Modern Day Recruiting: The Many Ways to Build a Team

College football in the modern times has become a fickle bitch. Is it one of the best products to watch in sports? Well, yes. There are some inconsistencies that we are still trying to figure out, but nothing quite compares to the environment of a college football game.

Naturally there will always be something that someone will always complain about when it comes to… well anything. The NFL combine was this week and the PRESIDENT of the PLAYERS ASSOCIATION said that we should get rid of it. You know the part where the teams meet you, and see what you can do physically, and get current and accurate measurements of you. The job interview process. Yeah they want to get rid of that. Another blog for another day I guess. This blogs about the recent changes in the college football world. This offseason the big kerfuffle is player movement.

NIL Deals

Lets start with NIL deals. Ever since the players won this case in the Name, Image, and Likeness realm, these issues were inevitable. No one knew how this was going to work. Were still trying to figure it out. Jaden Rashada is the biggest story of NIL in my opinion thus far. Rashada is a QB who was ranked the #6 QB in the draft class. Rumor had it he also had a $13 million NIL deal to play at Florida. This went all the way to signing day when Rashada didnt send in his letter of intent and backed off his commitment. It turns out Florida got an even higher rated QB in the next class committed to them in DJ Lagway. Im not in any inner circles so I dont know the validity of this, but rumor has it the NIL deal was pulled from Rashada and given to Lagway.

Im all about guys making money. The thing about college recruiting though is that these guys still live at home. They are relatively unproven. We dont know how theyre going to act when theyre on their own. Just like how there are busts out of the first round in the NFL. Highly rated guys in high school arent guaranteed to pan out in college.

The Transfer Portal

In my opinion this is probably the part of college football that could be regulated, but also you have to look at every situation as an isolated incident. Theres a multitude of reasons why a guy may transfer: playing time, false promises, coaching changes, personal reasons, etc. Honestly, who are we to say “nah man you stay at the school and try to earn playing time. I dont care about YOUR eligibility. I care about how my school looks in the media.” Its silly to an extent. Its also silly when you see guys transferring all over the place every year, but also isnt that just a reality of humans. There are people that stay at companies their whole career. There are people that switch companies constantly. Call me what you will, but that is something a coach should assess while recruiting said player.

Its tricky because its almost unAmerican to say you cant move freely to what you view as the best opportunity for you. Who are we to say you cant leave said university? And listen I get that its hard to tell who is going to be the type of guy that leaves at the first sign of adversity, but is it?

The other argument here is that a lot of these transfers dont find a new home, or have to move down in the level of competition. The portal giveth and the portal taketh. Its apart of life. Sometimes you think you are worth more than you are. I dont understand why fans of the sport feel the need to “shield” or “protect” these kids from themselves?

I personally am a Michigan fan, and we have had our fair share of guys leave for this reason or that reason. Guys have declared for the draft, and I was like “you sure?”. Guys have left the team when the next year it seemed like they were sure fire starters. Is it upsetting sometimes? Yes. I love Erick All, but he decided he had a better opportunity at Iowa. Life goes on. Michigan football goes on. Erick All is still a great player. My point is that this is a necessary evil. We need to stop blaming the players and look at the programs. Is it a healthy culture with a one off player who was upset? Or is it a toxic environment and the players dont want to be there? And who are you to say which it is? You work in software sales or whatever.

The Different Styles of Roster Building

Before I get into this I would like to make a quick disclaimer. I am in no way on the inside of any of these programs. A lot of this is speculation based off what is on the news. I have not talked to any players or coaches in regards to this. This is all based off the news, what I have read, and what I have heard from the media.

With that being said, I consume a lot of college football media from a variety of college football sources. Different companies, different individuals, different viewpoints. These are just theories I have that lead to different teams outcomes on the field. With that being said.

The “Alabama” way of building a program

You could put a teams like Georgia and Ohio State under this style as well. There are very few teams with the capability of this kind of roster building. Successful programs with successful coaches and big budgets have the capability of going after whoever they want. Im going to call this the “Best Available” approach to building a roster.

Year after year these teams get the most 5 star guys, the highest rated transfers, the best junior college guys. It doesnt really matter where the talent is coming from these teams are going after it. They have this privilege mostly because of who they are. Nick Saban has put so many guys in the NFL that he does and should have a chance at signing any player looking for a home.

The positives of this approach is obvious, you get the best players. If you go back and look at any recruiting class these guys are consistently top 5. Alabama goes out and signs five star cornerbacks every cycle, and then will go grab the fastest wide receiver out of Juco cause they can, and then go into the transfer portal and bring in the top cornerback, runningback, and receiver. Crazy that these guys are always in the college football playoff conversation.

Theres few negatives to this approach. Naturally players are going to leave though. Alabama had Will Anderson and Dallas Turner, who will both be top 5 picks in the NFL draft im pretty sure, and that ended up causing a player like Drew Sanders to leave. Sanders went on to have a great year at Arkansas, and was probably their best defensive player, and now he also will likely be a first round pick this year. WR Jameson Williams wasnt getting enough playing time at Ohio State, so he jumped in the transfer portal. Who picked him up? Alabama. He then went on to be one of the best receivers in college football, and get drafted in the first round. Ohio State also had two receivers selected in the first round of that draft. Having so many good players that you cant play them all is a good problem to have.

The “Texas A&M” way of building a program

This would apply to teams like Tennessee or Oregon or maybe Miami as well. Winning on the recruiting trail is easier when you got money. Texas A&M spent a rumored $30 million+ on recruiting the first year of NIL deals. What did that result in? One of the best recruiting classes we have seen. 18 top 100 recruits (based on the 247 composite rankings) and 8, 5 star guys. Thats almost 20% of the top 100 recruits (quick maths). 8 guys in the top 25 also is more then I ever remember seeing.

Word on the street is Tennessee paid QB recruit Nico Iamaleava $8 million. Oregon has Nike backing them. They always bring in big time recruits. Does this result in wins? I think it results in a kind of baseline of wins. Naturally if you have this kind of talent youre gonna pull out a few wins just based on talent. Texas A&M was not very good last year. If they arent very good this year does Jimbos seat heat up? Who am I to say?

The real issue with buying players is their commitment. See its starting to come together. Can you expect guys to stay for 3, 4, or 5 years if theyre there for a pay day? Well, that A&M class that spent $30 million (supposedly) had 8 of those guys transfer out. Out of the total 30 players thats coming up on a third of those leaving after one year. Of course I dont know whats going on behind the scenes but its hard to be excited about bringing guys in when they walk right on out like the Grandpa Simpson meme.

To me this strategy of team building is a risk reward kind of team building. I think if you have the right coach it can really speed up a rebuild, see Tennessee. If you dont though it kind of seems like a waste of funds.

The “Michigan” way of building a program

This applies to teams like Clemson and Penn State. The biggest knock I hear about Michigan since the whole NIL thing started is their lack of top tier recruits they have gotten. I think this issue will correct itself in due time I believe, but I dont think these teams are promising huge NIL commitments to incoming recruits. I think they are selling the players on the opportunity to make big NIL money, just not giving it out. These are solid programs, with good coaches, and solid cultures.

Dont get me wrong they bring in their top ranked guys here and there, but they are committed to player development. Guys like Ronnie Bell, Rod Moore, and Kris Jenkins are all three star guys who came in immediately and played. Mason Graham was a three star prospect when he committed to Michigan and was a Freshman All American. Dont worry there are more coming. Kenneth Grant and Amorrion Walker are three star recruits who are going to be big time on this years team. Mike Morris was the best player on defense this year and was a three star recruit.

Dont get me wrong every team is going to find guys like this its just how the numbers game works. Michigan is tied for the third most players being sent to the NFL combine, and have the most returning production for next years team. Alabama and Georgia are one and two of course, but Michigan consistently sends guys into the league that arent highly recruited.

Conclusion

For a long time there has been an issue with parity in College Football. The way recruiting is headed though the playing field is being evened. With NIL, the transfer portal, and just teams overall approach to how they recruit; I think good head coaches will shine more then ever. It is becoming less about get the five stars and throw them out there, and more about find the guys we like that fit our system and get them ready to play on Saturdays and possibly Sundays. The only way to truly even the playing field in College Football is not to knock down the top dogs, but for other teams to raise up and compete and thats exactly what modern recruiting gives other teams the chance to do.