JessN: Portal update as of 1/11...

[Cruloc]

Portal is not a race. It is an opportunity. No, it has not been great for us so far though we have picked up a couple of good guys. But we had 3 O Linemen enter today. This thing is still in flux and there are opportunities still out there. We don't need splashy guys only blue collar rough necks with talent and coachable. Still A LOT of those guys out there.

It isn't a race, but you've got to move quickly or a lot of guys you may have evaluated and wanted to pursue are already off the board.

Those new guys entering this week, we've got to be ready to make a push for.....other programs will be all over them too.

 

[Padreruf]

Portal is not a race. It is an opportunity. No, it has not been great for us so far though we have picked up a couple of good guys. But we had 3 O Linemen enter today. This thing is still in flux and there are opportunities still out there. We don't need splashy guys only blue collar rough necks with talent and coachable. Still A LOT of those guys out there.

So many are looking @ 4-5 * and wondering why we don't get those? Personally, I'm taking the Cignetti lesson and looking for 3* who are tough and mean and want to play more than anything else...on both sides of the ball. Have we not learned anything?

I could barely read the site today for all the negativity...relax and let CKD and his staff do their thing. We've had enough prima donnas.

 

[jashleyren2]

Agree. It's not about the haul of 4 and 5 stars on NSD anymore. Now, it's about getting overlooked guys, and DEVELOPING them quickly.

A Process, if you will. And what do we know about the Process? Did a wise man once say to "trust" the Process?

 

[Jack Bourbon]

The problem with targeting the good 3* is that everyone else sees IU success and is likely going for the same guys

Nobody said this was supposed to be easy

 

[CoolBreeze]

So many are looking @ 4-5 * and wondering why we don't get those? Personally, I'm taking the Cignetti lesson and looking for 3* who are tough and mean and want to play more than anything else...on both sides of the ball. Have we not learned anything?

I could barely read the site today for all the negativity...relax and let CKD and his staff do their thing. We've had enough prima donnas.

Amen to that! You really have to overlook the negativity. I mean, all of these guys mean well they just make their opinion known though a lot of it is polar opposite to mine. But there is a lesson in that also so I just appreciate the passion that Bama fans have for the program. It is not boring I can tell you that lol.

 

[Jay Hughes]

So they all just mailed it in? Sitting in their offices laughing…ruining their careers just to take us down…enough! These are people’s jobs and y’all are acting like they aren’t even working!!!
Read your messages…y’all are getting personal…With staff and posters…enough…

I understand the frustration. I would love to see Alabama land every elite player too. But the reality of today’s college football landscape is that money plays a much bigger role than it ever has before. Programs with deeper NIL resources are going to win a lot of these battles, and Texas clearly has an advantage right now. That doesn’t mean our staff isn’t working or recruiting well. It simply means the environment has changed.

What deserves some perspective is the fact that this staff just signed the number two recruiting class in the country. That matters. One of the biggest reasons Coach Saban sustained success for so long was elite recruiting year after year. Talent acquisition has always been the foundation. If this staff can consistently recruit at that level, the wins will come. It is not reasonable to expect instant dominance in a brand new system during a rapidly changing era of college football.

It is also worth remembering that many fans were calling for Saban to step aside toward the end of his tenure. Now we look back and recognize how special that run truly was. The game shifted. Players gained more leverage through the portal and NIL, and maintaining the same level of control and continuity became increasingly difficult. Today there are very few guardrails regulating transfers, tampering, or financial influence. Everyone is still adjusting.

Maybe Coach DeBoer deserves the same patience and opportunity to build that Saban once had. If the game were still exactly what it was 10 or 15 years ago, the transition might look smoother. But this is a new era, and success is going to require adaptation from coaches, administrators, collectives, and fans too.

I am disappointed when we miss on players, but I am encouraged by the direction of recruiting and the foundation being built. Let’s give it some time before declaring failure.

Roll Tide, always.

 

[CaliforniaTide]

Keep in mind also: Texas, for all of their financial advantages relative to other programs, didn't make the playoffs this year. Miami is perceived to have barely made the playoffs, and were written off before the TAMU game. Unless you're an IU football player/coach posting on TideFans, no one gave IU a chance to even make the playoffs, let alone win the Big 18 conference. My point is, much like CNS has said on TV, spend the money you have, but there's no guarantee that the money spent directly equals enough wins to win a NC.

Like the NFL, unfortunately, our expectations as Alabama fans has to be on "Do we have a chance to play for a national championship?" Based on the results of this season, that answer is yes - made the playoffs, won the 1st round. Based on the results of CKD's 1st season, no - didn't make the playoffs. You need to have the guy that can give you the best chances to play in the playoffs. I root the San Francisco 49ers, and there have been seasons where Kyle Shanahan made lemonade out of the lemon circumstances he was given, made the playoffs, and even got deep in the playoffs. In seasons where he had a legit team, he's made the Super Bowl. He hasn't won the SB yet, and hopefully he will. But he gives the 49ers a chance to make the playoffs more often than not, and that's a tremendously more than some other NFL teams can say in the time he's been the HC of the 49ers.

I'm of the opinion as pure outsider, that CKD and his staff are betting on player development to help the team rise to the top. CNS had sorta the same opinion once transfer rules were liberalized in favor of the player - build the team from recruiting, get a transfer for a spot here and here. Jameson Williams and Jahmyr Gibbs would be 2 of those examples. I do think CKD still needs more time. I do think at times, Alabama has looked soft when they played the last 2 years. I think the issue is more coaching or even S/C-related than HC-related.

 

[NoNC4Tubs]

Keep in mind also: Texas, for all of their financial advantages relative to other programs, didn't make the playoffs this year. Miami is perceived to have barely made the playoffs, and were written off before the TAMU game. Unless you're an IU football player/coach posting on TideFans, no one gave IU a chance to even make the playoffs, let alone win the Big 18 conference. My point is, much like CNS has said on TV, spend the money you have, but there's no guarantee that the money spent directly equals enough wins to win a NC.

Like the NFL, unfortunately, our expectations as Alabama fans has to be on "Do we have a chance to play for a national championship?" Based on the results of this season, that answer is yes - made the playoffs, won the 1st round. Based on the results of CKD's 1st season, no - didn't make the playoffs. You need to have the guy that can give you the best chances to play in the playoffs. I root the San Francisco 49ers, and there have been seasons where Kyle Shanahan made lemonade out of the lemon circumstances he was given, made the playoffs, and even got deep in the playoffs. In seasons where he had a legit team, he's made the Super Bowl. He hasn't won the SB yet, and hopefully he will. But he gives the 49ers a chance to make the playoffs more often than not, and that's a tremendously more than some other NFL teams can say in the time he's been the HC of the 49ers.

I'm of the opinion as pure outsider, that CKD and his staff are betting on player development to help the team rise to the top. CNS had sorta the same opinion once transfer rules were liberalized in favor of the player - build the team from recruiting, get a transfer for a spot here and here. Jameson Williams and Jahmyr Gibbs would be 2 of those examples. I do think CKD still needs more time. I do think at times, Alabama has looked soft when they played the last 2 years. I think the issue is more coaching or even S/C-related than HC-related.

The frustrating reality is that we put all of the time and effort into developing these kids and then one of these rich programs $woop in and reap the benefits without any work...

 

[Cruloc]

The frustrating reality is that we put all of the time and effort into developing these kids and then one of these rich programs $woop in and reap the benefits without any work...

That's going to be the reality until some enforceable rules can be put in place.

I mean, look at Cody Campbell with Texas Tech. The guy is throwing his money around like its nothing. Gave a QB a $5 million deal. Or Phil Knight, over twice Campbell's age, throwing his money around for Oregon.

Cuban at Indiana

Hypothetical....we develop a highly rated high school recruit for a year or two.....he plays some, no big stats or production.....we pay based on production then Texas / Texas Tech / Oregon / Ohio State / Michigan etc come in and offer the kids almost twice as much money based on his potential and their needs.

Or Ty Simpson getting offered almost $7 million to go to Miami.

None of this is sustainable. These kids and their agents/parents are going to destroy the sport more than it is already destroyed and they are going to destroy themselves unless they've got some long term goals with the money.

 

[BamaNation]

It would seem to me if the high/low offers to Smothers are true, then that's on the GM and/or coaches who were coordinating with his agent. I'm with Jess in that those kinds of things would make me walk out, too.

 

[davefrat]

That's going to be the reality until some enforceable rules can be put in place.

I mean, look at Cody Campbell with Texas Tech. The guy is throwing his money around like its nothing. Gave a QB a $5 million deal. Or Phil Knight, over twice Campbell's age, throwing his money around for Oregon.

Cuban at Indiana

Hypothetical....we develop a highly rated high school recruit for a year or two.....he plays some, no big stats or production.....we pay based on production then Texas / Texas Tech / Oregon / Ohio State / Michigan etc come in and offer the kids almost twice as much money based on his potential and their needs.

Or Ty Simpson getting offered almost $7 million to go to Miami.

None of this is sustainable. These kids and their agents/parents are going to destroy the sport more than it is already destroyed and they are going to destroy themselves unless they've got some long term goals with the money.

It might be sustainable for the teams that can afford it.

We might see a super-league of a couple dozen teams many of which people hardly ever thought about and which doesn’t include many of the teams (like Alabama) that used to dominate the landscape.

I could be wrong but there are probably a few dozen schools with enough wealthy alums to flood the market with enough money to simply price most schools out of competition.

 

[DzynKingRTR]

The frustrating reality is that we put all of the time and effort into developing these kids and then one of these rich programs $woop in and reap the benefits without any work...

It like taking a woman out on a date, you pay for dinner, spend a lot of money on her, and then she goes home with some dude named Eric.

 

[CB4]

It like taking a woman out on a date, you pay for dinner, spend a lot of money on her, and then she goes home with some dude named Eric.

No player is truly committed to you. As in your analogy, they are simply “dating” you for a while.
My father would say “the difference between being “involved” and “committed” is like a ham and egg breakfast. The chicken giving the eggs is involved. The hog providing the ham is completely committed”.

 

[NoNC4Tubs]

It would seem to me if the high/low offers to Smothers are true, then that's on the GM and/or coaches who were coordinating with his agent. I'm with Jess in that those kinds of things would make me walk out, too.

The kids agent was obviously still shopping around.

If the kid left with a good offer and then goes to Texas and they say "we will match that offer and add another $1M to it", how is that on our GM?

 

[NoNC4Tubs]

It like taking a woman out on a date, you pay for dinner, spend a lot of money on her, and then she goes home with some dude named Eric.

Then you shouldn't have taken her to the Bowling Alley...

 

[mlh]

The whole NIL/Portal/Free Agency thing has worn me out.

 

[CoolBreeze]

It like taking a woman out on a date, you pay for dinner, spend a lot of money on her, and then she goes home with some dude named Eric.

It is a new era. I guess I am doing something right because my boy takes dates to the coffee shop and art museum during the day before he opens his wallet for anything fancy. But Eric, really got to watch out for that dude man.

 

[CoolBreeze]

The problem with targeting the good 3* is that everyone else sees IU success and is likely going for the same guys

Nobody said this was supposed to be easy

Not everybody, especially the programs with the dough. They will stay lazy and fork out the bucks. But a program like Alabama putting in the work to find these dudes would pay dividends given our stature in this sport. We will remain a desirable destination for those seeking success especially those being overlooked.

 

[CoolBreeze]

No player is truly committed to you. As in your analogy, they are simply “dating” you for a while.
My father would say “the difference between being “involved” and “committed” is like a ham and egg breakfast. The chicken giving the eggs is involved. The hog providing the ham is completely committed”.

The chicken's time is coming sooner than later though.

 

[CrimSonami]

It is a new era. I guess I am doing something right because my boy takes dates to the coffee shop and art museum during the day before he opens his wallet for anything fancy. But Eric, really got to watch out for that dude man.

LOOK! That was a looooong time ago! I'm just a tired old man wannabe now. GIMME A BREAK!!!