• The KillerFrogs

Quick note on recruiting

MinFrog

Active Member
I was curious about how our recruiting classes pan out. GP always says it isn't the guys what you don't get, its the ones that you get and don't pan out.

Let's look at the 2014 class quick since they have a full body of work. Here are the top 9 rated recruits from that year:
Nixon
Sawyer
Porter
Barrett
Iloka
Kee
Muehlstein
McBride
Mosley

Here are the bottom 9, starting with the lowest ranked:
Kolhausen
Petties-Wilson
Summers
Elliot
O’Meally
Issahaku
White
Vai
Schlottmann

Which group fared better? We missed on those top recruits that I am sure we spent quite a bit of time recruiting.

Now let's look at the 2015 class who are seniors this year. Here are the top 8:
Raymond
Stewart
Austin
Semaj Thomas
Awolope
Mitchell
Tony James
Flowers

Here are the bottom 9, starting with the lowest ranked:
Julius Lewis
Gladney
Evans
Wilson
Freeze
Iwuagwu
Small
Galeai
Turpin

Same question, who fared better? Hell, our two lowest rated recruits that year turn out to be our lock down corners. And an invaluable starting OG, the QB of the defense in Small, and a guy named Turpin.

And then our 2016 class was headlined by Sewo, then Chambers and Bowen who havent contributed yet.

My point being that this coaching staff has shown a knack for finding diamonds in the rough, but haven't really hit on the top rated players yet. Until we get high level production from our top recruits, as well as find some diamonds in the rough (because we aren't UT where we can miss bowls and still get top 10 classes), we will struggle with depth and competing year in and year out.
 

TX_Krötenechse

Active Member
We have consistently missed on recruiting in three major areas over the past four or five seasons:

- Defensive End
- Offensive Line
- Linebacker

DE recruiting in particular is inexcusably bad. For OL, seems like about 1/4 of the guys we sign end up good enough to play. Linebacker is better than the other two, but we’ve been consistently undersized since 2014 and our good players tend to cluster, meaning that every few seasons, we graduate a ton of production with nothing certain behind it.
 

Realtorfrog

Full Member
We have consistently missed on recruiting in three major areas over the past four or five seasons:

- Defensive End
- Offensive Line
- Linebacker

DE recruiting in particular is inexcusably bad. For OL, seems like about 1/4 of the guys we sign end up good enough to play. Linebacker is better than the other two, but we’ve been consistently undersized since 2014 and our good players tend to cluster, meaning that every few seasons, we graduate a ton of production with nothing certain behind it.

How many OL do we currently have on NFL rosters? I really don’t know the number but can think of 4 and figure I left someone out.
 

Shorty

Active Member
I don't think the focus should be on how the top rated faired versus the lowest rated. The question is only how many studs do you get every year. Not every recruit is going to pan out, regardless of rating. The problem is when we seem to consisently miss at certain positions.
 

Limp Lizard

Full Member
I was curious about how our recruiting classes pan out. GP always says it isn't the guys what you don't get, its the ones that you get and don't pan out.

Let's look at the 2014 class quick since they have a full body of work. Here are the top 9 rated recruits from that year:
Nixon
Sawyer
Porter
Barrett
Iloka
Kee
Muehlstein
McBride
Mosley

Here are the bottom 9, starting with the lowest ranked:
Kolhausen
Petties-Wilson
Summers
Elliot
O’Meally
Issahaku
White
Vai
Schlottmann

Which group fared better? We missed on those top recruits that I am sure we spent quite a bit of time recruiting.

Now let's look at the 2015 class who are seniors this year. Here are the top 8:
Raymond
Stewart
Austin
Semaj Thomas
Awolope
Mitchell
Tony James
Flowers

Here are the bottom 9, starting with the lowest ranked:
Julius Lewis
Gladney
Evans
Wilson
Freeze
Iwuagwu
Small
Galeai
Turpin

Same question, who fared better? Hell, our two lowest rated recruits that year turn out to be our lock down corners. And an invaluable starting OG, the QB of the defense in Small, and a guy named Turpin.

And then our 2016 class was headlined by Sewo, then Chambers and Bowen who havent contributed yet.

My point being that this coaching staff has shown a knack for finding diamonds in the rough, but haven't really hit on the top rated players yet. Until we get high level production from our top recruits, as well as find some diamonds in the rough (because we aren't UT where we can miss bowls and still get top 10 classes), we will struggle with depth and competing year in and year out.
All the really top-rated players we offered went to Texas, OU or Bama. The one exception on defense was Blacklock who was a good or better than his stars!
With this start I forsee some more uncommits...unless GP takes drastic moves. With Texas getting better and Tech taking us behind the woodshed, the program may have peaked in '14 and we are seeing a repeat of the late 50's and 60's. A couple of good years, but basically a downward trend. Down, down, down.:( But that means the really bad years are almost 20 away, unless we are left out in the next reorganization. This was our chance and we have blown it.
 

tetonfrog

Active Member
All the really top-rated players we offered went to Texas, OU or Bama. The one exception on defense was Blacklock who was a good or better than his stars!
With this start I forsee some more uncommits...unless GP takes drastic moves. With Texas getting better and Tech taking us behind the woodshed, the program may have peaked in '14 and we are seeing a repeat of the late 50's and 60's. A couple of good years, but basically a downward trend. Down, down, down.:( But that means the really bad years are almost 20 away, unless we are left out in the next reorganization. This was our chance and we have blown it.

They beat us by 3 points. Woodshed?
 

RollToad

Baylor is Trash.
All the really top-rated players we offered went to Texas, OU or Bama. The one exception on defense was Blacklock who was a good or better than his stars!
With this start I forsee some more uncommits...unless GP takes drastic moves. With Texas getting better and Tech taking us behind the woodshed, the program may have peaked in '14 and we are seeing a repeat of the late 50's and 60's. A couple of good years, but basically a downward trend. Down, down, down.:( But that means the really bad years are almost 20 away, unless we are left out in the next reorganization. This was our chance and we have blown it.
Good grief.
 

TX_Krötenechse

Active Member
How many OL do we currently have on NFL rosters? I really don’t know the number but can think of 4 and figure I left someone out.
We do, for sure. We have gotten some great OL over the years. But we aren’t consistent - hence losing four to the NFL last season and having nobody ready to step into their shoes.

I’m not saying we haven’t had good or even great players in these positions. But we miss way more than we hit.
 

Eight

Member
We do, for sure. We have gotten some great OL over the years. But we aren’t consistent - hence losing four to the NFL last season and having nobody ready to step into their shoes.

I’m not saying we haven’t had good or even great players in these positions. But we miss way more than we hit.

the depth problem reared its head last year when morris went out and the line struggled in the run game during the middle of the season.

what is interesting is the clusters that have shown up in the frogs recruiting of offensive linemen.

2102 class - collins, hunt, vaitai along with childs who i believe ended up being a medical

2013 class - morris, noteboom, pryor with fromayan transferring out and tunstill never really playing

so 9 recruits, 6 starters and all 6 get at least a shot with a pro team.

2014-15 classes 10 recruits, 2 starters, and 1 with an nfl shot

2016 class - gaynor, hollins, myers, niang with myers and niang showing nfl potential

those 2 sandwich classes really killed depth in the line and it will take time to rebuild
 

TCU_backer

Active Member
the depth problem reared its head last year when morris went out and the line struggled in the run game during the middle of the season.

what is interesting is the clusters that have shown up in the frogs recruiting of offensive linemen.

2102 class - collins, hunt, vaitai along with childs who i believe ended up being a medical

2013 class - morris, noteboom, pryor with fromayan transferring out and tunstill never really playing

so 9 recruits, 6 starters and all 6 get at least a shot with a pro team.

2014-15 classes 10 recruits, 2 starters, and 1 with an nfl shot

2016 class - gaynor, hollins, myers, niang with myers and niang showing nfl potential

those 2 sandwich classes really killed depth in the line and it will take time to rebuild
OL Coaches by Year:

2012 - Eddie Williamson
2013 - Eddie Williamson
2014 - Jarrett Anderson
2015 - Jarrett Anderson
2016 - Jarrett Anderson
2017 - Chris Thomsen

Jarrett Anderson is a good guy I’m sure. He was a awful OC, awful OL coach and is proving to be a disaster at WR coach.

I at least see Thomsen working to make adjustments... im interested in seeing how he performs over the next few years.
 

Wexahu

Full Member
It really is almost unbelievable how, almost without exception, our very best players this decade have been the least heralded recruits.
 
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