The American poet Stephen Levine once said, "Our suffering is caused by holding on to how things might have been, should have been, could have been."
That's what Notre Dame Fighting Irish On SI's Nick Shepkowski seems to be grappling with, still going over the hypothetical of Deuce Knight staying in South Bend instead of committing to the Auburn Tigers last year.
Knight famously flipped from Notre Dame to the Plains, helping cause an exodus in Auburn's quarterback room along with Oklahoma Sooners transfer Jackson Arnold's arrival.
Shepkowski still can't let the thought of Knight go, coping with the recruiting loss by assuring himself that Knight would have no chance in the Fighting Irish's QB competition against CJ Carr and Kenny Minchey.
"You can't tell me that Knight's athleticism and threat to run wouldn't have thrilled offensive coordinator Mike Denbrock and company. His height mixed with arm strength is unteachable, and something Notre Dame hasn't had a whole lot of in the last decade-plus," Shepkowski wrote.
"However, I have trouble thinking Knight would start the 2025 opener for Notre Dame at Miami if he were wearing blue and gold instead of blue and orange.
"Knight isn't likely to be on the field for any meaningful playing time at Auburn this fall, and the same can probably be said had he stayed with his Notre Dame commitment. Auburn has a pair of transfers ahead of him on the depth chart, and to think what he did in high school would have seated him ahead of Carr or Minchey in South Bend is disrespectful to both of them."
Disrespectful? You brought it up!
Knight has at least one season to wait behind Arnold, though things could change on a dime. The Lucedale, Mississippi, product will be called upon to be ready from the rip.
As for Notre Dame? Well, if you don't have a QB named within two weeks of your season-opener, I can't blame you for thinking about the blue-chip freshman with a sky-high ceiling who chose someone else.