Mailbag question: Recruiting and the advantages of Texas, Florida and California schools
Given that most elite recruits are from the Southeast and Texas/California, isn't the Big Ten under a tremendous disadvantage? How do you get someone to move from warm weather to the frigid cold, especially that far from home? I also have a second question. Why can't RR compete for the best recruits against Ohio State? Is it simply due to the last two seasons? Seems to me we were losing ground even before he arrived.
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Peter F.
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Thanks for the question.
USC, UCLA, Texas, and most of the SEC schools definitely have a built in recruiting advantage.
Texas can basically fill in its entire roster with homegrown talent and usually has almost and entire class verbally commit a year ahead of time before signing day; the same with USC and Florida schools inking the in-state recruits.
In Ohio, we have been upset with Michigan's recruiting of the state back to the Coach Carr days. At this point, getting the elite talent from Ohio is going to take some serious work. Ohio State has done a fantastic job in state and will not give that up without a tremendous fight.
Michigan has secured commitments from many recruits in Ohio this year, which we like a lot. But of these Ohio players, there are few, if any, that Ohio State either offered or had a serious fight with Michigan for a commitment. We need to start battling Ohio State for the elite players in Ohio and in 2011 Michigan has a good chance, but they need to win and also stay on these recruits the entire year, not just after the season.
Trying to convince high school recruits that playing in cold will help prepare them for the NFL is one angle we have heard used.
One thing Michigan/Coach Rod has to offer is early playing time, but most of the true elites believe they can compete with anyone at any program.
The bottom line, is Michigan has to start to win again if it wants to attract the best of the best, or as we say the elite players.
Written by GBMW Staff
Go Blue -- Wear Maize!
I think Justin Turner was the #1 prospect in Ohio last year. We need to do a little better head to head with Ohios St, but we need to win 1st. Let's just not go overboard that we aren't getting highly rated prospects from Ohio.
ReplyDeleteKoger, Toussiant, Turner are a few of the highly rated guys we got and they tried to steal Omameh from us after he was overlooked.
Anonymous,
ReplyDeleteSome of those names you mentioned were life long Michigan fans. What I mean and not to put words in CoachBt's mouth, but what I call battling Ohio State for kids are the ones that both teams offer eary on in the spring/summer time and then do battle with the kid because both program wanted the kid from the very start.
First off Justin Turner was a diehard Michigan fan growing up along with Kevin Koger.
Turner almost decided to go to Ohio State after he did not hear from the Michigan coaches for months.
Koger whose father is a lifelong Michigan fan and so was Kevin, but even he was almost swayed when Coach Carr left.
Toussaint was really not that highly rated and believe did not get much or any attention from Ohio State.
Omameh yea we got him at the very end and when Ohio State missed out on a few higher rated recruits they went after him on the last couple of days before signing day so that was not a real battle in my opinion for a recruit.
It is hard to say we are battling with Ohio State when in most of the cases Ohio State did not even offer or look at a kid. That is what I am talking about.
Yes it is great Michigan is getting back into Ohio, but until they start getting the elite level kids that Ohio State wants then it does not really mean anything of getting a few kids from Ohio that they did not want.