Grade for recruiting

[Tulsa Tom]

That legendary recruiter, Bo Pelini, averaged 3.24 stars per player. Riley comes in this year at 3.14.

That guy who was so good he could recruit out of his car averaged 6.5 four star players a year. Riley comes in this year at 4.

That guy who had such a pleasant demeanor with people that he would even wrestle in the living room with recruits averaged the #23 ranked class during his tenure. Riley comes in at #25.


Lots of B's thrown around for a guy who was behind Pelini in nearly every recruiting day statistical measure.

 

[suhnami]

So is #42 a D-? Asking for a too frequent visitor.

36-38 is usually a D or DD

 

[leodisflowers]

That legendary recruiter, Bo Pelini, averaged 3.24 stars per player. Riley comes in this year at 3.14.

That guy who was so good he could recruit out of his car averaged 6.5 four star players a year. Riley comes in this year at 4.

That guy who had such a pleasant demeanor with people that he would even wrestle in the living room with recruits averaged the #23 ranked class during his tenure. Riley comes in at #25.


Lots of B's thrown around for a guy who was behind Pelini in nearly every recruiting day statistical measure.

I guess we will see who has the best eye for talent. There were plenty of guys in Bo's years that didn't pan out. It's an interesting topic.

 

[timnsun]

I guess we will see who has the best eye for talent. There were plenty of guys in Bo's years that didn't pan out. It's an interesting topic.

No need to wait. Proof is in the stars. Just ask tom.

 

[suhnami]

Can't really grade the class until a few years from now. The size of the class has always been my concern. Glad we didn't end up with under 20, but still would have liked to add a couple more quality guys for depth.

Many tried to justify Bo's small recruiting classes based on average stars and a handful of studs, but with transfers and injuries, depth caught up to us. Hopefully Riley does a better job of keeping our good recruits in the program.

Only 21 recruits = F
Quality of recruits = C

Not enough talent to meet or exceed the expectations at Nebraska.

 

[GretnaShawn]

Only 21 recruits = F
Quality of recruits = C

Not enough talent to meet or exceed the expectations at Nebraska.

This has been stated several times over the last few days, there was only room for 21.

 

[SnohomishRed]

I just keep waiting for Riley and crew to do something... anything that would show excellence. I think the class is ok bit on the lower side, I was hoping for a bigger splash in his first full year

 

[Tulsa Tom]

No need to wait. Proof is in the stars. Just ask tom.

That sentiment sounds a lot like, "We put the stars on our recruits."

 

[otismotis08]

I just keep waiting for Riley and crew to do something... anything that would show excellence. I think the class is ok bit on the lower side, I was hoping for a bigger splash in his first full year

Clearly this class did not have the splash effect. On the surface, it is more of the same.
This is just further reinforces that the Nebraska football program is okay with the slow, brick-by-brick approach to hopefully returning to relevance.

 

[Cloud@Heart]

36-38 is usually a D or DD

Its definitely a mouth full!

 

[timnsun]

That sentiment sounds a lot like, "We put the stars on our recruits."

All I'm saying is you're putting a lot of stock in numbers. Riley's class is similar to Pelini's, by the numbers. Can Riley keep them here and develop them better? He's supposed to be good at that. We will see.

 

[rrthusker]

Only 21 recruits = F
Quality of recruits = C

Not enough talent to meet or exceed the expectations at Nebraska.

I`ve been doing this awhile and study lots of film. When I break down film on Butler, Dismuke, POB, Farniok, Domann, Raridon, Jackson, Stille, Grim, Simmons, Speilman , Tre and Englehaupt I certainly can`t agree this is a C class. Just curious if you too have broken down film on this class to make your conclusion?

 

[HuskerO]

That legendary recruiter, Bo Pelini, averaged 3.24 stars per player. Riley comes in this year at 3.14.

That guy who was so good he could recruit out of his car averaged 6.5 four star players a year. Riley comes in this year at 4.

That guy who had such a pleasant demeanor with people that he would even wrestle in the living room with recruits averaged the #23 ranked class during his tenure. Riley comes in at #25.


Lots of B's thrown around for a guy who was behind Pelini in nearly every recruiting day statistical measure.

Not many complained about Bo's recruiting classes until after 20% of those recruits left by their Sophomore years.

If that happens to Riley then he'll be fairly citizen as well.

 

[Tulsa Tom]

I`ve been doing this awhile and study lots of film. When I break down film on Butler, Dismuke, POB, Farniok, Domann, Raridon, Jackson, Stille, Grim, Simmons, Speilman , Tre and Englehaupt I certainly can`t agree this is a C class. Just curious if you too have broken down film on this class to make your conclusion?

I've looked at some but am far from a talent evaluator. However those who do literally put the stars on this class weren't thrilled with our talent (high twenties in star ratings). Also, I wouldn't say our guys offer sheets were loaded with offers from the top teams. I'm sure you have a good eye but I have to wonder what you are seeing that other experts are missing.

 

[Tulsa Tom]

Not many complained about Bo's recruiting classes until after 20% of those recruits left by their Sophomore years.

If that happens to Riley then he'll be fairly citizen as well.

How long have you been on this board? Not a whole lot of parties were thrown here on NSD.

 

[huskerbaseball13]

Not many complained about Bo's recruiting classes until after 20% of those recruits left by their Sophomore years.

If that happens to Riley then he'll be fairly citizen as well.

Bingo.

The key is to retain and develop the recruited talent. Pelini brought in 5 four stars in his first "real" class and only two graduated from Nebraska. Stars are great but don't mean didly squat if they don't pan out.

 

[mkbrkloster]

That sentiment sounds a lot like, "We put the stars on our recruits."

If Bo's better classes actually stayed around and contributed to the expected level, IMO there would have been a conference championship in there. The window was there between OSU, Michigan, and PSU under performing for those years. Unfortunately, there were way too many transfers and way too many busts from the better looking prospects, ending up in no championships of any kind, and eventually leading to the roster disaster we had this year at many positions.

Hopefully MR can change that pattern, keep kids around, and help them produce.

 

[nebcountry]

Bingo.

The key is to retain and develop the recruited talent. Pelini brought in 5 four stars in his first "real" class and only two graduated from Nebraska. Stars are great but don't mean didly squat if they don't pan out.

Is definitely an interesting topic. I don't think Pelini's classes had a good "hit" rate, and no I'm not going to defend him.

So, this is actually going to be in support of the current staff. 22 starters on O/D. 22 second string. Not a lot of game time for 3rd or lower stringers. Yes, injuries can put some of these guys on the field, but they have to "show" to be considered for playing time after injuries are cleared up. Bring in some hot new recruits that do play early, sophomores+ won't be sniffing the field if they are down on the depth chart. If you or any fan wants roster turnover to remove dead weight, the sophomores+ will be transferring. So, I do expect attrition with Riley & Co. What I do hope for is that when injuries rear their head and when we're rotating players, that we don't see a big drop off.

 

[regibson1]

Bingo.

The key is to retain and develop the recruited talent. Pelini brought in 5 four stars in his first "real" class and only two graduated from Nebraska. Stars are great but don't mean didly squat if they don't pan out.

Is this the highest rated class that Riley has recruited as a college coach? I'm hopeful of the quality of this class because this staff did a lot more work (according to those close to the program) in evaluating players and targeting who they wanted to recruit this year. I also think that we had better coaches evaluating this talent than in past years. We got our quarterback, a solid running back, a better by all accounts OL than in past years, a top notch CB, and other DB's that will help to solidify our biggest defensive weakness in 2015. The additional LB's signed will also fill in the holes that existed in 2015 and additional DE's were addressed in this class.

Riley has also shown that he is willing to play true freshman if they are ready to go. I think that this class is solid because I don't believe that there were any reaches this year and because of the work put in to recruit this class. A 3* or 4* player with a great work ethic is better any day of the week than a 4 or 5* with issues and a lousy work ethic. I am confident that this staff identified and signed the type of players that Riley indicated that were recruited.

Looking forward to 2016.

 

[Tulsa Tom]

Again just another way of saying that we put the stars on them. The only thing we can hope for is that we develop really well and the Dantonios, Meyers and Harbaughs of the world start sucking in development.

 

[regibson1]

Again just another way of saying that we put the stars on them. The only thing we can hope for is that we develop really well and the Dantonios, Meyers and Harbaughs of the world start sucking in development.

I would refer to it as how much upside a player has instead of adding stars to them. Rivals doesn't factor in upside. They rate a player based on where that are at that point when they are evaluated. A 5* OL that weighs 300 lbs is going to get a better rating than a 3* 260 OL but if the 3* has the frame to add 40 lbs he may end up becoming a better player than the 5* who may have already reached his level of physical maturity. I think that a 4 or 5* receiver, RB, QB, and DB are more likely to maintain their rating throughout because of the skills that can't be taught like speed, agility, arm strength. and other intangibles that gave them that ranking.

 

[timnsun]

Again just another way of saying that we put the stars on them. The only thing we can hope for is that we develop really well and the Dantonios, Meyers and Harbaughs of the world start sucking in development.

I know you don't want to put lipstick on a pig. That's valid.

But you don't think these guys we picked up are capable of some great things here? Because what I'm hearing from you is "this class is nice but won't get us anywhere." Is that what you are intending to say? Cuz that's what I'm hearing...

 

[ctscts]

That legendary recruiter, Bo Pelini, averaged 3.24 stars per player. Riley comes in this year at 3.14.

That guy who was so good he could recruit out of his car averaged 6.5 four star players a year. Riley comes in this year at 4.

That guy who had such a pleasant demeanor with people that he would even wrestle in the living room with recruits averaged the #23 ranked class during his tenure. Riley comes in at #25.


Lots of B's thrown around for a guy who was behind Pelini in nearly every recruiting day statistical measure.

For someone who complains a lot about people bringing BP into conversations, you sure bring him into or continue the run of conversations.

 

[HuskerO]

How long have you been on this board? Not a whole lot of parties were thrown here on NSD.

Been here long enough to know that even though there may not have been many parties thrown, most were optimistic with Bo's recruiting classes. Don't try to pretend that people were poo-pooing on Bo's recruiting class the day of or after signing day.

 

[Harry Caray]

It's an OK class on paper. We'll know in a few years. Many people here propped up Bo's classes based on "average stars" and breaking down highlight films. Nobody knows how they'll develop and fare against Big Ten competition.

My main concern about Riley and his staff isn't recruiting or player development, though. It's his gameday coaching. UCLA was a step in the right direction, but we had a month to prepare for that one, and Riley's always fared pretty well in bowl games. It's consistency from week-to-week that I'm looking for next year. A losing record against the Big Ten West is unacceptable - especially a 1-5 record.

 

[zamzman]

Offensive skill positions - B+. Mostly because we lacked the big-bodied WR. As QB is just so critical, POB alone could raise this to A+ in the future. You just don't know. But for now, really good QB prospect, really good RB prospect, good TEs and WRs.
Offensive line - B. The ones we got are good, but paired with last year's class, we just have 2 OTs. The talent is fine, but that 2nd OT position is just a hole to me. Farniok better not miss.
Defensive line - C-. We got a couple of DEs which we needed, but a JUCO DE for immediate help was a priority and we got shut out. No DTs. That's just sad. Better get some super talented guys next year who can step in, and then we may be okay.
Defensive LBs/DBs - B. Some top talent. Some I'm not as sure about. Not overwhelming, but we'll see how well they are developed. Maybe I'm still bummed out we didn't get Simmons (although he'd have probably been a WR). Probably an overall upgrade over what we've had in the recent past.

 

[Tulsa Tom]

Been here long enough to know that even though there may not have been many parties thrown, most were optimistic with Bo's recruiting classes. Don't try to pretend that people were poo-pooing on Bo's recruiting class the day of or after signing day.

There is no pretending. There were plenty here who liked hearing about top ten classes under Callahan. When signing day came under Bo there often was disappointment (the one exception was 2011). However, those who were Pelini supporters simply echoed Bo when he said, "We put the stars on our recruits." We can look back and see just how lame that sentiment was. In this day and age this kind of class will not get the job done...if the job is about championships.

 

[sparky62]

There is no pretending. There were plenty here who liked hearing about top ten classes under Callahan. When signing day came under Bo there often was disappointment (the one exception was 2011). However, those who were Pelini supporters simply echoed Bo when he said, "We put the stars on our recruits." We can look back and see just how lame that sentiment was. In this day and age this kind of class will not get the job done...if the job is about championships.

I disagree. I truly believe that MR will develop talent a lot better then BP ever could & we'll also keep more of his classes enrolled here.

 

[leodisflowers]

Offensive skill positions - B+. Mostly because we lacked the big-bodied WR. As QB is just so critical, POB alone could raise this to A+ in the future. You just don't know. But for now, really good QB prospect, really good RB prospect, good TEs and WRs.
Offensive line - B. The ones we got are good, but paired with last year's class, we just have 2 OTs. The talent is fine, but that 2nd OT position is just a hole to me. Farniok better not miss.
Defensive line - C-. We got a couple of DEs which we needed, but a JUCO DE for immediate help was a priority and we got shut out. No DTs. That's just sad. Better get some super talented guys next year who can step in, and then we may be okay.
Defensive LBs/DBs - B. Some top talent. Some I'm not as sure about. Not overwhelming, but we'll see how well they are developed. Maybe I'm still bummed out we didn't get Simmons (although he'd have probably been a WR). Probably an overall upgrade over what we've had in the recent past.

Not overwhelming on the DB's? #1 overall safety, and I think Dismuke is up there high as well. I'd say we did just fine there.

 

[Nebraska Fan]

I disagree. I truly believe that MR will develop talent a lot better then BP ever could & we'll also keep more of his classes enrolled here.

What makes you think he will do better at Nebraska relative to APR? 5-7 isn't going to get Oregon State in a bowl.

Developing talent is pretty subjective and mostly reserved for schools on the lower rungs.

 

[litespeedhuskerfan]

What makes you think he will do better at Nebraska relative to APR? 5-7 isn't going to get Oregon State in a bowl.

Developing talent is pretty subjective and mostly reserved for schools on the lower rungs.

I think they will being in enough talent to work for what their going to do. I think he delivers a big class next year and this board will be over run with people as optimistic as Rover. Gawd that will be insufferable.

 

[burkek]

We signed HIGH character young men, most of who had significant individual recognition

This is a good class (B) in context. The context ... Nebraska will never produce a top 10 recruiting class for all reasons that do not require repeating.

Further, we were 1 to 2 commits from a top 20 ranking and our transfer and walkons will easily make up for that.

 

[Tulsa Tom]

I disagree. I truly believe that MR will develop talent a lot better then BP ever could & we'll also keep more of his classes enrolled here.

Not sure what you disagreed with. Do you think top 25 type classes can get the job done? Or do you think people were rejoicing over Bo's recruiting prowess on NSDs?

 

[timnsun]

Not sure what you disagreed with. Do you think top 25 type classes can get the job done? Or do you think people were rejoicing over Bo's recruiting prowess on NSDs?

I'm gonna say none of the above... Reread what you posted.

However, those who were Pelini supporters simply echoed Bo when he said, "We put the stars on our recruits." We can look back and see just how lame that sentiment was.

I believe Sparky is saying Riley will better develop the players than Bo ever did. Reading what you posted suggests that's a bunch of hogwash. Will Riley develop the players well enough to compete for championships is the real question. NC, not yet, not with this talent, but division, most definitely, and as soon as divisions come, conference championships become more in reach as well.

Recruiting needs to be better, but dismissing this class as one that won't get it done is short sighted in my opinion. It may be true, but we won't know for awhile if that is indeed the case.

 

[mothmonsterman]

A solid B. I'm thinking less of how many four stars there are and more of how many feel like reaches. I don't see anyone in the class where I say "he definitely won't contribute." Obviously, in any class about a third won't contribute much if at all, but I think this class has a higher floor than any we've seen recently. If we want to win the Big Ten we need some A and A+ classes, but there are going to be players in this class that can contribute in a big way on a championship level team.

 

[Tulsa Tom]

I'm gonna say none of the above... Reread what you posted.

I believe Sparky is saying Riley will better develop the players than Bo ever did. Reading what you posted suggests that's a bunch of hogwash. Will Riley develop the players well enough to compete for championships is the real question. NC, not yet, not with this talent, but division, most definitely, and as soon as divisions come, conference championships become more in reach as well.

Recruiting needs to be better, but dismissing this class as one that won't get it done is short sighted in my opinion. It may be true, but we won't know for awhile if that is indeed the case.

Let me ask another way. What part of my actual post did you disagree with?

 

[c2o]

I like Greg Simmons.

 

[timnsun]

Let me ask another way. What part of my actual post did you disagree with?

Pretty sure I mentioned it... Writing this class off as one that won't get it done. That's what I disagreed with.

But as you know, I'm an optimist and could easily be wrong.

 

[RedSea]

B, but B is not good enough. Need to get up in the teens for awhile, bump up the number of 4 stars. We might have been there if our season hadn't been such a disaster.

 

[timnsun]

For a lot of people, this class is good but not great. I guess my question is this… Is this class good enough to start the turnaround? I see contributors in this class that, coupled with even better classes following this class, can bring us back. This class won't do it all by itself. But there are some pretty strong pieces in this class that will be counted on down the road.

Is this fair? Or am I just being my optimistic self once again?