Andrew Luck took over as the general manager of college football operations at Stanford during the offseason. He is doing a great job of promoting the brand and what it stands for.
The 36-year-old showed the utmost class after a one-point win over San Jose State on Saturday.
Either that, or Andrew Luck was recruiting his next college football transfer portal class and could be accused of tampering. Maybe a little bit of both?
Andrew Luck made his way back to Palo Alto.
Luck ultimately returned to Palo Alto after his surprising retirement from the NFL in 2018. The former No. 1 overall pick laid extremely low during the first few years he was back in town.
There was a lot of dissension surrounding his exit from the Indianapolis Colts and it was in the best interest of his mental sanity to keep a low profile. We did not see him or his family in public for awhile but is private life was pretty dang good. He even returned to Stanford for his Masters degree!
And then Luck resurfaced in 2023 as an assistant coach at Palo Alto High School, where he immediately put his superior intelligence on display. The Vikings had him work with the quarterbacks for two seasons.
He was hired as the Cardinals’ general manager in November. According to Stanford, Luck is tasked with “overseeing the Cardinal Football Program. including working with the coach on recruiting and roster management, and with athletics and university leadership on fundraising, alumni relations, sponsorships, student-athlete support, and stadium experience.”
One of his first orders of business was the ouster of head coach Troy Taylor in March after two separate investigations into his conduct toward female staffers. He then brought in his old coach with the Colts, Frank Reich, as the interim for 2025. Stanford sits at 2-3 through its first five games.
Is Stanford tampering?
Andrew Luck seems like one of the nicest guys in the world. I have never seen anyone say an ill word about him.
That continues to be true as he leads the Cardinal through an era of transition.
However, like with anything, people can’t let a good thing be a good thing. There is some suspicion that what appears to be an incredibly classy gesture by the new general manager might actually be foul play.
Luck takes the time to shake the hands of his opponents on the field after the games, both players and coaches. He often takes extra time with some of the best players on the other side of the field.
A recent video from over the weekend shows him in action.
Here’s 30 seconds of Andrew Luck shaking San Jose State football player’s hands after @StanfordFball’s 30-29 win last night. The Player’s GM 🙌 pic.twitter.com/qZLpLeL4NV
— Emily Van Buskirk (@Emilnem) September 28, 2025
According to Emily Van Buskirk, Luck “does shake hands like this after EVERY game. He even knows the names and hometown/high schools of most opposing players.”
Every part of my brain saw this exchange as admirable, except for one. The internet planted a worm in my brain that I cannot shake.
What if Andrew Luck is actually using this opportunity to recruit? What if he is actually talking to these players because he might want them to play for his program in the future?
I don’t think this is what is happening here but the cries of tampering on social media were loud enough to raise an eyebrow. I actually think Luck would be smart to do exactly what he is accused of doing, especially because of how little enforcement exists, but it is my opinion that he is just a nice guy.