Edsall v1 built a nice program recruiting lightly recruited athletes, liberal use of the red shirt and exceptional development especially with S&C. His teams were athletic and physical, if lacking in overall talent at the offensive skilled positions.
We competed at a very high level with that approach and never recruited well according to the recruiting sites. Yet, we competed for Big East championships and took on programs like S. Carolina and ND, to say nothing of making it to the Fiesta. We fed a steady stream into the NFL.
I don’t think the recruiting sites tell all that much about recruiting for a program like UCONN, or for about 80 to 100 other programs to some degree. I’m looking forward to putting athletic and competitive teams back on the field. If the recruiting sites rate high, that’s great, but I believe what I see on the field a hell of a lot more than what those sites tell me. Putting the pads on and banging at this level is a whole different ball game than HS ball or running throw and catch pass routes.