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Maryland recruiting is on fire

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UConnDan97

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Typical Edsall haters. All the blame and none of the credit.

I sure wish I had the inside info about who Randy hires and who the AD hires. Care to share how you know MD's hiring practices?

+1. It's something that I will just never understand. There are so many Boneyarders who speak in the superlative. Someone or something is either awesome or it's horrible. Someone or something is either elite or it is "C-USA 2.o". There is never any shade of gray on this board, and I have no idea why. It's a theme that seems to prevail on almost any thread in almost every forum in the Boneyard.

Most UConn-educated people (and in general, most UConn fans even if they weren't UConn educated) should be smart enough to understand that the truth is somewhere in between black and white.
 

pj

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Typical Edsall haters. All the blame and none of the credit.

I sure wish I had the inside info about who Randy hires and who the AD hires. Care to share how you know MD's hiring practices?

We can only speculate about the hiring process, but Maryland fans were full of speculation that the AD forced Locksley on Edsall. Both of Edsall's coordinators got fired after year 1. Locksley in a few years at New Mexico not only went 2-26, he was accused of sexual harassment, punched an assistant coach, and a recruit was caught driving drunk in Locksley's son's car. (http://www.testudotimes.com/2011/12...land-terrapins-football-offensive-coordinator) Maryland fans supposed that that wouldn't be Edsall's first choice for a coordinator. There were plenty of stories late last season that the AD was intervening with the football program to make it more successful.

Personally, I like Edsall and I give him plenty of credit. This is a team game and for the moment anyway, his recruiting team is working well. Even if he didn't choose the team, he's the team leader and deserves credit.

Personally, also, I don't "blame" anyone for being a poor recruiter, the same way I wouldn't blame anyone for being a poor used car salesman. We're not all cut out for selling, and the best used car salesman isn't the best person. But if selling is part of your mission, you'd better find an assistant who can do it. Edsall could have used a Locksley to help him recruit at UConn. Good for him that he has one now, whether he wanted it or not.
 
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This isn't that hard. Simply put, Edsall didn't land those guys. Locksley did.

Your analogy is just bizarre. Recruiting isn't at all similar to game planning when it comes to staff involvement. And people still do blame the coordinators a lot for failures.

It was a very good hire. If Edsall hired Locksley, then good for him, but something tells me that Edsall didn't decide to hire him.

My analogy is bizzare? Um, Okay.

Just so we can be clear, do you give Edsall any credit for the recruits this year? And no, you can't use the "well if he hired Locksley, then yes"
 
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My analogy is bizzare? Um, Okay.

Just so we can be clear, do you give Edsall any credit for the recruits this year? And no, you can't use the "well if he hired Locksley, then yes"

So you're going to tell me how I can and cannot respond? How nice of you.

And your analogy is very bizarre. Recruiting isn't the same as the on field stuff.
 
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+1. It's something that I will just never understand. There are so many Boneyarders who speak in the superlative. Someone or something is either awesome or it's horrible. Someone or something is either elite or it is "C-USA 2.o". There is never any shade of gray on this board, and I have no idea why. It's a theme that seems to prevail on almost any thread in almost every forum in the Boneyard.

Most UConn-educated people (and in general, most UConn fans even if they weren't UConn educated) should be smart enough to understand that the truth is somewhere in between black and white.

I'm not trying to bash anybody or go over the top. I'm going to call them like I see them. And from what I can see, Maryland's recruiting success has been mostly due to Locksley. Not completely due to him, but mostly. That's just my opinion.
 
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Please Coach P...put UConn on the map so that us REAL UConn fans can have a UConn Husky forum devoid of people still on their knees for a quitter.
 

UConnDan97

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Please Coach P...put UConn on the map so that us REAL UConn fans can have a UConn Husky forum devoid of people still on their knees for a quitter.

Let me ask you a question; when you think of your favorite all-time football players at UConn, who are they? The only reason I'm asking is because I'm guessing you aren't going to answer Tory Taylor, Wilbur Gilliard, or Shane Stafford, right?
 

UConnDan97

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Look, here's what I think I can say somewhat definitively when it comes to "The Coach Who Shall Not Be Named" (I don't want to be accused of getting on my knees); I think that he certainly demonstrated the ability to recruit the Maryland / Eastern-Central Pennsylvania area, even when he was here. It doesn't shock me that he is getting highly-rated in-state or DC kids to go to State U. He recruited numerous players from those areas for us for almost a decade. If I can be so bold as to credit the guy from Glen Rock, PA, with the recruitment of players in the aforementioned areas, here are some notables that he got to come to UConn (either good UConn careers or somewhat highly rated recruits):

2002
Terry Caulley (Lusby, MD)
MJ Estep (Mechanicsville, MD)
Ernest Cole (Hyattsville, MD)
2003
Afa Anoai (Bethlehem, PA)
Brandon Dillon (Pittston, PA)
Danny Lansanah (Harrisburg, PA)
Gary Mack (Kingston, PA)
Harold Stanback (Forestville, MD)
2004
Will Beatty (York, PA)
2005
Joe Akers (Parkton, MD)
2006
Robert McClain (Lusby, MD)
Alex Polito (Reading, PA)
Gary Bardzak (Pottsville, PA)
Robbie Frey (Lehighton, PA)
Mike Ryan (Tamaqua, PA)
2007
Jerome Junior (Baltimore, MD)
Adam Masters (Bethesda, MD)
2009
Chad Christen (Lewisberry, PA)
2010
Jonathan Louis (Kingston, PA)

Notice that I am not going to assign him credit for western PA recruits, although....whatever (Endres, Kanuch, Ty-meer Brown, etc.). I'm also not going to assign him anyone in Jersey, even if it was southern Jersey. But let's give credit where I think credit is due. I think the guy understands that area, and I don't think anyone should be shocked that he is getting those kids. Let's hope PP grabs the bigger and better recruits, and let's hope that PP kicks his this year and puts his job in jeopardy. How's that for "getting on your knees"...
 

Waquoit

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Typical Edsall haters. All the blame and none of the credit.

As opposed to when HCRE was at UConn where he got all of the credit and none of the blame.
 
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Wait! So now "stars" matter with Randy? What happened to his "under-the-radar" recruiting? What next - a uniform buffet?
 
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Look, here's what I think I can say somewhat definitively when it comes to "The Coach Who Shall Not Be Named" (I don't want to be accused of getting on my knees); I think that he certainly demonstrated the ability to recruit the Maryland / Eastern-Central Pennsylvania area, even when he was here. It doesn't shock me that he is getting highly-rated in-state or DC kids to go to State U. He recruited numerous players from those areas for us for almost a decade. If I can be so bold as to credit the guy from Glen Rock, PA, with the recruitment of players in the aforementioned areas, here are some notables that he got to come to UConn (either good UConn careers or somewhat highly rated recruits):

2002
Terry Caulley (Lusby, MD)
MJ Estep (Mechanicsville, MD)
Ernest Cole (Hyattsville, MD)
2003
Afa Anoai (Bethlehem, PA)
Brandon Dillon (Pittston, PA)
Danny Lansanah (Harrisburg, PA)
Gary Mack (Kingston, PA)
Harold Stanback (Forestville, MD)
2004
Will Beatty (York, PA)
2005
Joe Akers (Parkton, MD)
2006
Robert McClain (Lusby, MD)
Alex Polito (Reading, PA)
Gary Bardzak (Pottsville, PA)
Robbie Frey (Lehighton, PA)
Mike Ryan (Tamaqua, PA)
2007
Jerome Junior (Baltimore, MD)
Adam Masters (Bethesda, MD)
2009
Chad Christen (Lewisberry, PA)
2010
Jonathan Louis (Kingston, PA)

Notice that I am not going to assign him credit for western PA recruits, although....whatever (Endres, Kanuch, Ty-meer Brown, etc.). I'm also not going to assign him anyone in Jersey, even if it was southern Jersey. But let's give credit where I think credit is due. I think the guy understands that area, and I don't think anyone should be shocked that he is getting those kids. Let's hope PP grabs the bigger and better recruits, and let's hope that PP kicks his this year and puts his job in jeopardy. How's that for "getting on your knees"...

That's all well and good, but none of those guys were as highly recruited as these guys that Maryland has landed. Not even close.

Stefon Diggs had offers from everybody. He's a top 10 recruit nationally.

Derwin Gray is a top 100 recruit who had offers from Florida, FSU, Penn State, Auburn, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Clemson, Nebraska, and Tennessee, among others.

Yannick Ngakoue had offers from Arkansas, Auburn, Clemson, Florida, Florida State, Miami, Michigan, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Penn State, and Tennessee, among others. He's a top 250 recruit.

Wes Brown had offers from Florida State, Michigan, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Penn State, and Tennessee, among others. He was a top 250 recruit as well.

The guys you named didn't have offers that were even close to those. A majority of those guys you named were two stars. Jimmy Bennett was probably the most highly recruited guy that Edsall ever landed at UConn as a 5.7 3 star. He had a few very good offers.

When Locksley was at Illinois, they signed 19 four stars and 3 5 stars in the four years that he was there. Yes, Ron Zook has shown to be a good recruiter as well, but Locksley is known as being one of the best in the game.

In one year with Edsall, they didn't land a single four star or higher from that area and then in the six months that Locksley is on the job they have landed 4 of them. And that is coming off of a disastrous 2-10 season with a litany of bad press.
 
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1. At Uconn it was fhcRE's way or else.
2. At Maryland, seems like AD has taken over some authority, especially with high year/$ contract to Edsall (where is he going to go as opposed to at Uconn looking for more money elsewhere and AD had to constantly weigh "got to keep fhcRE happy"). AD hired what fhcRE needed for recruiting, inspite of what fhcRE thinks/thought about the hire. Best for fhcRE (as far as on the field performance) that AD did this, not something fhcRE would have done on his own.

For proof. #1 would like to hear someone's challenge to this.
#2. Quacks, has feathers, waddles when it walks, no teeth; maybe its a ?????
 
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The real question is whether there will be a culture clash when "my way or the highway Randy" is coaching the players attracted by Locksley's recruiting style.
 

UConnDan97

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That's all well and good, but none of those guys were as highly recruited as these guys that Maryland has landed. Not even close.

Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in. "Not even close," huh? Here is the info (directly from Rivals):

Harold Stanback 3stars
Afa Anoai 3 stars, #49 DT in country
Brandon Dillon 3stars
Joe Akers 3stars, 5.5RR, #12 center in country
*Greg Robinson 3stars, 5.5RR
*CJ Marck 3 stars, 5.5RR
Gary Bardzak 3stars, 5.5RR
Jonathan Louis 3stars, 5.5RR

* = not included in my original list, also from PA.

And here is their current list of recruits at Maryland for 2013:

http://rivals.yahoo.com/connecticut/football/recruiting/commitments/2013/maryland-5\

You'll notice a couple of 2star recruits, and a couple more 3star recruits at the 5.5/5.6 RR level. He has kept two 4star recruits home, which was a real coup for him, but let's not make it out like he has changed his recruiting from night to day. Remember that these kids are staying home, and need I remind you of the Jamie Dixon / Jarell Miller / Dwayne Difton's of the world? It's not like we didn't have a couple of these types of high-star recruits. Let's see if his class ends up with more of the 2 star variety than the 4 star variety. Otherwise, it is very similar to what he got us.

This is the thing that I'm most excited about, to be honest with you!!

http://rivals.yahoo.com/connecticut/football/recruiting/commitments/2013/connecticut-202

:cool:
 

UConnDan97

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Jimmy Bennett was probably the most highly recruited guy that Edsall ever landed at UConn as a 5.7 3 star. He had a few very good offers.

To continue on this point, remember that I only included people from eastern/central PA and Maryland, in order to give Edsall full credit for his recruiting regional prowess. Here is a list of people that we recruited under him that were 5.7RR or above (we had a bunch of 5.5/5.6 3-star recruits by the way):

Brad Kanuch 3star, 5.7
Jarrell Miller 4star, 5.8
Jamie Nixon 3star, 5.7
Jimmy Bennett 3star, 5.7
Dwayne Gratz 3star, 5.7
Eric Kuraczea 3star, 5.7
Dwayne Difton 4star, 5.8

So this isn't something that didn't happen at UConn. We just don't remember it because we don't think of the Jarrell Millers and Dwayne Diftons of the world changing our fortunes, right?
 

UConnDan97

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Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in. "Not even close," huh? Here is the info (directly from Rivals):

Harold Stanback 3stars
Afa Anoai 3 stars, #49 DT in country
Brandon Dillon 3stars
Joe Akers 3stars, 5.5RR, #12 center in country
*Greg Robinson 3stars, 5.5RR
*CJ Marck 3 stars, 5.5RR
Gary Bardzak 3stars, 5.5RR
Jonathan Louis 3stars, 5.5RR

* = not included in my original list, also from PA.

And here is their current list of recruits at Maryland for 2013:

http://rivals.yahoo.com/connecticut/football/recruiting/commitments/2013/maryland-5\

You'll notice a couple of 2star recruits, and a couple more 3star recruits at the 5.5/5.6 RR level. He has kept two 4star recruits home, which was a real coup for him, but let's not make it out like he has changed his recruiting from night to day. Remember that these kids are staying home, and need I remind you of the Jamie Dixon / Jarell Miller / Dwayne Difton's of the world? It's not like we didn't have a couple of these types of high-star recruits. Let's see if his class ends up with more of the 2 star variety than the 4 star variety. Otherwise, it is very similar to what he got us.

This is the thing that I'm most excited about, to be honest with you!!

http://rivals.yahoo.com/connecticut/football/recruiting/commitments/2013/connecticut-202

:cool:

What? You're either completely missing my point or you have no idea about how recruiting works. My point is that Maryland is landing much higher ranked (and recruited) kids with Locksley than without him, and they've landed much higher ranked kids than Edsall at UConn.

There are over 1,000 3 stars per year in the Rivals database. There are less than 200 5.8 4 stars and less than 100 5.9 4 stars. 6.1's are 5 stars. There is a huge difference between being a 5.5 3 star and a 5.8 4 star.

And all 4 of those guys were/are in the top 250. None of those UConn guys were really close to being in the top 250.

Also, did you just ignore my part about how highly recruited those guys were? They were coveted by almost every single major program in the country.

It's very interesting how Edsall went from being a mediocre recruiter at UConn who almost never landed a highly ranked/recruited guy and a mediocre recruiter in his first year at Maryland to all of a sudden landing multiple highly regards kids.
 
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