Diaco / Recruiting ratings bump ?

[ucjoet]

We have all seen the situation were a UConn 2* recruit gets bumped to a 3* when BCU offers and then is bumped to a 4* once Florida offers ( just a random example). To some degree I actually understand ( but do not agree with) this philosophy . In that if a Florida offers, the kid must be good.

With that said does HCBD get the benefit in that if he offers someone , maybe that player does deserve to be bumped a star or two. He does have the reputation of being a good recruiter and he does come from Notre Dame.

I realize some of you will say that stars don't matter, but I disagree. First it adds enthusiasm to the fan base, which in turns increases people at games. Second good players want to play with other good players, so we in turn would get better recruiting classes. Also we need all the positive signs we can get if we want to get a B1G or ACC invite. I also realize we have ( in the past) signed many 2* recruits that have played as 4* or even 5* recruits.

Plus I guarantee that all of us would rather post / discuss a recruiting class with mostly 3* and 4* recruits, than our previous classes of mostly 2* sprinkled with a few 3* recruits. Looking for thoughts.

 

[weyuo]

Maybe if he brings in a stellar coaching staff(in the eyes of the college football world) and 4 stars start taking UConn serious with visits and camps.

 

[uconndogs]

Maybe it's just me, but I really enjoy recruits that can play the game and excel - Todman, Donald Brown, Lutrus, Moore, Butler, Branch............... I could give two craps about what some computer jockey says or how they rate a recruit. I just don't get it. We just put a slew of kids in the NFL the last several years and I think every one of them was a two star recruit. Stewart and Donahue where more highly rated than any of our LB recruits in the last several years. Neither of them is close to the talent of a Smallwood or a Moore. Just one example.

 

[huskymedic]

Plus I guarantee that all of us would rather post / discuss a recruiting class with mostly 3* and 4* recruits, than our previous classes of mostly 2* sprinkled with a few 3* recruits.

Why? Hasn't stopped us in previous years.

 

[sportsart]

The fact of the matter is this. Our recruit pool is such that Diaco and his staff better know how to coach players up. Edsall and his staff were very good at it.

 

[MattMang23]

#Uptick

What's good?

 

[Chin Diesel]

I don't give a rat's patooey over how many stars they have next to their name.

So long as the want to come to UConn and they have prototypical size for their position, I'm happy.

 

[noeynox]

Prototypical size? P, is that you?

 

[UConnDan97]

Prototypical size? P, is that you?

Chin also doesn't care for jaguars...

 

[Chin Diesel]

Another fail. PP didn't like jaguars. He must not have ever seen this video. Bites a cayman right through the skull. After doing a sneak attack of course.

Jaguars rock.

 

[Chin Diesel]

Prototypical size? P, is that you?

Is there something wrong with getting recruits with prototype size?

 

[noeynox]

P says Jaguars suck.

 

[coachcap]

What are these stars that you speak of? Seriously, All I care about is if the coaching staff recognizes that a kid can play football. Scott Lutrus is a perfect example. All I had to see was his 3 interceptions in the spring game for td's as a freshman to know that he was the real deal.

 

[tduconn]

I don't think the name BD cause a perceived (*'s) increase in a prospect. BD has been a very good recruiter for schools that have tradition and name recognition. Heck, I'll bet even I might have a degree of success asking a talented athlete if he would rather play for Notre Dame than Michigan or any other established P5 program.

I'm hoping, but do not expect, BD to be as successful selling UConn and the AAC over competition from recognized P5 programs.

Outside of star ranking, personally I place more emphasis on who else offered (not had interest) the athlete a scholarship. Was it UMass, Villanova, Temple, Buffalo, Marshall, Toledo, etc.........or was it ND, Michigan, Florida, Virginia Tech, USC, etc.

In other words, what other programs think a potential recruit can play at the highest level of BCS football?

Trying to sell a program as a fast rising up and coming team is a lot harder than selling a program as "been there, done that".

UConn has become a great academic institution!!! But that is a better selling point for someone who is looking for a career in a DNA lab as opposed to a NFL grid iron. Yes, UConn has been succesful in placing NFL prospects, but how many have become house hold name and outside of UConn fans, how many college football fans can name a UConn NFL athlete?

I don't know how Schiano kept Rutgers in the conversation with the more recognized P5 programs. I'm hoping BD can do the same. But the difference is now the AAC is considered mid-major with poor bowl affiliation. It will be harder than BD thinks.

During the BCS era, Schiano could always sell Rutgers the prospects a BE school is an automatic qualifier, may have the opportunity to play for NC, good bowls. Now UConn has to win the AAC, as well as be better than the champions of other mid major conferences, in order to even having the opportunity to sniff at a playoff game.

I love the hire! But am only cautiously optomistic.

 

[TouchdownHusky]

The fact of the matter is this. Our recruit pool is such that Diaco and his staff better know how to coach players up. Edsall and his staff were very good at it.

Actually, Diaco and his staff better rachet up the recruiting period. Coaching 'em up is one this, but I'll take Florida's (feel free to sub a bunch of programs instead of the Gators) year-in-and-year-out recruiting classes over UConn's.

 

[TouchdownHusky]

Outside of star ranking, personally I place more emphasis on who else offered (not had interest) the athlete a scholarship. Was it UMass, Villanova, Temple, Buffalo, Marshall, Toledo, etc.........or was it ND, Michigan, Florida, Virginia Tech, USC, etc.

In other words, what other programs think a potential recruit can play at the highest level of BCS football?

Exactly. When UConn can start getting it's share of these recruits, the success on the field will increase dramatically.

 

[Colt house75]

Eneough of this coaching up stuff......let's go with the Oklahoma State "Hostess Program...hiring interviews to be conducted by the BY.
(Sure Suzie would really like that one). Call them the Vampirettes.....certainly would be no negative energy.

 

[MattMang23]

We should just require all our recruits to be interviewed by Emily Noonan repeatedly for a 36 hour period.

 

[uconndogs]

I don't know how Schiano kept Rutgers in the conversation with the more recognized P5 programs. I'm hoping BD can do the same. But the difference is now the AAC is considered mid-major with poor bowl affiliation. It will be harder than BD thinks.

During the BCS era, Schiano could always sell Rutgers the prospects a BE school is an automatic qualifier, may have the opportunity to play for NC, good bowls. Now UConn has to win the AAC, as well as be better than the champions of other mid major conferences, in order to even having the opportunity to sniff at a playoff game.

We just kicked the out of Rutgers in one of our worst seasons. So exactly how talented were all those highly rated recruits?

 

[Husky25]

There are a lot of things that Coach Diaco can pimp in terms of selling a recruit on UConn.

1) There is no more Automatic Qualifiers. The BCS of the last decade and a half is dead and over with. That will actually help UConn
2) By and large, UConn will not be competing for recruits with the Alabamas, Floridas, VTechs of the World. However, UConn is on recruiting par with (and probably has more to offer a recruit than) say, BC, Rutgers, Indiana, Maryland, Wake, and 'Cuse. Those teams have to turn in a season for the ages to make the New Year's Six. UConn may have an easier road.
3) The Bowl lineup is weaker than the Old Big East, but it has potential. Truth is outside the New Year's Six (in fact outside the Nation Semi-Finals), all the bowls are still just exhibitions to reward teams - some for extreme mediocrity - and give fans one last game in a destination.

 

[Nostical]

More stars would fit the narrative. The more BD makes the media rounds and is liked (Jim Rome), the more they'll want to build him up. Watch how now they'll be saying he's pulled in a 4 star (would have previously been a 3). What they're really saying is " See, I told you this new UConn Coach was a good one". It's called self-validation.

 

[IMind]

We don't have enough subscribers to Scout/Rivals/247 to get the recruiting bump.

 

[06029]

There are a lot of things that Coach Diaco can pimp in terms of selling a recruit on UConn.
2) By and large, UConn will not be competing for recruits with the Alabamas, Floridas, VTechs of the World. However, UConn is on recruiting par with (and probably has more to offer a recruit than) say, BC, Rutgers, Indiana, Maryland, Wake, and 'Cuse. Those teams have to turn in a season for the ages to make the New Year's Six. UConn may have an easier road.
3) The Bowl lineup is weaker than the Old Big East, but it has potential. Truth is outside the New Year's Six (in fact outside the Nation Semi-Finals), all the bowls are still just exhibitions to reward teams - some for extreme mediocrity - and give fans one last game in a destination.

Winning cures all ills but...

Besides better on campus facilities than some of your list, the six teams you list have a chance to play on an annual basis at least one and possibly 2 top 10 teams. That is every single year. And if they go undefeated in their league (it could happen) they get into the playoff or a really good bowl. Uconn's best chance to play a highly ranked tean is for an undefeated AAC team to be ranked. If everyone has 1 loss, no one from the AAC sniffs the top 10. Uconn also needs to do whatever it can to beef up the OOC. That includes anyone, anywhere, 1 and done if it has to be. And the bowls having potential is really putting lipstick on the proverbial pig. Those are significant and real advantages for teams in the P5.

Uconn needs to sell Uconn. Not the league, not the schedule and not the bowls. They need to sell the history of the school and its commitment to success. It needs to sell energy from the coaching staff. It needs to sell early playing time. And when it is defined and shown on the field, Uconn needs to sell style of play.

As to the opening post, stars by and large are based on offer lists more than anything else. I don't think any BC recruit has gotten a bump in the last 4/5 years as they have been out-recruiting Bryant and Delaware more than any BCS program. Diaco has not signed one recruit as of today. Who he was able to convince to go to ND is no evidence of anything. As much as I despise all that is ND, it is an easier sell than almost any other FB school.

 

[coachcap]

We should just require all our recruits to be interviewed by Emily Noonan repeatedly for a 36 hour period.

You know that you just opened the door & invited John into this conversation?

 

[MattMang23]

You know that you just opened the door & invited John into this conversation?

It's the holiday season. Even the crazies are tolerated this time of year.

 

[Husky25]

Besides better on campus facilities than some of your list, the six teams you list have a chance to play on an annual basis at least one and possibly 2 top 10 teams. That is every single year. And if they go undefeated in their league (it could happen) they get into the playoff or a really good bowl. Uconn's best chance to play a highly ranked tean is for an undefeated AAC team to be ranked. If everyone has 1 loss, no one from the AAC sniffs the top 10. Uconn also needs to do whatever it can to beef up the OOC. That includes anyone, anywhere, 1 and done if it has to be. And the bowls having potential is really putting lipstick on the proverbial pig. Those are significant and real advantages for teams in the P5.

I'm taking more of a Glass is half full approach to UConn's situation.

As currently constituted, College Football haves will always be haves and the have-nots will always be have-nots. On the field, the lower half of the P5 conferences are on par with the upper echelon of the G5. Those 6 teams are in conferences that have a more direct path to the CFP, but those schools individually do not have a significant chance of taking advantage of that path. The CFP will be played by teams with 0 or 1 loss or that have generated buzz throughout the country (i.e. aTm beating 'Bama and Johnny Manziel winning the Heisman). The last time that happened for this group in the aggregate was 2007-08, and BC got stomped in the ACC title game (then lost their bowl game). This is a part of the sales pitch to recruits that I'd envision Coach Diaco have in his arsenal.

Though only 1 or 2 (on the outside) spots in the New Years Day Six are open to the G5 conference teams, I feel that the top 1/4 of teams in the G5 conferences (i.e. NIU, Boise, Cincinnati, etc.) have just as good if not better shot than teams in the lower half of the P5 conferences. Disregarding money, what good is being a tackling dummy every week? Exposure? FSU at Wake was on national TV. FSU exposed Wake for being a terrible football program. Because Wake is a private school and is not willing to devote the necessary resources in today's CFB environment, it will never achieve FSU's level. The trick, of course, for UConn is to develop into one of those upper echelon G5 programs. Secondary bowls are what they are. Disregarding money again, it looks like the AAC is held in slightly higher regard than the other G5 conferences by virtual of their past. The AAC will have a spot most years for every bowl eligible team until 2019. Nine bowl eligible programs did not get an invite this year and two had a better than .500 record (WVU: 8-4, Toledo: 7-5). Five came from the Sun Belt Conference, 1 from MWC, 1 from C-USA and 2 from the MAC.