should it matter how big of a high school a recruit goes to

For measures like height, weight, speed, bench, etc....no, it doesn't matter.

However, if you're evaluating film or looking at stats, yes it does matter in most cases. There are 1A stars who dominate on tape, but when they transfer to a 5A+ school, they're just an average player. That's b/c the bigger schools have a greater population/pool of students to select from to build a team.

Of course there are some guys in 1A or 2A who could still be a stud in FL 8A, but it's not like every 1A or 2A stud could dominate the same way at higher classifications, b/c they're going up against greater pools of talented athletes.

IF there were two DE's, one in 1A NC and one in 8A FL, who had identical measurables, (6'6", 250 lbs, 4.7 40yd, 350 lb bench, etc...) and stats, (85 Tackles, 25 sacks, 38 TFL's) I would be much more impressed with the 8A player in FL, b/c the quality of opponents he achieved those stats against was most likely much better.

While measurable are important, they are not the end all be all. The mental game is more important and it's hard to judge that mental aspect in shitty competition where a kid can just get by on his athleticism. Bigger schools tend to have more complex schemes and more competition for playing time.

It's easier to be amazing when you don't have to look over your shoulder knowing your backup could take your spot in lower divisions.

Measureables are measurables, same everywhere

How you perform against elite competition matters a lot. If you go to a small school, you better be hitting up the camp circuit to prove you can play against the other elite.

Charles Johnson was a 1A player in Georgia from Hawkinsville and was a 5Star. Sometimes it doesn't matter the competition if you are good enough.

Todd Gurley was a 4 star that should have been a 5 star but subpar competition made it hard to say he was the elite of the elite.

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I personally feel like it all depends on the coaching. Now one can say that on average you get better coaching at a bigger school but that's not always the case. There are plenty of small school juggernauts that are recruiting pipelines because of great coaching.

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Coaching plays almost little to no part in how colleges scout high school kids. They only care if he has the pure talent and can he play against other talented players. They can coach him up in college.

I was thinking of Marlon Brown who dominated the small private leagues in Tenn but then struggled to adjust to SEC football. He finally started contributing his Jr/Sr years.

And then you have Herschel Walker who played 1a football.

There are defitnitely examples of 1A kids who made it. However your saying "if u can play, u can play" is definitely not true. Have seen many examples of kids dominating nobodies then get shut down against highest classification. As others have said, go to the camps to prove you can truly play. Kids at the bigger classifications have to prove they can play against all comers as well. However, if u have a 5A kid throwing other 5A kids in New Orleans around like rag dolls, you don't need to see much more.

Alshon Jeffery is our best example. He played at Calhoun County HS which is 2A, but he also blew up at the camps and earned 4-star status.

Herschel Walker went to one of the smallest schools in the state.

However, normally a good indicator a kid can play is the competition he plays against. There are always exceptions to the rule, though.....like Herschel.

Nope. If you can play against chumps, doesn't mean you can play against studs.