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In yet another twist in the 2013 recruiting class, word has come out that Eddie Vanderdoes might not end up playing for Notre Dame, as reported by the Sacramento Bee’s Joe Davidson.

Vanderdoes signed with the Irish on Signing Day, but according to Davidson, Note Dame’s listing of Vanderdoes on their media release of signees before his announcement didn’t go over well with the Vanderdoes family, and could be a source of frustration. Though, as Davidson is quick to point out, “[internet] speculation about Vanderdoes ranged from character concerns to an academic fall out”, which both the family and coaches close to the defensive lineman deny.

As of now, Vanderdoes’s future is up in the air, and the college football world will have to wait and see how it all plays out, which basically repeats the month of January.

The initial thought is that a Vanderdoes release would play right into the hand of Jim Mora and UCLA. The Bruins were runners-up for Vanderdoes, along with USC and Alabama, and injury concerns have mounted tremendously on defense in Westwood. Defensive end Datone Jones is now playing with the Green Bay Packers, and Owamagbe Odighizuwa has struggled with injuries this offseason, with conflicting reports about the severity.

Last week, the LA Times reported that the junior had a season-ending hip injury. Today, CBS Sports is reporting that Mora says the injury isn’t that serious. Whether or not Odighizuwa is 100 percent healthy or not come August, the Bruins still have a need on the defensive line and Vanderdoes’s past interest in UCLA may link them to the Auburn, Calif. native.

However, the Vanderdoes case isn’t strictly confined to UCLA being an obvious suitor if Notre Dame isn’t the landing spot. The Trojans were very much in the mix going into February, and when it was last discussed, the relationship between he and defensive line coach Ed Orgeron was good.

Yet, regardless of any degree of interest Vanderdoes has in USC, the Trojans will have a horse in the race, given the similarities to the ongoing drama with the Matthew Thomas story.

Thomas, a fellow five-star recruit, wants to play at USC or Georgia and is seeking a release from Florida State, who have held firm that they won’t release him in hopes of avoiding what they consider to be the setting of a precedence and the opening of Pandora’s box.

But if Vanderdoes officially looks for a release from Notre Dame, could the Irish beat Jimbo Fisher to the punch by granting it? Should Vanderdoes get released, Florida State’s hands could be severely tied with Thomas, perhaps coaxing them to release him.

It’s still far too early to see how any of this plays out, but could we actually be looking at an absolutely bizarre scenario in which USC could somehow benefit from Notre Dame allowing a player to walk and go to UCLA?

Eddie Vanderdoes of Placer High in Placer, CA will make his college decision tonight at 5 p.m Pacific. That hasn’t stopped the rumor mill, which has been in full-churn mode for days, with USC, UCLA, Alabama, Washington and Notre Dame all vying for the five-star defensive lineman’s letter of inter.

Mike Farrell of Rivals is now reporting that Vanderdoes is a Notre Dame lean, which would make Brian Kelly’s class beyond stout defensively if they can add Vanderdoes to a group that already includes Jaylon Smith.

A second source now telling me Eddie Vanderdoes is #ND as of right now, could change later in the day but this is big. #RivalsNSD

— Mike Farrell (@rivalsmike) February 6, 2013

Vanderdoes committed to USC back on July 11th, only to de-commit in December when he started to look elsewhere and open up his recruitment. At that point, UCLA, Notre Dame and Washington got into the mix, in addition to a late run from Alabama that found him visiting Tuscaloosa this past weekend.

Of late, UCLA has been called a lock for Vanderdoes by pundits, though the lineman hasn’t been speaking to the media at all. According to Joe Davidson of the Sacramento Bee, everyone is still in play, debunking the rumors.

For more National Signing Day coverage, visit SaturdayBlitz.com.

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Manti Te’o. It’s a name we’ve associated with honor and passion for the game of football. A name intertwined with a strong faith, fearless leadership and triumph over adversity. It’s a name that many have said embodies the values of Notre Dame football. It’s the name of a man who willed his team to an improbable 12-0 regular season record and BCS Championship Game berth. And yet, here we are, just 11 days after the end of his college career, finding ourselves questioning everything we’ve ever thought of Te’o.

Timothy Burke and Jack Dickey of Deadspin released one of the most in-depth investigative reports ever released from outside of major sports media, as they pieced together the story of Te’o's now infamous fake dead girlfriend.

It’s prompted media scrutiny on themselves. It’s had teammates, friends, students, administrators and fans scratching their hands and asking who’s been duped: America or Te’o? They’re all valid questions and thoughts in the aftermath of the breaking of the story.

But out west, Te’o has long served as an example of misfire. A moment when the USC brand lost out to Notre Dame’s values and faith. With the story now public, it poses the question, what would have happened had Te’o come to Los Angeles, as he wanted, and played for USC?

Fans have long used Te’o's decision to go to Notre Dame over USC as a crutch. It’s been an overused narrative, coupled with the departure of Jarvis Jones, based on every argument’s two favorite words: ‘what if’.

But now, with Lennay Kekua discovered to be as real as Art Vandelay, is the USC narrative twisted? Well, it’s hard to say.

It’s easy to say that now, using the happenings of a star player and the happenings at Notre Dame, and transposing them in a vaacum and recreating them at USC. If that’s possible, then yes, it’s good for the Trojans that Te’o didn’t put on a cardinal and gold hat back in 2009.

But, the reality is that the factors of Te’o living in Los Angeles would change everything.

Ronaiah Tuiasosopo, the alleged mastermind behind Kekua, is from Lancaster. The ex-high school classmate that he used as his visual representation of Kekua, lives in Torrance. Kekua was said to be attending Stanford.

Had Te’o played at USC, a long-distance relationship with Kekua would have been awfully easy to maintain, yet rather simple to debunk, given the relatively short drive from Los Angeles to Palo Alto.

It wouldn’t have taken long for Te’o to smell a rat and figure out that he was being deceived. Or, at least that would be considered to be a safe assumption to make.

With Deadspin reporting that Te’o and Tuiasosopo visited with each other when the Irish came to Los Angeles in November, it’s safe to say that the two would have had somewhat frequent encounters. With Tuiasosopo doubling as Kekua, there’s more possibilities for a failed plan with Te’o so close.

Then, of course, there’s the pictures. Could a Torrance woman really pass off as Manti Te’o's girlfriend even though she’s never met him or heard of him? The odds would say that a viral picture of a local woman would likely be spotted and tipped to the Los Angeles media, even if Te’o would have been a less-prominent star in Los Angeles than he was in South Bend.

There’s just too many factors that make the hoax seem as though it would be a long shot if it took place at USC. If the hoax doesn’t happen at Notre Dame, much less USC, the narrative remains.

The reality is that as long as the hoax muddies Te’o's name, some will sleep better at night thinking of how Te’o's tenure at Notre Dame saved USC from the embarrassment of the story. And the reality of that, is that that’s still a misguided assumption.

Unless, of course, you’re a believer of the latest Te’o theory, which alludes to Kekua’s creation as a cover up of homosexuality, as vaguely alluded to by Mike Freeman of CBS. Those sentiments remain to be purely conjecture, pitting Te’o in a conundrum of being penned as a hero or villain and flipping the whole story upside down. Judging the trajectory of this sudden-evolving story, who knows what to believe.

Either way, the ‘what if USC had Te’o’ phrase might come to an end this week, whether or not for rational reasons.