deliveryman35 said:
Guys, I'm serious. I am not a serious follower of recruiting, like some of you are. I keep hearing on this site and others that Shula is "cleaning up" in state and elsewhere grabbing all of the top blue chips we are in competition for. Is that really what's happening? If so, great, but blame me if I am skeptical. I guess what I would like to hear is solid, objective opinion from one of you that follow this kind of thing very closely on how our recruiting is compared to some other heavyweights on a national scale, say, compared to Texas, OU, Nebraska, SC, and others. I have always been under the impression that Shula was committed to recruiting nationwide, and with the recruitment of Jimmy Barnes, that seems like what he is doing. But other than JB, I am not hearing of many recruits coming from any other areas other than the deep south. I would enjoy some input on this from some of you that follow recruiting closely......
Well, last year we cleaned up in state. This year, the state was down in overall talent. This year, we definitely moved on to a wider approach. Honestly, we don't need to go out of the Deep South b/c we have so many good athletes. The panhandle of FL especially, but FL in general, needs to be tapped. And, that is what is happening: Brown and Hall last year, Coffee, Harvey, and Johnson this year. Not to mention going after Murdock and Rouse.
Outside of GA, TN, and MS (which we have some from this year and last) technically we went to Hargrave, VA to get Mitchell. Fanney was from TN and Washington from GA. Jimmy Barnes is from CA, as well as Prince Hall.
We are after Mikell Simpson who is from PA, Deaderick from KY, and Worthington from NY.
We are filling needs. And the staff is filliing these needs very well. We are getting good athletes, most of which seem to have impeccable character. My personal observation is that these kids are "coachable"-- and that's something you can't rate.
A lot of people like to see who else is offering these kids. Just because someone doesn't offer this kid, doesn't mean he isn't any good. It is impossible to offer every stud out there. And a lot of times, these "studs" just don't fit the system. For instance, you would think we would offer every 1-10 rated RB in the nation. But, it is just impossible, for one, and the staff goes through and picks which one's they like-- not who else likes them.
In terms of stars, I honestly would take a class just like this one every year. And, once we get back to SEC championships, the classes will only get better.
