient, and Nelson has learned that.
Don’t settle for less
All in all, whether Husan Longstreet leaves or stays, I really want to see him end up with an elite coaching staff and not just in a situation where he can play immediately. And, I hope he sticks with it. Malachi Nelson is clear proof that programs make players, players do not make programs.
This article originally appeared on Trojans Wire: Husan Longstreet could make the same mistake as Malachi Nelson
