Ok this is just to ask all of the college footbal fans out there one simple question - does anyone care about the mythical national championship for signing day? I for one am already sick of hearing that Alabama has the top recruting class. AND I AM AN ALABAMA FAN! The hype that is made over signing day makes me sick. Let's face it, having the top recruiting class means nothing but a stat on a piece of paper. In order to stop the arguement before it starts - yes I know that means that Alabama has the best group of high school players coming in which should translate to a better team, more wins, and more championships (SEC and National). But how many top blue chip players turned out to be over rated and have done absolutely nothing in college? In fact the same can be said for the NFL draft - (Any one remember "Crying" Ryan Leaf?). The fact is the best team in college football is decided on the field of play and not on a piece of paper 7 months before the season starts. Let's look at Auburn for example - correct me if I'm wrong but they have not had a top 10 recruiting class over the last seven or so years, but over the same peroid of time they have had one of the best records in the SEC. So let's hear it college football fans - is there too much hype about signing day?
HEY IM WITH YOU ON THIS!! every year it seems we get a look at many kids , and some really arent what they claim to be, or as i say busts!!!! take this pryor kid ?? hasnt signed with anyone yet??? well maybe?? that tells me something ?? a big ego maybe??? teh signing day has come and gone now?? hasnt it???
HEY IM WITH YOU ON THIS!! every year it seems we get a look at many kids , and some really arent what they claim to be, or as i say busts!!!! take this pryor kid ?? hasnt signed with anyone yet??? well maybe?? that tells me something ?? a big ego maybe??? teh signing day has come and gone now?? hasnt it???
your a crimson and tide fan?? im an university of oregon fan, now this pryor kid has said now i think twice hes coming to visit oregon??? ive read where his mom (god bless her) is handicapped, so why would he?? come all the way out to oregon to play ball?? hey id welcome him with (as they say open arms) but.
your a crimson and tide fan?? im an university of oregon fan, now this pryor kid has said now i think twice hes coming to visit oregon??? ive read where his mom (god bless her) is handicapped, so why would he?? come all the way out to oregon to play ball?? hey id welcome him with (as they say open arms) but.
And something else that I left out KELLY that you brought up - there are thousands of high school students. There is no way that all these sports analysts can see all of them to give them a realistic rating.
i know its funny, or sad, i guess but ever year in basketball, if theres a kid from the state of oregon, who in the minds of the fans , or should i say the students at the university of oregon?? who think he should of went to oregon or oregon state they will boo him!!!! its funny that some years ago a person said thats funny becasue the fans would be constanly booing a kid from california, example ok he should of went to, UCLA, stanford, usc, cal!!!!!!
i know its funny, or sad, i guess but ever year in basketball, if theres a kid from the state of oregon, who in the minds of the fans , or should i say the students at the university of oregon?? who think he should of went to oregon or oregon state they will boo him!!!! its funny that some years ago a person said thats funny becasue the fans would be constanly booing a kid from california, example ok he should of went to, UCLA, stanford, usc, cal!!!!!!
yes I'm a tide fan. Let's take the state of Oregon and U. of Oregon in a purely hypothetical example. Why would Oregon pass on recruiting the top receiver in Oregon because he is listed by some website as a three star athlete, to go after a 4 or 5 star athlete (by the same website) who lives in Florida or some other east coast state. It make no sense to take someone elses opinion when you can look at a player first hand and see for yourself.
and, it gets tougher each year the university in any sports get and stays really competitive!!! gosh i recall when oregon couldnt seem to get any real blue chippers in any sport
The analysts also don't take into account what a school needs when they rate a recruiting class. A team who has three phenom wide receivers who will be sophmores this year has no need to go recruit a bunch of top wide outs when their starting QB's jersey number is equal to his passing yards for all of last season.
And I'm not saying its not a part of college football. I'm saying all the hype of having the top recruiting class is over rated. Case in point - Notre Dame. They always have one of the best recruiting classes, but they got spanked like a red headed step child last season.
I agree,These kids still have to be coached. They also have to be willing to exceed to greatness to be sucessful at the next level. One thing though about the Crimson Tide. Being an LSU fan I know first hand that Saban will get the most out of those recruits. Goodluck in '08 but I still think we win the SEC West this coming season. After that though it's a toss up. Although I do think Auburn will be tough as usual.
and congratulations to your LSU tigers GAMBIT for another National Title and for helping to show everyone that once again Ohio State was overrated. With the coaches that are now in the SEC west I think the games in the this half of the conference are going to be more exciting and a lot closer. In fact I'll go ahead and go out on a limb and say that in a few years if any team can run the table in the west they should be (after winning the SEC championship game) in the National Title game.
The fact that the Atlanta Journal Constitution has a list is a bit ridiculous, they have to put out a paper each and every day, how do they have time to rank the players? Do they just go to scout or rivals and change a few on the list? (And by the way, Auburn had a number 7 or 6 ranked class last year depends on the site.)
Then I stand corrected BAMABOY on Auburn's last year recruiting class, but the point is still valid. Auburn has had a great record over the last several years without out having one of the top recruiting classes year in and year out.
Last edited by wgillenh2o on February 11th at 12:24 PM.
Amen! There is way too much hype, and I'm glad I'm not the only one who thinks so. I was sick of hearing about recruiting from the day it began. Some people think that it makes or breaks the year for a team, which is total malarkey. As an Auburn Fan, I'm perfectly willing to admit that Bama had a great recruiting year. Kicked our rears head to head that's for sure. But the truth is that until you put them on the field you don't know what you have, and coaching and heart really mean a lot. So let’s tee it up and see what they do on the field before we start crowning champions. And wgillenh2o...thanks for being a voice of logic for the Alabama nation. There are far too few of you …at least in my neighborhood.
I'll let you in on a little secret BORN, I married an Auburn fan and she helps keep me grounded. Especially since, due to a standing bet we have for the Iron Bowl, I've had to wear an Auburn sweatshirt the day after the game for the last six years. Dear Heavenly Father, for the love of all that is good and right in the universe please let Bama win the Iron Bowl this year.
Have any of you guys read "Moneyball"? It's about baseball and the A's, but the concept was a change in how you evaluate talent. I think the same can be done for football to at least some extent. The so called experts have too crappy a track record, one that borders the local weathermans weekly forecast, to have any reliability whatsover.
And not just college either, you can make the same argument for the pro's. Brady has been to 4 sb's, he was a sixth rounder, Welker wasn't drafted, LT wasn't good enough to go to a major school (apologies to TCU and the WAC, but cmon!), ditto for Jerry Rice, Walter Payton, etc.... Wasn't Ron Pawlus supposed to win 2 Heismans?
The only fun in these reports is if you can remember this 4 years from now when you see how that class faired out. Wouldn't it be great if someone came out with a website that graded the scouts on their ability to grade talent and see how good these "experts" really are.
JAY - the reason you, I or anyone else will never see a grade on scouting report websites is because if everyone saw how far off the mark they are no one would listen to them anymore. And since that means less money in their pockets they forget about this years class about two days after signing day and start writing about next years recruiting class.
This just in from a well know recruiting website - there is a two year old in ________ (fill in any state) that can say the word "football". So they have already made him a three star athlete for the signing class of 2024.
Last edited by wgillenh2o on February 11th at 3:28 PM.
Being a former college athlete, I'll say this. Their athletic ability in high school is one thing, but once they get to the college level things change.
Motivation changes, transfers, injuries, academic problems, disciplinary problems, emotional problems, lack of understanding coaching schemes, weight loss/gain, etc.
There's so much to go into that, I think ESPN, FOXSports and other media outlets need something to write about.
I understand that the level of play changes. However the fact is that there is no way any of the media outlets or recuiting websites can rank players when there is no way they have looked at every high school player getting ready to make the move to college. A QB who throws for an unbelieveable number of yards and sets every QB record know to man could have two or three receivers that are 6'10" and all of the cornerbacks he faces all season are 6'. But of course he's ranked high because of his stats. Then he gets to college and the corners are little anymore and its obvious he has no business as a starting QB at a DIV.1 school.
I think a few of you are putting the cart before the horse. College coaches look at the players to decide if that is a player they want to recruit. They do not go to Rivals.com to see which players they should be going after. Rivals.com bases a lot of their rankings on which schools are recruiting a kid. For instance, if Ohio State starts recruiting a kid, this will, in most cases, lead to his star rating going up both directly and indirectly (because other schools will take notice if they see another CFB powerhouse recruiting him). The more recruited a player is, the higher his star rating will be in most cases.
I agree that these ratings services generate a lot of hype, mostly for their own gains. But, I would venture that most players worth looking at get looked at by some college or another because they do a lot of self promoting.
In the long run, though, you are right that it is a #### shoot. Schools are just taking calculated risks with each scholarship offer. And while no one can predict the strength of a class based on these ratings and high school performance, it is at least a starting point. And it is college football news for us fans that are going through withdrawal.
wgillenh2o, I feel your pain. I had to pay off a similar type bet (in reverse of course) that I made with a boyfriend for a few years in the 90s. His shirt made me break out in hives. But it was fun. Of course the best year was the one when we won, and he had to dress in an Orange and blue wig and stand on the street corner shaking my AU shaker for the lunch hour too. So you may want to consider yourself lucky, at least you were able to suffer privately. Anyway, you're a good sport. I'm betting your wife and I would be the best of friends. At Auburn it’s all about family. Tell her "War Eagle"...and for you I'll say a very small rtr. Don't expect anything more though. Really enjoyed the blog. I look forward to the next one.
wgil, you are right. But then, what else do we CF fans have to talk about between now and opening kickoff for our favorite teams? Keeps the analysts and pundits in business too. If we are being honest most of the hype from the media around the sport is just that, hype. Who's #1? Who knows? Who cares? Just fun talk for those of us who think college basketball starts with the NCAA tournament. p.s. Alabama did have a great recruiting class and I hope the kick some Auburn butt.
BORN, just read your profile and I am a Parrothead myself. Unfortunitely I have to wear the Auburn sweatshirt out in public around people who know I'm a Bama fan.
KING, I was hoping to see how LisaH weighed in on this subject. I guess she got mad that I said in my profile that USC is overrated.
SK, here are a few topics to discuss until the end of august.
1. Does Lee Courso knew what kind of a joke the entire country thinks he is. I mean come on he had a lossing record as a coach and we are all supposed to believe he knows what he runs his mouth about.
2. If Notre Dame had of won one more game would they have been in the sugar bowl again? (and I know they needed several to be bowl eligable)
3. Will Notre Dame, Michigan, Ohio State, and USC be grossly overrated when the preseason polls come out again this year.
4. Will another team like Hawaii make it to a BCS bowl game due to a schedule a high school could go undefeated with, only to be blown out by a real DIV.1 team?
Last edited by wgillenh2o on February 12th at 1:09 PM.
wgillenh20:
my comment is you're a freaking ####. why do morons like you feel the need to show how ignorant you are.
secondly, alabama "won" the recruiting because like all sec schools they over signed. it was quantity not quality that won it. osu signed more top 100 and five star recruits. any time alabama you want to come to colubus and play osu we'll gladly welcome you. but, as everyone knows sec won't play anyone on that teams home field. sec teams refuse to do a home and home, WHY?? sec is over rated and they know they could not win if they come up north.
And why would an SEC school waste time and money GOBUCK to go to OSU and spank them when we can have the media overrate OSU like always and then spank them for a National Title? Florida and LSU are still thanking you for their titles.
First I've heard of a "signing day NC" but personally I like keeping up with the recruits and seeing where the big talent is going.
By the way you can take OSU off that list of who's gonna be overrated since anything less than a #1 ranking will be underrating them.
Bama will probably be one of the most overrated teams heading into next season.
Last edited by MegaBuck on February 12th at 5:12 PM.
Great Blog!!
Look at the genius, Bill Callahan (formerly at Nebraska). Didn't he have the top recruiting class of 2005? I'm sure that you enjoyed watching him play for the BCS championship this year. Now poor old Tom Osborne at the same school never had a top five recruiting class, in fact he rarely had a top 20 class. Yet somehow he managed to win 255 games in 25 years along with three national championships and a bunch of near misses.
Boise State had a handful of two star recruits, but mostly one star and no star players. Anybody think that they had a chance against mighty Oklahoma and their boatload of four and five star guys?
And the ultimate example of the recruiting war propaganda of the experts:
For the last couple decades Notre Dame has had almost nothing but top five recruiting classes year in and year out. Does anyone remember the last time they even came close to winning a bowl game?
Last edited by Mountainman2 on February 12th at 6:22 PM.
MEGA, I suppose OSU deserved there #1 ranking the last two years only to be embarrassed in the title game? By all means let them be #1 again and they can have the three-peat spanking in the title game.
MOUNTAIN, I think I am correct in that Notre Dame is the only team in DIV.1 history to go to seven consecutive bowl games and lose all seven. The only reason that streak ended was because they couldn't go to a bowl this past year.
Last edited by wgillenh2o on February 13th at 5:44 AM.
National Signing day is a load of ####. There's no actual 'signing day', just the start of the signing period.
These KIDS have gotten out of control. Since when do KIDS get to have a press conference to announce where they're going to college. Is something wrong with the phone?
The media has blown this all out of proportion. These KIDS have done nothing significant enough to warrant TV time. Look at the pressure they've put on themselves - that stupid kid that made up a recruiting story (that wasn't beig recruited by anyone) just to get on TV. Well he did get on TV and now he's going to look like an #### the rest of his college career if he's able to get in to a college.
Don't allow KIDS to hold press conferences; let them 'brag' on the field. Most of these KIDS won't play beyond college anyway so don't treat them like professionals or celebrities until they actually are. They're just set up to fail as it is now with all these expectations coming out of high school.
Scouts, Rivals, etc. need to go away. They're the equivalent of pre-season polls - they mean nothing. On-the-field is the only thing that truly measures anything. They are trying to predict the future and they're always WRONG.
pryor hasn't signed yet. Everyone keeps saying how shy and confused he is. Maybe, just maybe he is not menatily ready to play football. Some kids mature later than others. If that is not the case, he is just another media ####, wanting all the attention on him. Either way, the kid is a loser. He should be prohibited from signing with any team. If your not ready by signing day, your never going to be ready.
No problem on whupping that buckeyes team. I'm so looking forward to the Bama and LSU game this season. I have a huge amount of respect for Saban as far as coaching goes. I also appreciate what he was able to bring to LSU. Bama's future is bright with him calling the shots.
I agree GAMBIT. During the season I want Bama to dominate the SEC. But come bowl time I have to pull for the SEC, which includes (I know some Bama fans will hate this) Auburn.
BUDRO I agree with you as well, and I'll take your comment one step farther - how many of these 4 and 5 star athletes will even be able to get into the college they signed with without being ineligable due to their grades?
Hey LISA glad to see you make a post. And I agree with you that I also want the best recruits on my team. My arguement is who's to say they are the best? And I'm not pointing out any team's recruits in particular. Because remember, as I stated in my original comments, I'm a Bama fan and they have the so called "best" recruiting class.
We have created a monster in this "Signing Day" business...can we go back and tell the real story of how many of these kids turn out to be busts as well? Let's judge them after they have done someting on the field and in the classroom...let's also not forget that we do not need ANY more thugs, criminals, drug dealers, and ####s made into supermen. How about the old fashioned way of getting some respect...by earning it and sustaining it by proper conduct and leadership.
To be honest with you, the ratings are kinda skewed. It's widely known that a two or three star recruit can magically jump to a 4 star if a big school gives him an offer...sometimes it happens overnight.
Read this book: Meat Market, by Bruce Feldman. It's UNREAL, and a must-read for every college football fan...I give it 5 stars...it's that good.:)
LISA here's a thought and I don't mean to be all black hellicopter conspiracy theory. I wonder how my times a two star athlete has been recruited by a big school to raise him to a four or five star recruit in the hopes a rival school will sign him and waste a recruit on an inferior player. Hey I know this sounds far fetched but stranger things do happen. We all know there are times a college player is being paid or given gifts no matter what school he is at. Oh wait that's a violation of NCAA rules so of course none of THAT goes on. PLEASE!
I am just your average sports fan who believes the following: 1 - Div. 1 college football needs a playoff. 2 - The SEC is the toughest conference. 3 - Ohio State, Michigan, Notre Dame, and USC are the most over-rated teams in college football. 4 - An attractive woman who knows sports is every man's fantasy. 5 - The MLB season is too long. 6 - The DH in baseball needs to be done away with. 7 - The government needs to stay out of sports because they mess up everything they get involved in.
