Defensive Tackle Recruits (updated: 2/2/13)

Wow, baylor stealing from austin. The TIMES they are a Changin'!!!

 

BULL SHEEEEET!!!! I hope he stays!!!

 

Eh to be fair it's not a surprise that Briles is able to steal a few top guys here and there in Texas, he's still pretty popular with high school coaches.

 

No, Briles is definitely a good coach. They beat us head to head for a couple guys: DT Andrew Billings and WR Robbie Rhodes. Plus, Billings is from Waco. That's not that big of a deal.

My gripe is that we weren't able to get a single DT or DE in this entire class. This was a deep class for talented DTs and we whiffed on all of them. DE is good for the 2014 class but not DT. We're either going juco at this point or having a hole there for a couple of years. We just don't have much to sell right now with Mack and Manny _iaz. I'm afraid this is going to get worse before it gets better too. Mack will ride this ship all the way to the bottom.

 

Mack still has brilliant coaching to fall back on.

 

What's most important is that Mack gets to go out on his own terms. We don't want any hurt feelings or anything. Gross.

 

Really, no DEs? I thought that you guys had gotten one or two. Well, I'm not sure you want any of ours (per an earlier comment in another post)...I'm not sure we have any that can play (or stay eligible to play).

 

Nope. We had Daeshon Hall who is a great DE but he decommited to UW (supposedly for "family" there) and now it looks like he will end up at A&M tomorrow. We have Jake Raulerson but he's projected at center.

The tree of woe. Texas is on it.

 

Wow, that's crazy. The one guy that decommitted, that I think Texas will look back and be glad he didn't come, is RSJ. That kid is going to have a tough time making it through 2 years of college ball without incident...let alone 3 or more.

 

Not if he wants a shot at a ring and more prep for an NFL career. And, It's amazing how uneducated people are about 'gray-shirting." Once you fully understand it, frankly I think it's under-utilized. Some benefits:

6 years to play 4: This buys extra time for a college athlete. If you are striving towards an NFL career, the additional time can make a big difference.
Early enrollee: Delaying enrollment does not require waiting a full year, it merely requires waiting until January to enroll. This not only allows the athlete to participate in spring practice, but it also allows them additional time in the classroom, putting them closer to graduating or an advanced degree. In this regard, they gain even more time, as enrolling a few months earlier would have cost them a full year of eligibility/athletic scholarship.
Time to heal: Greyshirting is particularly useful if a player is recovering from an injury. If they are not able to perform football activities, why on earth would they want to start their eligibility clock?
Time to develop: Some positions are much more demanding than others. Mental and physical development can be key. Giving the athlete this additional time could be the difference between a pro career or not, and could greatly affect their impact as a college football player.
Some time off: They are heading into a college career, which could turn into a pro career. It's hard for me to grasp why the prospect of a break after high school should be such a bad thing.

After thinking this through, I'm puzzled why it is not used more often. In truth, I think college coaches are hesitant to offer it because if more people realized all the advantages, they might have trouble getting potential instant contributors on campus.However, I will remain puzzled when someone says "____ wouldn't take a greyshirt offer". Really? They're in a hurry for their eligibility to run out? The only players that should even consider balking at this offer would be three and done players that know they would play right away (in which case why greyshirt them?). Even players that wouldn't redshirt have very little to complain about, and should they decide to transfer, having that redshirt year available would come in handy.

Anyway, I just thought I'd share my thoughts in this issue, since the public perception seems to be rather ill informed.

 

t

What do you think happened with A'Shawn Robinson? We didn't get in on him until just the last couple of weeks.

 

He's been committed to UT since last Spring and he was telling us he was solid all along even though he was taking visits. Can't really blame him going to Bama with the national titles and all but I just wish he would've told us sooner than the week before Signing Day so we could've recruited someone else. I think he was looking seriously at USC until their class imploded, then Saban put on the hard sell and that was that. We steal last minute guys too though so I guess I can't complain too much. That really put a dent in our class and our DT depth though.

 

Maybe. He seems kind of diva-ish. He reminds me of that knucklehead Martellus Bennett a little bit both with the basketball playing and the ego.

 

Good comparison, he does remind me of Bennett.

This may be my disdain for A&M talking, but you have to wonder if having all the "Me first" guys in this incoming class will come back to bite them. There's no question they have landed some top recruits, but no matter how many stud DTs you have on the roster, no more than 2 (3 max) are going to play at once.

 

You should think of it as a positive, it's done your program well, and that's how your team works. I'd probably feel the same way if OU did it and won national titles.

That said, I still think it's a shady proposition, that takes advantage of kids. Not all of them, because there are many that know going in how it's going to work. But, I think that there are many that don't completely understand. Who pays for the education, living expenses, etc. for the gray shirts? Not the school.

Now, I'm not saying that there aren't some benefits to the process, because there are. I just think it can (and many times does) take advantage of kids that should be getting their degree paid for elsewhere.

 

Getting Billings tonight (4* DT) was huge for us. Great news.

 

Re: Defensive Tackle Recruits (updated: 1/29/13)

So, what are our chances of getting Johnson today?
Are we still in the mix for him? I saw he took a late visit to Auburn.

 

Sabanball's regurgitation of the "benefits" of gray-shirting is comedic genius. Pure gold, Jerry.

 

Please, those kids are getting money.

 

Frankly, I don't know why MORE school's don't sign ten extra kids a year and then run off those that don't perform. I mean, you look at it in terms of benefits to the program, and the guys who get to stay have a better shot at winning championships, so that's fantastic all around.

What's that?

It's not so great for the people you run off? Who says? Sour Grapes over there who wasn't good enough to hack it at the University of By God Alabama, ROLL TIDE?