2017-2018 NCAA Football Season Thread [Archived] Football • Page 3

Eh, that happens. I was less in the "this is what could happen" article writing and more into "this is the discussion I just had with Recruit A." I found that there needed to be a lot of qualifying "if's" when covering that aspect. Also, between verbal commitments and signing day, so much shit happens that it's pretty easy to throw a million things at the wall and when one sticks you can point to it and be like "fuck I'm smart." But then signing day comes, the team signs the kids and then by next fall they aren't on the active roster, have left school and the kids and school won't comment on anything, so that's always a good time, too.

To be honest, the worst part of the entire industry are the fans that are super into recruiting. I follow it a decent amount still, and I did before I took that job, but the recruits that are just irrational about it are mind-numbing. Rivals had a behind-the-scenes forum that all the publishers of the team-specific sites could trade ideas and talk to the admin of the Rivals network and 80% of it was bitching about their customers, haha.

I think if Rivals was updated, like it is now, when i was writing there two years ago, I would've tried to keep up with it. But when you're building tables via html on a website in 2014 and 2015, you kind of have a "wtf am I doing with my life?" moment. It was such a cluster fuck of shit behind the scenes. This comment box I'm typing in now has more options on editing text than any place on Rivals that I wrote a story and it was that way for over 15 years. How does that even happen?! Best part: the update came and was implemented and 10% of all subscribers across the entire network cancelled subcriptions because of the change, even though everything was 100 million times better.

 

"The Game" in recruiting is largely just based on talking chances on kids with questionable character, grades, or a combination of the two. Not trying to be slanderous to Boise State, but they weren't full of the most upstanding citizens when Peterson was there. I think he's doing just fine for what is -- no offense meant with this remark -- a second-tier power conference job.

 

Some HCs are just not top recruiters but good with the Xs and Os, I think that's just kind of Perersons MO which is why it's good that the other assistants are skilled at it. The marlon thing was kinda odd, I saw some really messed up mysoginist comments made by a family member (no idea how I came across it) but you probably don't want that guy. If it makes you feel better, Oregon had a super average recruiting class the year after they were in the national championship game. USC is gonna just destroy once they figure out how to not blow winnable games lol

I still don't understand, isn't there two signing days now? Does that mean a recruit could commit tomorrow then flip and commit again next signing day? Lol

 

Well in the case of this particular kid (Marlon Tuipulotu)---he's been praised by various Oregon newspapers for being an upstanding kid with great grades and just an all around good kid. He's a poly kid and it's been pretty widely known that many poly kids don't get to make their own decision, its very much controlled by their family and that appears to be the case here.

Washington is just not in a great spot for recruiting for various reasons, geographically being a major one. But two of the best commits in the state of Washington (one of which was committed to UW for a while) both left the state to go to Stanford because while UW is a great school, you just can't compete with the Stanford degree.

Then you got both LA schools which just pull in stud class after stud class without even really flexing a muscle. It's just tough.

 

I'm not worried about it necessarily. They were just in the playoff with a lot of Sark's leftovers (albeit very good players) and with some of Pete's early recruits. They'll only continue to get better and I think they'll be finishing up right around the Top 20 which is pretty good for them.

 

Interestingly enough there was a top 10 prep kid from around here this class, ended up verbal committing to Georgia or something.

 

Is this him just trying to impersonate Nick Saban? Only Saban can look that miserable and get away with it.

 

Kevin Spacey and his Oscars would like a word with you.

 

Good stuff @bigmike! You pretty much confirmed what I've heard in various circles about covering recruiting. One of the big practices in recruiting lately is the negative recruiting of another school. A lot staffs will go in and talk down about certain programs, rather than building their relationship and selling their program. It's an industry standard, but some schools don't do it, and I wish more would follow in that path.

 

This is an impressive name:

 

Jarez Parks Tearfully Announces Delay In Commitment Decision

Below is from a college football board. Looks like they will be pushing some kids out to make room.
Alabama has twenty-five commits and can take twenty-five. Still to announce with Alabama among their favorites or the favorite.
LaBryan Ray, DE
DaVonta Smith, WR
Christopher Henderson, CB

 

Push out Ray right the fuck to Baton Rouge please

 

Still can't believe Tennessee managed to get ESPN's top player, especially when it's one of our most needed positions. Hope he lives up to the hype. Some definite quality it looks like being added in key places like DB and RB, though it'll be tough to replace Kamara and Sutton. Also got three players from Louisiana which is super rare for us, so maybe the recruiting levels are getting even better despite a stagnant year.

 

Nebraska is currently ranked better than Wisconsin and Michigan State.

 

Jarez Parks went to Paris and did his commitment video there, and then gets told by Bama his offer is contingent on what LeBryan Ray does. No wonder he was in near tears.
4-star DE Jarez Parks delays commitment, potentially over Alabama space concerns

 

Whichever one doesn't get into Alabama should go to LSU to spite Alabama.

 

Last mention of the Parker situation, but he we go. This is why coaches loathe recruiting and get burned out by it. Classic example.

Lifted from a board: "93rd rated prospect in the country. would rather stay home and not play football for a year rather than commit to another a school and basically have 99% of the same college experience he would have at bama".

 

Can grey shirt like not exist? That seems pretty ridiculous.

 

It gets even better with Bama. They are at 28 commits, plus Parks' grey shirt. The next move will be to see if they can get medical exemptions on someone or pull a scholarship from someone on the roster. I think there is also some loophole where they send kids to a junior college for a year, but I don't remember the specifics.

The truth of the matter is that these numbers will smooth out from injuries, transfers, or arrests. So the ethical debate becomes do you over-sign kids knowing it should eventually workout, even though you basically have to sign more kids than you can actually bring in? Not all schools over-sgin, but most of the big players will if they can.

 

Trying to not look too much into recruiting, because Dantonio has done a good job with low star recruits, but it's still discouraging

 

don't start this again!!!!!!!!!!

 

Yeah, Dantonio has been awesome at coaching up 3 star kids. I think these last couple cycles are hitting them because they are trying to expand their recruiting profile and kids they were counting on are getting arrested that never end up enrolling.

 

Missed on the two big ones but still got great incoming classes.

 

Was perusing a rival's board recently and stumbled upon this. May be all clean, but I'm assuming if I can find this, someone in the NCAA can as well.
Alabama's Recruiting Dominance Continues (Wow)

 

For sure. I think Peterson will be just fine at Washington and I hope I didn't come across as attacking the university. It's a fine school with a wonderful location; it's just not USC or UCLA or Stanford. So they're going to constantly be battling for the 2nd bunch of kids that those first three schools don't want. It's just what it is. Recruiting rarely changes; Michigan can go 3-9 and they'd still bring in top classes. Michigan State can win multiple Big Ten Titles and they'll still max out with a few four-star kids. Just how it is.

Negative recruiting -- i.e.: negative sales -- is a part of every sales gig. You talk up your own shit but make sure you spend as much or more time talking down other people's. That's just life, not recruiting.

If I'm Alabama, I over sign every single season. If I'm Michigan State, I just hit my numbers I need. Alabama can do it because kids are dying to go there. It's a strategy for the big players in the recruiting world, not every school.

Trust in Dantonio, for sure. He's more of a development coach -- though I think development is vastly overrated by the casual fan -- which rounds out any recruiting deficiencies he may have. However, as I said earlier in the thread about Washington being a second-tier school in their conference, that perfect explains MSU. Really good university, good town (though Washington has a great geographic advantage), great athletic teams and a history of success in football and basketball, but they'll always being going for kids that would be back up's at OSU/U of M and stars at Indiana/Illinois. This describes Wisconsin, too. It's just how it is, and no matter how many big ten titles Dantonio wins, it'll never change.

Hah, while funny, this is stuff that goes on at almost every major university.