Certainly pleased with Heupel and co year 1. I think they exceeded everyone’s expectations on the field. Recruiting certainly has to get better to compete for championships, as Xs and Os will only get you so far. However, we’re nowhere near that yet in our program trajectory.
We also don’t know how much the NCAA stuff has affected this class. I know it’s a downer that it feels like we’re striking out, but we’re honestly doing better than I expected given the circumstances.
Right now in the East, UGA is far and away ahead talent wise and that’s not changing. UF is getting closer to mid tier talent given Mullen’s recruiting and their transition class this year. I know some are ahead in the rankings, but we’re essentially recruiting on par with S Car, UK, and Mizzou. Not a huge difference between 10-20 classes when you dig into it. Vandy is Vandy.
Pick up a few portal instant impact guys and we’re still on track to keep moving the program forward. Beat the 4 East teams we should and maybe pick off UF next year and we’ll all be pleased. I know we all want instant gratification, but based off where this program has been for the past decade plus, it’s all about incremental improvement to me.