The Official "I Hate our Recruiting" Thread

[whaler11]

It doesn't matter at this point who a kid has offers from. We aren't going to land instant add players who can start immediately. What does matter is how they're coached up. At this point, this is where UConn is failing. They failed under GDL and they are failing under Cummings or whoever is in charge of the line right now. The Zach Hurds and Mike Hicks of the world wouldn't be what they were without coaching from Foley and others during the Edsell days.

I'm fine with recruiting lineman with offers from FCS schools. What I'm not ok with is keeping the position coach who has done a horrific job with getting these kids to be what they need to be.

It 1000% matters where players have offers from.

 

[FfldCntyFan]

Without question, the offensive line, once Edsall left is what went wrong with our football program. Until it gets fixed, we are kidding ourselves thinking we can consistently run an effective offense.

One thing I am confident in is that with all of our disadvantages, we can build a quality offensive line as we have done it. The leadership just needs to understand the formula here will require bringing in many kids with big frames who can be molded into contributors after a few years.

What we lost when RE left was a commitment to teaching fundamentals (where Foley excelled but GDL saw as a waste of time) and a commitment to strength training (Martin was moved out and P left everyone on an honor system).

Whether it's Diaco or his successor, this needs to be figured out. Bring in four kids every year. Redshirt them, teach them how to block, work them excessively in the weight room. If one of each four can become a multi-year starter and another couple capable of contributing we will be alright.

 

[whaler11]

Can we please stop talking about Edsall? Edsall and his staff had a special skill to do what they did.

If you think recruiting at this level is going to work? I can't wait to show you how 2019/2020 go.

 

[Stainmaster]

Can we please stop talking about Edsall? Edsall and his staff had a special skill to do what they did.

If you think recruiting at this level is going to work? I can't wait to show you how 2019/2020 go.

Do you see any difference between beating the MAC and the CAA?

 

[whaler11]

Do you see any difference between beating the MAC and the CAA?

Beating the MAC is better than beating the CAA - but we are in the AAC and neither is acceptable.

My lord. How low have y'alls standards gotten that competing with FCS teams is acceptable.

 

[CTMike]

Beating the MAC is better than beating the CAA - but we are in the AAC and neither is acceptable.

My lord. How low have y'alls standards gotten that competing with FCS teams is acceptable.

We used to recruit kids with offers from our peers- Rutgers, Pitt, Cuse, BC, etc.

Now our peers are freaking Tulane and ECU and we are routinely getting out-recruited. Houston and Temple... TEMPLE... are running circles around us.

And we are supposed to do a dance every time we beat Fordham out?!

It's over.

 

[FfldCntyFan]

I'm curious as to who it was we beat out when we landed Rugg, Samra and Schaffenaker.

 

[FartMan69]

Beating the MAC is better than beating the CAA - but we are in the AAC and neither is acceptable.

My lord. How low have y'alls standards gotten that competing with FCS teams is acceptable.

Dude you're not going to convince people on here that there's a problem with the talent we're recruiting. They think since Edsall did it (he recruited higher rated classes) that a coach who everyone admits can't tell the difference between his a sshole and his earhole could do it. What sense does that make? The results of our poor talent level and awful coaching are literally on display each week.
We have the worst coaching staff and the worst recruiting class each year in the AAC yet some fans expect our players to compete with teams with better coaching and better talent?
You can find a few hidden gems here and there for sure yet it's crystal clear that the other AAC schools find a ton more gems hidden or in plain sight.

 

[kemba]

Edsall showed a consistent ability to find diamonds in the rough and coach them up. So far Diaco hasn't shown an ability to do either.

Offers matter. Sure its possible to find under the radar players and turn them into good players. But its not like any 6'6 300 pounder and be coached into a FBS lineman.

 

[FartMan69]

We used to recruit kids with offers from our peers- Rutgers, Pitt, Cuse, BC, etc.

Now our peers are freaking Tulane and ECU and we are routinely getting out-recruited. Houston and Temple... TEMPLE... are running circles around us.

And we are supposed to do a dance every time we beat Fordham out?!

It's over.

We have such a great coaching staff we can just coach em up right?

 

[FartMan69]

Edsall showed a consistent ability to find diamonds in the rough and coach them up. So far Diaco hasn't shown an ability to do either.

Offers matter. Sure its possible to find under the radar players and turn them into good players. But its not like any 6'6 300 pounder and be coached into a FBS lineman.

Thats been on display here for quite a while, for some reason people still hold onto hope.

 

[huskymedic]

We used to recruit kids with offers from our peers- Rutgers, Pitt, Cuse, BC, etc.

We still do... they just commit there.

 

[Stainmaster]

Beating the MAC is better than beating the CAA - but we are in the AAC and neither is acceptable.

My lord. How low have y'alls standards gotten that competing with FCS teams is acceptable.

Do you not think I want to be competing with P5 regional schools for recruits? Do you think I'm doing backflips because beating BGSU and Toledo is my ideal? That's patently false.

MAC-quality kids are objectively better than CAA-quality kids. It is not ideal at all to be trotting them out on the field at this level, but it is considerably better than the alternative, which we have been witnessing on the OL the past few years.

It's a commentary on the state our recruiting is in, but the Tunstall kid has a better offer list than every OL on the roster not named Cam DeGeorge. He should be measurably better than most of the people in his unit. If you don't think that will lead quality of play to improve, I don't know what to tell you.

 

[Stainmaster]

Dude you're not going to convince people on here that there's a problem with the talent we're recruiting. They think since Edsall did it (he recruited higher rated classes) that a coach who everyone admits can't tell the difference between his a sshole and his earhole could do it. What sense does that make? The results of our poor talent level and awful coaching are literally on display each week.
We have the worst coaching staff and the worst recruiting class each year in the AAC yet some fans expect our players to compete with teams with better coaching and better talent?
You can find a few hidden gems here and there for sure yet it's crystal clear that the other AAC schools find a ton more gems hidden or in plain sight.

What do you want us to do, talk the kids who commit to the best program that offers them? Honest question, would you prefer they told our coaches "Thanks but not thanks, I'm not good enough for you"?

 

[whaler11]

Do you not think I want to be competing with P5 regional schools for recruits? Do you think I'm doing backflips because beating BGSU and Toledo is my ideal? That's patently false.

MAC-quality kids are objectively better than CAA-quality kids. It is not ideal at all to be trotting them out on the field at this level, but it is measurably better than the alternative, which we have been witnessing on the OL the past few years.

It's a commentary on the state our recruiting is in, but the Tunstall kid has a better offer list than every OL on the roster not named Cam DeGeorge. He should be measurably better than most of the people in his unit. If you don't think that will lead quality of play to improve, I don't know what to tell you.

I think you are more worried about which thread we are in than what I said.

 

[UConnJim]

I'm curious as to who it was we beat out when we landed Rugg, Samra and Schaffenaker.

Here you go:

Rugg: 3* Buffalo, UConn, Ohio, Temple, Villanova
Samra: 3* UConn only offer
Schaffenaker: 3* USF, Cincinnati, FAU, Marshall, SMU, South Carolina, Western Michigan

 

[zls44]

But here is the thing -- I don't like any more than you that his best offers are from the MAC. Why isn't complaining about that good enough for you?

That's fair. And I hope the kid is awesome. Being an OL, you can find a gem anywhere.

I just have no confidence that this staff can coach him up to that level. Even if the talent is there.

 

[FfldCntyFan]

I'm not saying this kid will become a star (or even that our current staff is capable of developing any linemen into stars), nor am I saying that this kid can't become a quality player at this level (which many seem to believe is a foregone conclusion).

I am saying however that this kid is not only something we absolutely need in this recruiting class, but that we need a few more like him. We need bodies, many bodies, balanced throughout all recruiting classes on our offensive line. We haven't had this in years and coincidentally we haven't had a line that qualified for even mediocrity in years. Anyone who believes a can't miss, immediate starter would consider coming here is kidding himself. We can land projects, that's pretty much it for now so we will need to learn how to land enough if them that some will hit and we need to learn how to develop them. It is that simple.

 

[FfldCntyFan]

Here you go:

Rugg: 3* Buffalo, UConn, Ohio, Temple, Villanova
Samra: 3* UConn only offer
Schaffenaker: 3* USF, Cincinnati, FAU, Marshall, SMU, South Carolina, Western Michigan

Interesting. I remember people on this board raving about the quality of recruits those three were (and remember in each case having guarded optimism, telling a few people that until we actually see them block someone on this level we can't claim they are better than kids who have).

 

[UConnDan97]

I'm curious as to who it was we beat out when we landed Rugg, Samra and Schaffenaker.

Samra didn't have many (Bucknell?) and he got the most burn of the three. Rugg had offers from Temple and a few others and had played in the Big 33 if I recall correctly, but didn't play much. Shafenacker had offers from South Carolina, USF, and Cincy but he almost never saw the field (if at all?). Funny how that worked out.

Here's my take; does it make me feel excited to see that we beat out Alabama and LSU for a kid? Absolutely! But if a player says "UCONN is the place I want to be", then I say welcome aboard and please prove to the world that you're ready to punch someone in #$king mouth...

 

[ktuck911]

And, btw, lets get a new OC in place before we go nuts over any recruits on that side of the ball that we bring in from this point on.

 

[FartMan69]

What do you want us to do, talk the kids who commit to the best program that offers them? Honest question, would you prefer they told our coaches "Thanks but not thanks, I'm not good enough for you"?

Where did i say we should talk the kids?
This has nothing to do personally with the kids committing here and 100% to do with people thinking this staff can "coach up" the talent we're bringing in. I want a staff who can recruit with the rest of our conference. You all complain our program isn't big time and can't compete on the field yet are completely fine with below mediocre recruiting year after year.

 

[CTMike]

Diamonds in the rough works out when you've proven you can polish them. Current staff hasn't done that. Then you just have... rough.

 

[FartMan69]

At this point yes I'm happy warm bodies are committing here just so that we have enough players to field a team. That's also the worst recruiting strategy of all time. There in lies the problem. Welcome aboard, we'll cheer you on and try not to be completely ruined by this clown show we call a coaching staff

 

[Stainmaster]

Diamonds in the rough works out when you've proven you can polish them. Current staff hasn't done that. Then you just have... rough.

At this point yes I'm happy warm bodies are committing here just so that we have enough players to field a team. That's also the worst recruiting strategy of all time. There in lies the problem. Welcome aboard, we'll cheer you on and try not to be completely ruined by this clown show we call a coaching staff

Do you not think this "warm body" is a noticeable step up from other "warm bodies"?

I get your complaints, but it seems pretty misplaced to get this worked up over a kid who has a better pedigree than all but one current OL on roster.