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I thought A&M was far superior to SCAR in recruiting?
Posted on 8/14/14 at 12:19 pm
Posted on 8/14/14 at 12:19 pm
Nah ... I didn't really think that.
I was just teasing because that is what A&M fans like to push around here.
The truth is:
The ranking of recruiting classes goes back decades, but interest took a huge leap forward in 2002 when online rankings began being posted by sites like Rivals.com and Scout.com. Here’s a look at how each SEC school ranked when all 13 years since 2002 were averaged, and no … Alabama didn’t run away with this. In fact, the Crimson Tide didn’t even finish first … or second, thanks to probation and postseason bans hurting their recruiting classes in the early 2000s. Today we take a look at No. 14 Vanderbilt.
Here’s a 14-day look at each SEC school and how it has performed in recruiting since the digital age of ranking of all the schools began in 2002. Fans may be surprised by which teams came out on top when all 13 years were averaged.
No. 7 South Carolina
AVERAGE NATIONAL FINISH: 17th.
NATIONAL RECRUITING TITLES: None.
SEC RECRUITING TITLES: None.
BEST NATIONAL FINISH: 6th (in 2007).
WORST NATIONAL FINISH: 24th (in 2006).
TOP 10s: Twice (2003, 2007).
TOP 25s: All 13 classes have been in the top 25.
THE SKINNY: South Carolina has been consistently good at recruiting, and this year’s class (2015 group) may end up being the best of them. The Gamecocks are currently rated No. 4 in the nation in the 247Sports.com composite ranking, and the class is nearly complete with a national best 28 commitments. Recruiting has certainly been a strong point at South Carolina in the past decade plus, whether it was under Lou Holtz or Steve Spurrier. Just the fact that South Carolina has been that consistently good and is still only No. 7 in the SEC tells fans how competitive this league is.
Editor’s note: For this particular series, Saturday Down South’s references to recruiting rankings are to 247Sports.com’s industry composite team ranking from 2010-14, and Rivals.com’s team rankings from 2002-09 before 247Sports did the composite ranking.
YEAR NAT. RANK
2014 16
2013 20
2012 17
2011 17
2010(*) 20
2009 12
2008 22
2007 6
2006 24
2005 23
2004 24
2003 8
2002 11
AVG 16.9
THE COUNTDOWN:
LINK
No. 8 Texas A&M
AVERAGE NATIONAL FINISH: 19th.
NATIONAL RECRUITING TITLES: None.
SEC RECRUITING TITLES: None.
BEST NATIONAL FINISH: 5th (2014).
WORST NATIONAL FINISH: 43rd (2007).
TOP 10s: Four (2003, 2005, 2013, 2014).
TOP 25s: 10.
THE SKINNY: Texas A&M is a bit of an oddity in this comparison, of course, because it has only been in the SEC a few years and since they have been in the conference, the Aggies have actually pushed for national recruiting titles. So the pre-SEC, pre-Sumlin days weren’t that great and the Texas Longhorns were dominating the Aggies in recruiting, but since that transition–the Aggies have been just about as good as anybody in the country, minus maybe Alabama. This doesn’t appear to be ending any time soon, as the Aggies currently have the nation’s No. 2 class for 2015 and also have secured the No. 1 overall prospect even for 2016.
SCAR and A&M are both currently ranked in the consensus Top 5 with their 2015 recruiting classes.
So how is it that little ole SCAR has been able to out-recruit A&M in that Texas-sized state where the DFW population alone is almost twice that of the entire state of SC?
I was just teasing because that is what A&M fans like to push around here.
The truth is:
The ranking of recruiting classes goes back decades, but interest took a huge leap forward in 2002 when online rankings began being posted by sites like Rivals.com and Scout.com. Here’s a look at how each SEC school ranked when all 13 years since 2002 were averaged, and no … Alabama didn’t run away with this. In fact, the Crimson Tide didn’t even finish first … or second, thanks to probation and postseason bans hurting their recruiting classes in the early 2000s. Today we take a look at No. 14 Vanderbilt.
Here’s a 14-day look at each SEC school and how it has performed in recruiting since the digital age of ranking of all the schools began in 2002. Fans may be surprised by which teams came out on top when all 13 years were averaged.
No. 7 South Carolina
AVERAGE NATIONAL FINISH: 17th.
NATIONAL RECRUITING TITLES: None.
SEC RECRUITING TITLES: None.
BEST NATIONAL FINISH: 6th (in 2007).
WORST NATIONAL FINISH: 24th (in 2006).
TOP 10s: Twice (2003, 2007).
TOP 25s: All 13 classes have been in the top 25.
THE SKINNY: South Carolina has been consistently good at recruiting, and this year’s class (2015 group) may end up being the best of them. The Gamecocks are currently rated No. 4 in the nation in the 247Sports.com composite ranking, and the class is nearly complete with a national best 28 commitments. Recruiting has certainly been a strong point at South Carolina in the past decade plus, whether it was under Lou Holtz or Steve Spurrier. Just the fact that South Carolina has been that consistently good and is still only No. 7 in the SEC tells fans how competitive this league is.
Editor’s note: For this particular series, Saturday Down South’s references to recruiting rankings are to 247Sports.com’s industry composite team ranking from 2010-14, and Rivals.com’s team rankings from 2002-09 before 247Sports did the composite ranking.
YEAR NAT. RANK
2014 16
2013 20
2012 17
2011 17
2010(*) 20
2009 12
2008 22
2007 6
2006 24
2005 23
2004 24
2003 8
2002 11
AVG 16.9
THE COUNTDOWN:
LINK
No. 8 Texas A&M
AVERAGE NATIONAL FINISH: 19th.
NATIONAL RECRUITING TITLES: None.
SEC RECRUITING TITLES: None.
BEST NATIONAL FINISH: 5th (2014).
WORST NATIONAL FINISH: 43rd (2007).
TOP 10s: Four (2003, 2005, 2013, 2014).
TOP 25s: 10.
THE SKINNY: Texas A&M is a bit of an oddity in this comparison, of course, because it has only been in the SEC a few years and since they have been in the conference, the Aggies have actually pushed for national recruiting titles. So the pre-SEC, pre-Sumlin days weren’t that great and the Texas Longhorns were dominating the Aggies in recruiting, but since that transition–the Aggies have been just about as good as anybody in the country, minus maybe Alabama. This doesn’t appear to be ending any time soon, as the Aggies currently have the nation’s No. 2 class for 2015 and also have secured the No. 1 overall prospect even for 2016.
SCAR and A&M are both currently ranked in the consensus Top 5 with their 2015 recruiting classes.
So how is it that little ole SCAR has been able to out-recruit A&M in that Texas-sized state where the DFW population alone is almost twice that of the entire state of SC?
7
Posted on 8/14/14 at 12:25 pm to scrooster
quote:
scrooster
Posted on 8/14/14 at 12:32 pm to scrooster
quote:
So the pre-SEC, pre-Sumlin days weren’t that great and the Texas Longhorns were dominating the Aggies in recruiting, but since that transition–the Aggies have been just about as good as anybody in the country, minus maybe Alabama. This doesn’t appear to be ending any time soon, as the Aggies currently have the nation’s No. 2 class for 2015 and also have secured the No. 1 overall prospect even for 2016
Posted on 8/14/14 at 12:38 pm to WestCoastAg
You have 28 commitments. We have 19. And we are still out recruiting you and we still have 3 more 5 stars in play. We have out recruited you every year we've been in the SEC
Posted on 8/14/14 at 12:42 pm to scrooster
Looks to me like we are out recruiting you if we are limiting the discussion to the players who, you know, actually still play football for us
Posted on 8/14/14 at 12:50 pm to WestCoastAg
quote:
You have 28 commitments. We have 19. And we are still out recruiting you and we still have 3 more 5 stars in play. We have out recruited you every year we've been in the SEC
Splitting hairs.
But for shits and giggles let's say you do out-recruit us by a spot or two in the rankings ... do you really believe it is going to make that much of a difference?
SCAR regularly beats teams that supposedly out-recruits us ... happens all the time.
Sheeesh, Clemson has supposedly out-recruited us for years.
The same for UGA. Matter of fact UGA has slaughtered us in the recruiting rankings for the past 14 years yet, over that same span of time UGA is only 8-5 versus SCAR and 5 of those 8 wins were by a TD or less.
A&M is not far superior to anyone in recruiting. Not now, not ever. You're just signing recruits now that you wouldn't have were you not in the SEC ... and what you do with them is yet to be seen. You still gotta coach'em-up.
There is not a lot of difference between the #2 class and the #10 class when what is really going-on is all about filling needs and finding players that fit your system.
SC and GA still produce more great linemen and RBs than does Texas ... and that's what wins games in the SEC. I'll start believing that A&M is out-recruiting the rest of us when I see them come into GA, SC or FL to take top-notch players out of those recruiting grounds. I've never been that impressed with the trench talent that comes out of Texas.
If A&M fans truly believe that recruiting rankings equal automatic championships in this league, then you are living with a false sense of security.
This post was edited on 8/14/14 at 12:53 pm
Posted on 8/14/14 at 1:18 pm to scrooster
quote:
But for shits and giggles let's say you do out-recruit us by a spot or two in the rankings ... do you really believe it is going to make that much of a difference?
Year-to-year? No.
But the foundation is that A&M should continue to pull in top 15 classes no matter what, while USC getting top 15 classes years from now requires nailing the post-OBC hire and preventing any nearby team from being the 15th or 16th SEC expansion program.
quote:
A&M is not far superior to anyone in recruiting. Not now, not ever.
Our coach is the first one to admit that:
"You understand real quickly what recruiting is like in this league. That's why the level of play is so high."
LINK
quote:
I've never been that impressed with the trench talent that comes out of Texas.
Don't need it. We will just keep cranking out NFL QBs and turn every game into a shootout.
quote:
If A&M fans truly believe that recruiting rankings equal automatic championships in this league, then you are living with a false sense of security.
I could say something mean like "If USC fans truly believe that their program won't fall back to their historical mean after OBC..." in reply, but we aren't supposed to do that on this board.
This post was edited on 8/14/14 at 1:19 pm
Posted on 8/14/14 at 1:47 pm to scrooster
You prob shouldn't have started this thread
Posted on 8/14/14 at 1:49 pm to cardboardboxer
quote:
cardboardboxer
Very reasonable reply.
So all of the A&M fan drum-beating about superior classes ... it's just the excitement of the newness of it all and y'all actually do realize that they'll not translate into anything extraordinary unless they get coached-up and the chemistry melds and all that good stuff?
You've got a lot of good things going in your favor right now, not the least of which are your large state, your tie to the SEC, etc.
But until y'all start reaching-out and grabbing big time DLinemen and big time guys in the secondary and at LB ... and you gotta do it year-in and year-out .... well, you understand already.
On the other hand, if Bama, LSU, Auburn, SCAR, UGA, Tennessee, Arkansas and Mizzou start coming into Texas and taking skill players ... it's a double-edged sword.
We really like our kicker we took out of Texas, Elliot Fry. We're after some other players down there and we have coaches with ties to the state of Texas.
I'm honestly hoping it pays off for us more than it does you.
Posted on 8/14/14 at 1:54 pm to scrooster
It's just one little old courthouse.
Posted on 8/14/14 at 2:35 pm to scrooster
quote:
But until y'all start reaching-out and grabbing big time DLinemen and big time guys in the secondary and at LB ... and you gotta do it year-in and year-out .... well, you understand already.
You may have missed where we signed Myles Garrett, DE and #2 overall player in the country in 2014. We also got commits from Qualen Cunningham (Top 247 DE) as well as a couple other d lineman such as Zaycoven Henderson who are already making an impact in the two deep. Nick Harvey (Top 247 CB) and Armanti Watts are already drawing great reviews.
Where do people on the rant get the impression that Sumlin does not recruit defense?
This post was edited on 8/14/14 at 2:36 pm
Posted on 8/14/14 at 3:05 pm to scrooster
Essentially A&M has moved from a 3 Star average to a 4 star average since joining the SEC. Stars aren't everything and don't guarantee wins but they certainly don't hurt. Also, most of that talent (esp on the defensive side) is very young. It's going to take some time but the wave is hard to ignore.
It's also inaccurate to say Texas doesn't produce talent on the lines. OL is certainly strong out of Texas and the State has produced as many 1st Round NFL OL lately as any other state. DL is less so but there are some elite talents there as well (AShawn Robinson, Myles Garett, etc), even though A&M has not gotten enough of them until recently. Texas is just such a big State that it produces by numbers to an extent.
USC has also done well for sure. Of course in the SEC you can be Top 15 in the country and 5th in your division.
It's also inaccurate to say Texas doesn't produce talent on the lines. OL is certainly strong out of Texas and the State has produced as many 1st Round NFL OL lately as any other state. DL is less so but there are some elite talents there as well (AShawn Robinson, Myles Garett, etc), even though A&M has not gotten enough of them until recently. Texas is just such a big State that it produces by numbers to an extent.
USC has also done well for sure. Of course in the SEC you can be Top 15 in the country and 5th in your division.
Posted on 8/14/14 at 3:06 pm to Harryk15
quote:
Myles Garrett
A playa
Posted on 8/14/14 at 3:12 pm to WestCoastAg
quote:
WestCoastAg
Who cares. You haven't done anything as a program yet
Posted on 8/14/14 at 3:20 pm to aggressor
quote:
in the SEC you can be Top 15 in the country and 5th in your division
Amen
That's the thing about this conference, no doubt about it.
What makes the SEC great are the coaches. This league boasts the best coaches in the country.
If A&M proves to have that kind of coach and that kind of staff ... and they pair it with great classes, then A&M is gonna be dangerous.
The thing about the SEC is that every year, the top half of the league, they are all dangerous.
Posted on 8/14/14 at 3:46 pm to scrooster
Never bring up recruiting to A&M fans, as they will act as if it adds a national championship to their resume
Posted on 8/14/14 at 3:57 pm to Harryk15
quote:
Where do people on the rant get the impression that Sumlin does not recruit defense?
No one said you didn't recruit the kids, just, that, .... Um, looks like it was coached from an XBOX....
Posted on 8/14/14 at 3:57 pm to scrooster
Your courthouse. My piss.
Posted on 8/14/14 at 4:30 pm to cardboardboxer
quote:
But the foundation is that A&M should continue to pull in top 15 classes no matter what,
Out of curiosity....why?
Posted on 8/14/14 at 4:35 pm to Harryk15
quote:
Where do people on the rant get the impression that Sumlin does not recruit defense?
Fairly or not...from last year. Not saying it is a fair impression, but last year was a bit of a mess. (Like a Georgia fan has a right to call somebody elses defense a mess from last season)
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