Recruiting Forum Football Talk XXXI

[Bassmaster_Vol]

Croom is such a freak. Surely someone can turn him into a contributor

 

[Vols4us]

I think Malone and JRM are locks for the combine. The others I agree about but I think guys like Croom and Foreman could turn some heads of they got the chance to go.

Who all is goin to the senior bowl? What is the other all-star game?

East/West Shrine is one. Croom is playing in the Tropical AS game.

 

[LaagerVol]

They can rotate Kongbo in as needed, but prefer he settle in to DE and go kill it. They need more quality depth at DT. Picou is Owen Williams without the strength. Hopefully the new S&C guy can help that.

So assume KMack is back.....

KMack, Vickers (I think will have a good year)

Tuttle, Picou, AJ all question marks Imo

Mosley?? Will he stick at DT? Don't think he played in MCB

Bain? I actually think can give some good snaps if given the chance

Butcher?

Freshmen?

Then DEs playing out of position.

This doesn't give me the warm and fuzzies

 

[Darth_Shiveman]

Well, with respect to identifying talent and bringing in blue chip talent, OL has not been an issue. Hard to make the case Mahoney has been a recruiting problem.

Yeah we've done fine bringing talent on the OL, but Mahoney is far, far from an elite recruiter. Butch gets as much credit for closing out with guys like Richmond and Smith as Mahoney. Probably more.


One way to tell an elite recruiter is just by the guys the staff send them after. The best guys go recruit kids regardless of position and sometimes are helping other position coaches on kids. Mahoney ain't that for sure.

This could be an opportunity to add someone to the staff who is a more dynamic recruiter.

 

[Catbone]

We weren't close to elite. Even healthy. Not close.

I think KMac takes a step. This year. Could be next but I think he takes it. Hoping the younger guys step up.

Alexis Johnson. Vickers. Both those need to step up.

We have got to recruit better at DT.

Agree

 

[jjay2518]

We weren't close to elite. Even healthy. Not close.

I think KMac takes a step. This year. Could be next but I think he takes it. Hoping the younger guys step up.

Alexis Johnson. Vickers. Both those need to step up.

We have got to recruit better at DT.

Definitely need to recruit better there. IMO everyone outside of KMAC is a question mark next year. Last year we at least had DOB who wasn't a star but was solid. Also I felt better about Shy going into last season than I do about him going into next season.

 

[BigZiti09]

So assume KMack is back.....

KMack, Vickers (I think will have a good year)

Tuttle, Picou, AJ all question marks Imo

Mosley?? Will he stick at DT? Don't think he played in MCB

Bain? I actually think can give some good snaps if given the chance

Butcher?

Freshmen?

Then DEs playing out of position.

This doesn't give me the warm and fuzzies

Well what we need is one guy to make the big jump. Dan Williams type jump. Preferably Khalil.

Then we need Vickers to be better. We need Shy to be healthy. We need AJ to pan out. Then we need the frosh to be the gravy.

 

[AV_12]

I like the Henry pick more now than I did at the time. I liked the Kevin Dodd pick more then than I do now. Haven't given up on him yet though. And the Johnson pick is meh but he could be productive.

I'm just not high on taking RBs that high, unless they truly warrant it. He won't be a bust, but the value is later in the draft for that position.

 

[Vols4us]

So assume KMack is back.....

KMack, Vickers (I think will have a good year)

Tuttle, Picou, AJ all question marks Imo

Mosley?? Will he stick at DT? Don't think he played in MCB

Bain? I actually think can give some good snaps if given the chance

Butcher?

Freshmen?

Then DEs playing out of position.

This doesn't give me the warm and fuzzies

lol. Shoop might have to get creative with a 3/4 look at times. Kongbo, K-Mac, Vickers along the front would fit that. Surely they can get Mosley to do something of value. He will never play at O-line IMO.

 

[LaagerVol]

Yeah we've done fine bringing talent on the OL, but Mahoney is far, far from an elite recruiter. Butch gets as much credit for closing out with guys like Richmond and Smith as Mahoney. Probably more.


One way to tell an elite recruiter is just by the guys the staff send them after. The best guys go recruit kids regardless of position and sometimes are helping other position coaches on kids. Mahoney ain't that for sure.

This could be an opportunity to add someone to the staff who is a more dynamic recruiter.

Who knows if it was the truth but it was basically said that Mahoney is the reason we didn't get Wray (yet)

 

[jjay2518]

Well what we need is one guy to make the big jump. Dan Williams type jump. Preferably Khalil.

Then we need Vickers to be better. We need Shy to be healthy. We need AJ to pan out. Then we need the frosh to be the gravy.

And once again everybody has to stay healthy.

 

[BigZiti09]

Definitely need to recruit better there. IMO everyone outside of KMAC is a question mark next year. Last year we at least had DOB who wasn't a star but was solid. Also I felt better about Shy going into last season than I do about him going into next season.

The hole in krootin has been DT. 2013 and 2014 weren't good. 2015 was good. 2016 was crap. 2017 looks better but gotta hold on.

If Butch doesn't make it this is gonna be a main reason why. He didn't hit on DT early and often enough.

 

[BigZiti09]

And once again everybody has to stay healthy.

Yup. I got blasted for it last fall but it's the truth.

You wanna be good in this league you better have the big boys at DT and they better be healthy.

 

[LaagerVol]

Well what we need is one guy to make the big jump. Dan Williams type jump. Preferably Khalil.

Then we need Vickers to be better. We need Shy to be healthy. We need AJ to pan out. Then we need the frosh to be the gravy.

It's a lot to ask, right?

 

[BigZiti09]

It's a lot to ask, right?

Yes. Should have done better in February there.

Especially in 2014 and 2016.

 

[LaagerVol]

I'm just not high on taking RBs that high, unless they truly warrant it. He won't be a bust, but the value is later in the draft for that position.

And we had needs that could have been addressed in that round. Obviously Robinson is gonna stick to his board and not draft based on need though. With the exception he HAD to get a starting RT last year. Can't argue with that strategy.

 

[McGeesPub]

Yeah we've done fine bringing talent on the OL, but Mahoney is far, far from an elite recruiter. Butch gets as much credit for closing out with guys like Richmond and Smith as Mahoney. Probably more.


One way to tell an elite recruiter is just by the guys the staff send them after. The best guys go recruit kids regardless of position and sometimes are helping other position coaches on kids. Mahoney ain't that for sure.

This could be an opportunity to add someone to the staff who is a more dynamic recruiter.

Those are fair points, and I more so than just about anyone want a recommitment to recruiting- this class and last years class won't cut it in winning the SEC. My last word will be that elite recruiters are all well and good, but some positions I think the teaching and coaching aspect outweighs the necessity to staff an elite recruiter at the cost of those things, and OL is near the top of that list.

 

[McGeesPub]

Who knows if it was the truth but it was basically said that Mahoney is the reason we didn't get Wray (yet)

Heard Thigpen was the one burning bridges with midstate prospects.

 

[Bassmaster_Vol]

So assume KMack is back.....

KMack, Vickers (I think will have a good year)

Tuttle, Picou, AJ all question marks Imo

Mosley?? Will he stick at DT? Don't think he played in MCB

Bain? I actually think can give some good snaps if given the chance

Butcher?

Freshmen?

Then DEs playing out of position.

This doesn't give me the warm and fuzzies

Bain actually played really well in the MCB in limited snaps. Hopefully the freshmen can contribute

 

[jjay2518]

Yup. I got blasted for it last fall but it's the truth.

You wanna be good in this league you better have the big boys at DT and they better be healthy.

I wasn't as down on it as you were last year. I think we had enough if we didn't have bad injury problems (which obviously ended up happening). The group wouldn't have been a big strength, but it also wouldn't have been a weakness. Obviously a pointless argument at this point when every DT on our roster was gone by the end of the season.

 

[LaagerVol]

lol. Shoop might have to get creative with a 3/4 look at times. Kongbo, K-Mac, Vickers along the front would fit that. Surely they can get Mosley to do something of value. He will never play at O-line IMO.

That would be a really good 3 man front if we had the LBs to go behind them. I think KMack lost too much size, that isn't his game, and I thought SURELY they would put big Charles in a 1 and let him eat up blocks towards the end of the year. Was he injured?

 

[BigZiti09]

I wasn't as down on it as you were last year. I think we had enough if we didn't have bad injury problems (which obviously ended up happening). The group wouldn't have been a big strength, but it also wouldn't have been a weakness. Obviously a pointless argument at this point when every DT on our roster was gone by the end of the season.

I wasn't really down on it. I was just seeing these people talking 11-1 and 12-0 and playoff scenarios and DT was the reason why I thought 10-2 was our ceiling. Granted we caught the breaks to go 11-1 but also caught the injury bug to do worse than 8-4.

 

[LaagerVol]

The hole in krootin has been DT. 2013 and 2014 weren't good. 2015 was good. 2016 was crap. 2017 looks better but gotta hold on.

If Butch doesn't make it this is gonna be a main reason why. He didn't hit on DT early and often enough.

2016 was just shy of being Dooley no OL in 2012 failure. Can't have a class with zero HS DT, ever.

Finishing with Conliffe and Sterling would help correct that though.

 

[BigZiti09]

2016 was just shy of being Dooley no OL in 2012 failure. Can't have a class with zero HS DT, ever.

Nope. Butch has to do better.

 

[Darth_Shiveman]

Those are fair points, and I more so than just about anyone want a recommitment to recruiting- this class and last years class won't cut it in winning the SEC. My last word will be that elite recruiters are all well and good, but some positions I think the teaching and coaching aspect outweighs the necessity to staff an elite recruiter at the cost of those things, and OL is near the top of that list.

Fair point, but we've seen our OL unit have enough struggles to really question if they're getting or if they wouldn't be better served with someone else's overseeing the teaching and coaching there.