Wayne Morgan Announcement

[DDaileyuconn]

He is schedule 2 announce 2morrow at 4:00 pm, hope the the kid decide Uconn is the place 4 him, if not best of luck

 

[Jimmy Serrano]

Not happening.

 

[PolisHusky]

I hear he is taking his talents to south beach to play with D.Wade and Chris Bosh. Cleveland, Syracuse, and Storrs are crushed by the announcement and burning Wayne Morgan memorabilia has begun.

 

[Dann]

he picked cuse.

 

[BlueMAB]

I hear he is taking his talents to south beach to play with D.Wade and Chris Bosh. Cleveland, Syracuse, and Storrs are crushed by the announcement and burning Wayne Morgan memorabilia has begun.

 

[DDaileyuconn]

Post from courant, he going with Orange, but read the rest

CBS Analyst Dismisses UConn's Low Marks From Internet Recruiting Sites


Paul Pasqualoni (Stephen Dunn)
Related
UConn Football's Recruiting Class ... So Far

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Maps
Storrs, CT, USA

By DESMOND CONNER, dconner@courant.com
The Hartford Courant
6:24 p.m. EST, January 31, 2012

The Huskies might have a different coach with Paul Pasqualoni, but Internet reviews of his recruiting class, , which have been unkind to UConn in the past, aren't any better in 2012.

Rivals.com has UConn ranked dead last in the Big East, giving the recruiting class 2.43 stars. Scout.com has a similar average, but has UConn's class ranked 64th in the nation.

That doesn't sound too bad considering there are 120 Football Bowl Subdivision programs. But only seven BCS programs were ranked lower than the Huskies: Illinois, Duke, Boston College, South Florida, Wake Forest and Iowa State.

The Huskies' 23-member class, excluding transfers, will be unveiled on Wednesday, National Letter of Intent Signing Day.

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Pasqualoni will hold a 3:30 p.m. press conference at Rentschler Field to discuss the class. Shortly afterward he is expected to join a sellout crowd of 1,000 in the club area of the stadium for a meet and greet with fans.

CBSsports recruiting analyst Tom Lemming has been around longer than the Internet. He is one of the most respected analysts in the game and had a cameo in the movie "Blind Side."

He isn't nearly as down on the Huskies' class as Scout and Rivals. In fact, he's not down on it at all.

"Overall, I think it's a very good class, very athletic," Lemming said by phone. "It's not nearly as bad as people say. It's not an elite class, but UConn has never had an elite class. This class fits perfectly into their system. It's a very athletic class and I like it. It's sort of the way Iowa and North Carolina State recruits. They do a tremendous job of valuing the ballplayer whose high ceiling might be a little under the radar but who they can develop into their system. And it looks like these are the kinds of guys UConn can do that with."

Lemming's breakdown: "I thought the two quarterbacks were a nice pickup. [JC transfer] Chandler Whitmer is an All-American and Casey Cochran is one of the best quarterbacks in this class from the Northeast, so they got their help at quarterback.

"They got some really good linebackers. [Jason] Sylva from Massachusetts is one of the top five players in that state. He's a thumper. He looks really good as does Jon Hicks from Pennsylvania. I know people don't have him ranked very high but I've seen him play. He can play inside linebacker for UConn. He makes plays and that's really what matters. Elijah Norris out of D.C. is one of the better players from D.C. He's a three-, four-star player, probably closer to four but in reality most people have him as a one- or two-star because they don't know him."

They don't?

"When you see a lot of these guys and [recruiting sites] don't know who these guys are, they immediately lower them unless they sign with Florida State or Notre Dame — then they give them four stars."

One does wonder how a player like Norris, who had scholarship offers from Michigan State, Maryland and Kansas State, is a one-star or a two-star player.

UConn this year has gone up against top BCS programs and won battles it hadn't won before Pasqualoni's arrival.

The Huskies lost some battles, too. New Jersey offensive lineman Ryan Brodie chose Rutgers and Brooklyn, N.Y., defensive back Wayne Morgan picked Syracuse over the Huskies.

Still, this was Pasqualoni's first shot as the Huskies coach. Last year he tried to retain recruits after Randy Edsall left to coach at Maryland.

So far, the Huskies don't have any four- or five-star recruits.

"The fans are into it, the rankings and stars, and they do believe it," Lemming said. "A lot of it mainly is because they don't have any other source, so they look at this or that and they figure whatever they print must be true.

"What I notice is that Internet sites have to make money and they make that money with the big programs, the Notre Dames, Florida States, Texases. So if a guy goes there, you never see those schools sign a two-star player do you? Well, you do because they see a lot of guys transfer that actually can't play at all.

"I'm just speculating because I'm not an Internet guy. But sometimes I'll see a guy is a one-star and all of a sudden the day before signing day he signs with a big school that makes a lot of money for the Internet site and all of a sudden he's a four-star player. Without doing anything in one day he changes stars. But if the same players signs with a UConn or a Temple or some of the Eastern schools he stays a one-star. That's where the politics come in."

Lemming admits his evaluations aren't always accurate, either, but he sure puts in a lot of work.

"I think any evaluation you take with a grain of salt, including mine," he said. "I'm out there and I see the players. I watch them and I see them in person, sit down and talk with them in their own hometown and watch them on film but no one is exactly right. That's why it should be taken as fun, not as gospel, and I think sometimes this is what the fans do: 'He's rated a four-star he must be a four-star' or 'He's a one-star he must be a one-star' and we're proven wrong time after time after time but still, the fans follow it and some take it as gospel, when it just isn't."

 

[sportsart]

It says PP is set to announce a class of 23. Rivals has 20 plus 3 early arrivals.

So are we done or should that 23 be "so far"?

 

[Dann]

with omaine 2night thats 26, 4 of which are jan kids. not sure whats up with the #'s

 

[EdgewoodNHV]

I don't understand why the delay on the announcement if everybody already knows he's going to Syracuse. Seems a little... tacky? Or maybe I'm just bitter. Hard to tell the difference or care.

 

[Jimdish255]

When he starts talking about 4 and 5 stars I get an empty feeling. You can't convince anyone that these types of players aren't important to the success of programs. They are evaluated and sought after. Why? Because at the end of the year programs without these types of players are few in the top 20 and rare in the top 10. You can win games, but not consistently against quality opponents.

I think we're still on an upward trend despite huge changes and big holes on offense last year. But translating success on the field to recruiting is important because "fun" isn't the reason time and resources are spent traveling, researching and kissing derrieres.

 

[DDaileyuconn]

per Maxprep
The first domino has fallen.

Wayne Morgan became the first uncommitted recruit to decide on National Signing Day, choosing Syracuse over UConn and Penn State, according to MSG Varsity.

The 5-foot-10, 185-pound Morgan, well-known for his tremendous speed and quickness, ranks at the nation's No. 10 cornerback.

"I've been talking to the coaches for about two and a half, three years, so I was already comfortable with the coaches," Morgan told MSG Varsity's Dylan Butler. "I knew most of the players already. I liked the campus, everything about it."

He joins a recruiting class that features Florida defensive back Julian Whigham.

 

[UCweCONN]

When he starts talking about 4 and 5 stars I get an empty feeling. You can't convince anyone that these types of players aren't important to the success of programs. They are evaluated and sought after. Why? Because at the end of the year programs without these types of players are few in the top 20 and rare in the top 10. You can win games, but not consistently against quality opponents.

I think we're still on an upward trend despite huge changes and big holes on offense last year. But translating success on the field to recruiting is important because "fun" isn't the reason time and resources are spent traveling, researching and kissing derrieres.

You know when you see the difference between 4 and 5 stars compared to 2 and 3 stars? When you watch UCONN vs Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl. Speed kills. You can't compete with teams like that by getting an occasional diamond in the rough.

 

[businesslawyer]

You know when you see the difference between 4 and 5 stars compared to 2 and 3 stars? When you watch UCONN vs Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl. Speed kills. You can't compete with teams like that by getting an occasional diamond in the rough.

That is one way to look at the Fiesta Bowl. On the other hand, I saw the OU bench riding their kickoff coverage team because three DBs couldn't catch the white guy running the kick off back for a TD. You could just as easily look at the Fiesta Bowl and determine that only the skills in the passing attack (throwing and catching, not running) separated the two teams.

 

[TouchdownHusky]

he picked cuse.

Thought this kid was a football player? Must be a mistake, he picked Syracuse.

 

[zls44]

That is one way to look at the Fiesta Bowl. On the other hand, I saw the OU bench riding their kickoff coverage team because three DBs couldn't catch the white guy running the kick off back for a TD. You could just as easily look at the Fiesta Bowl and determine that only the skills in the passing attack (throwing and catching, not running) separated the two teams.

Yeah, you could look at the returns.

Or, you know, the other 80% of plays in the game.

 

[businesslawyer]

Yeah, you could look at the returns.

Or, you know, the other 80% of plays in the game.

Sheesh. I sat there and did not think the difference between the two teams was team speed. I thought the difference was the skill and sophistication of one team's passing attack versus the skill and sophistication of another team's passing attack. I did not see a huge difference in athleticism

 

[Dann]

Thought this kid was a football player? Must be a mistake, he picked Syracuse.

he plays lax

 

[Waquoit]

he plays lax

Well screw him. I want guys that play intense.

 

[TouchdownHusky]

Sheesh. I sat there and did not think the difference between the two teams was team speed. I thought the difference was the skill and sophistication of one team's passing attack versus the skill and sophistication of another team's passing attack. I did not see a huge difference in athleticism

Must be the new year, but I find myself in agreement - again. You are correct (it never gets old, does it?). The whole thing about the passing attack and all. Plus, that dumb a-- call by Randy with 4th and goal and about a foot to go. Have the QB fall forward Randy. Never mind a play that took 27 seconds to develop. They could have run that play 10 times and gotten stuffed on each occasions. Bad, bad, bad call Randy - you are dismissed.

 

[businesslawyer]

Must be the new year, but I find myself in agreement - again. You are correct (it never gets old, does it?). The whole thing about the passing attack and all. Plus, that dumb a-- call by Randy with 4th and goal and about a foot to go. Have the QB fall forward Randy. Never mind a play that took 27 seconds to develop. They could have run that play 10 times and gotten stuffed on each occasions. Bad, bad, bad call Randy - you are dismissed.

Wow, You realize, don't you, that the call you're complaining about occurred well after the result had been determined?

If you want to second guess a call that mattered, be critical that we punted on 4th and 4 from just across midfield down 14 with about 10 minutes to go. That is the call that could have actually mattered.

 

[TouchdownHusky]

Wow, You realize, don't you, that the call you're complaining about occurred well after the result had been determined?

If you want to second guess a call that mattered, be critical that we punted on 4th and 4 from just across midfield down 14 with about 10 minutes to go. That is the call that could have actually mattered.

Thinking that the call occurred at a point when 7 points (for the benefit of most of us who really haven't seen a lot of UConn TDs in recent memory) would have gotten UConn back into the game. That was a big play, not an incidental play. I remember being furious at Randy for such a dumb a-- call. QB sneak or give to your best back on a quick hitter (JT was not in the game at that point) or even, give it to Frey but a quick hitter straight ahead. If that was the best that Randy could come up with, it would have been wiser to fake play action and throw. Might have caught OU in stark disbelief - "who knew UConn could throw".