‘He wants to be an NFL quarterback’: Malachi Nelson’s agent on SU commitment
Syracuse will be former five-star quarterback Malachi Nelson’s fourth school in four years. Nelson is looking for stability and a chance to make the NFL. Aaron Hammer | Staff Photographer
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July 2021 was when college sports changed forever. The United States Supreme Court case of National Collegiate Athletic Association v. Alston set the stage for student athletes to profit off of their own name, image and likeness.
Though Eric Nelson — father of then-five star-rated quarterback Malachi Nelson — took it a step further.
What about high school athletes?
Eric reached out to Justin Giangrande, the founder and CEO of NETWORK, a sports marketing agency, to inquire about whether Nelson could profit off his NIL before college. At the time Nelson was about to commit to Oklahoma, eventually flipping to USC, when Lincoln Riley was hired there.
Giangrande traveled to California and spoke with lawyers about the legality of the situation. California’s bylaws for college athletes mirrored those for high school athletes, which opened the door for Nelson to become the first-ever high school athlete to receive NIL compensation.
“I felt like, look NIL is happening, why would I not want to work with the No. 1 overall high school player in the nation at a time when this is just becoming legal,” Giangrande told The Daily Orange. “So I went, I’ve been on this journey with Malachi through all of these ups and downs.”
Nelson’s path since then has been anything but linear. Coming out of Los Alamitos High School, Nelson was regarded as a future NFL quarterback. Instead, he’s turned into a college football journeyman. He lasted one season each at USC, Boise State and UTEP, never establishing himself as a full-time starter anywhere.
Looking for some semblance of stability, Nelson committed to Syracuse Friday. The D.O. spoke with Nelson’s agent Giangrande about his career so far and why he chose the Orange. At SU, Nelson is the team’s third quarterback addition in the portal this offseason, joining Amari Odom (Kennesaw State) and Danny Lauter (Georgetown). It’s logical to think the trio will be competing for the Orange’s backup quarterback spot, if Steve Angeli is healthy, based on his success from last season.
But Nelson is coming for more.
“Fran has stated just like everything, and I don’t want to speak for Fran, but he wants competition,” said Giangrande, who also represents Syracuse wide receiver Calvin Russell III. “So, Steve, I’m sure, needs to heal. And they brought in the other quarterbacks, but, yeah, he came here to compete for starting.”
“Syracuse came at the right time for me in my journey,” Nelson added in a statement to The D.O. “Coach Brown took the time to understand my path and where I am now. Those conversations made it clear this was a place where I could settle in and keep moving forward. He is giving me the chance to compete for the starting QB job and I’m ready for it.”
Top recruits are under a microscope. Especially for Nelson, as the first high school athlete ever to receive endorsement deals. Detractors wait patiently for players to fail and stamp them as “busts.” So when Nelson left USC for Boise State after attempting just three passes as a freshman, it was easy to call him one.
That label became easier when Nelson didn’t start a game in Boise. It’s almost inevitable following another failed stint with UTEP, where he was benched after just six starts.
Arriving at his fourth school in four years, Nelson is “leaving all those expectations at the door,” according to Giangrande. Syracuse head coach Fran Brown wants the quarterback to be the best teammate he can be, which he emphasized during the recruiting process, per Giangrande.
Selling players on a vision is what Brown is best at. Giangrande called him the best relationship builder in recruiting he’s ever seen. More importantly, Brown has shown he can develop quarterbacks.
Brown and offensive coordinator Jeff Nixon took an exiled Kyle McCord and made him the top passer in the country two seasons ago. Then they stewarded Angeli — a three-year backup at Notre Dame — to a strong start in 2025, with 1,317 yards across four games.
Mix in new quarterbacks coach Sean Ryan, who spent nearly two decades in the NFL, including four as a quarterbacks coach, working with players like Eli Manning, Matthew Stafford, Cam Newton and Sam Darnold, and there’s a solid foundation for Nelson.
“(It was) a huge selling point,” Giangrande said. “(Syracuse has) done it multiple times with passing talent. So think about Malachi, known to be a prolific passer in high school, who hasn’t fully put it together yet. Unbelievable opportunity to do it.”
“He wants to be an NFL quarterback, and proving it to himself, it seems,” Giangrande said. “I don’t want to speak for him, but it seems it’s not so much of everyone else, as that of getting the best of himself … and understanding that he has his potential and reaching it.”
To succeed with Syracuse, Giangrande explained Nelson needs to be obsessed with learning the playbook and building chemistry with his receivers. He wants the quarterback to push himself to limits he hasn’t gone before.
Nelson still has a long way to go. He’s yet to find his comfort in the spotlight. Fellow quarterbacks in the 2023 recruiting class have all found success. Arch Manning (Texas) and Dante Moore (Oregon) are the Heisman Trophy front-runners next season and could be the first picks in the 2027 NFL Draft. Nico Iamaleava led Tennessee to the College Football Playoff as a freshman, before transferring to UCLA after receiving a hefty NIL payment.
Meanwhile, Nelson has never been a starter for more than half a season, let alone at a Power Four program. Still, Giangrande believes in him.
Their relationship runs deeper than Giangrande helping Nelson earn money off his NIL. Nelson held Giangrande’s daughter when she was three weeks old. The agent once took the quarterback to Tulum, Mexico, on vacation.
Giangrande sees Nelson as a little brother.
Older brothers look out for their youthful counterparts. For Giangrande, that means getting Nelson in the right place and giving him the best opportunity to be successful.
Syracuse is that place.
“There’s a lot of guys because of all the movement that happens in the portal,” Giangrande said. “Some guys just make moves to make moves and you end up in the wrong situation. So hopefully this feels like a really good opportunity for development and culture for him.”
