2015 recruits/commitment thread

[azthrillhouse]

Gotta love the yearly "this class is a disappointment" thread. How will the Cats ever compete for the Pac-12 South?

If you're not recruiting at a high level, it does make it tough.

But "recruiting at a high level" does not equal Rivals stars.

2011 recruiting class are now seniors and RS juniors - the leaders of their teams.
http://sports.yahoo.com/footballrecruit ... /PAC12/all

2012 recruiting class are now juniors and RS sophomores - guys who should be starting or heavy contributors.
http://sports.yahoo.com/footballrecruit ... /PAC12/all

Look at those recruiting classes and try to draw anything but an exceedingly jagged line between recruiting rankings and team success.

p.s. generally I would temper this attitude by saying "but I'll always want a 4 star over a 3 star" but look at Oregon's 2011 class. The two 5-stars were Lyerla and DAT, two head-cases that never contributed anywhere near their hype. And that Heisman guy was one of their lowest-rated recruits.

The amount of hand-wringing that is going on w/ this year's class in particular is puzzling. Maybe you can look at 5 or 10 year chunks of time and draw some conclusions, but sweating any given year's recruits is a waste of energy.

[dmjcat]

I sure hope there is a big surprise, preferable a highly recruited db or dl, because to say the current class is a disappointment would be an under statement.

For filling needs it is an "adequate" or "serviceable" class. For going out and getting the best "accessible talent" it is a "disappointment."

In my opinion the need that needs to be filled is upping the talent level, we currently have one maybe two players that the USCs of the world would recruit. One of which has a torn acl. We won the pac 12 south yet have the 8th best class in the pac 12, most importantly well behind ASU.

Could not agree more although the "Ooh Ahh Man" is correct in that most of our class was committed before the season began. I certainly don't expect RRod to out-recruit the LA schools ever, but we should be able to be competetive with asu,WSU, Utah and Colorado on a regular basis. No doubt the scum are kicking our ass in the latest recruiting cycle but they had two large advantages: 1) They won the south last year 2) They had tremendous exposure from being on the "Drive" which essentially is a 50-60 hour recruiting video over an entire season. Going forward, however, there isn't any excuse to being seriously out-recruited by the wsu's of the world......RRod and the staff need to step it up. If we are still taking commits from 2 stars in June with offer lists consisting of San Jose State, Wyoming and Rice I will be very disappointed.

I think RRod needs to drop the practice of signing up > 75% of his class before the season starts (unless they are highly rated 4/5 star types or seriously under-rated 3 star recruits). The UA administration could also help out by lowering the JC admission standards to match asu/wsu/utah (that has cost us dearly over the years...Gabe Long to Utah, Elder to asu). We don't have the luxury of being in LA or having a beach so the staff has to scratch and claw for every recruit. I also hope that RRod/Byrne are heavily politicking the PAC12 network to get on the "Drive" in the near future.

Scooby Wrights are nice........but the vast majority of our 2 star recruits over the years have panned out as 2 Star recruits. The Scooby Wrights of the world are the exception, not the rule.

[catinfl]

Agreed CATINFL. Kid has a stellar year and gets beat on one play and blows out his knee and he drops quite a bit. That seems harsh.

What do you think of Morrisson?

Rivals is a little butthurt from him not attending their camps I assume. He has one bad practice and blows out his knee after dominating HS once again and drops nearly 200 spots out of 4* status? Rivals did the same thing when Cam Denson didn't take their camps seriously. He went to one looked dis-interested and they dropped him 200 spots and after a record breaking senior year he doesn't move up at all. I respect Scout so much more than Rivals. Rivals is based on camps pretty much and it bothers me.

On Morrison he's almost a guaranteed RS, but I like him. He has solid size and his dad has been mentoring him on being a DB. A good prospect.

[TuiTouchdown]

The kid I'm most excited about it Shun Brown. We need a shut-down corner.

[ASUHATER!]

All this complaining about how the south title didn't get us better recruits is confusing....we had almost every scholarship filled by labor day. There weren't any spots open left for our good season to convince guys to commit...unless we pulled offers from guys that already committed. In RR I trust..okgs seem to be working out ok so far.

[Merkin]

The kid I'm most excited about it Shun Brown. We need a shut-down corner.

Shut it down Shun Brown!

Like the ring of that.

[RazorsEdgeAZ]

All this complaining about how the south title didn't get us better recruits is confusing....we had almost every scholarship filled by labor day. There weren't any spots open left for our good season to convince guys to commit...unless we pulled offers from guys that already committed. In RR I trust..okgs seem to be working out ok so far.

I want to make sure you/others not lumping my data post as "complaining" or I think someone else described some comments (maybe not re: mine) "disappointment".

I stated some personal concerns. Concerns as POSSIBLE issues. As in, not known as any issue(s) to complain or be disappointed about yet or maybe ever. Not concerns as fact but submitted some data facts in recruitment data.

- Is it most optimum process for securing highest level talent and needs by securing most of the class prior to start of season. Hey, this seems somewhat new to Rich Rod to do over his career. It's a question. I'm sure it's optimum in some areas for recruiting.

- My concerns are baseline against getting to a Rose Bowl. I've stated multiple times classes are good enough to get to have winning seasons, get to bowl games and be "successful". I'm talking about getting to a Rose Bowl level. Why, not just because of being a fan but because that's what Rich Rod, staff and AD have told us fans is the goal. "Why not Arizona"

-I believe Rich Rod has the ambition, competitive nature and is a Hell of a coach that can get Arizona there. But I think he would want better recruits. I think he's on record saying as such in terms of size/speed. In "other" things to help improve recruiting.

-I'm sure ALL Pac12 teams are getting Pac12 level recruits. Makes the Pac12 competitive. But obviously there's differences in coaching and recruit skill in PAC12 teams. It's starts I assume, at all get at least "good" recruit classes. It's a P5 conference.

-I don't know exactly what it takes to achieve a Rose Bowl berth in coaching or recruitment. We've never been there. I'm not sure any of us do. I can analyze other teams that have and look at.

-One thing in common with ALL past Pac12 teams that have gone to the Rose Bowl since online recruiting services started ALL have recorded consistently higher ranked recruitment classes than Arizona. Not just one class, but multiple classes. Most time in consecutive years.

-That's data. Supply data that goes against that. Again, my baseline is Rose Bowl berth. Would I as a fan be happy Arizona going to Fiesta or Holiday bowl? Sure, but I'm not ready to settle for that yet. Rich Rod and Greg Byrne combo is terrific imo. Not convinced that level can be easily replaced and achieve more long-term.

-35%-40% that Arizona staff offers annually are to 4 or 5 star recruits. I'm sure they're not offering them for grins. They would like many of them to commit. ultimately not all, but I assume many/more of them.

-I'll assume that if Arizona secured higher number of 4 star recruits or recruits that had multiple other P5 offers many of us would be celebrating that. Giddy about the future. Many us us would be commenting our excitement of the possibility. I'm not sure how many of you would be excited about more 4 star recruits that committed, but I assume many of you would be touting it.

Right now it's Rose Bowl or bust in how I'm analyzing recruitment classes. That's it. Not disappointed or complaining yet. If Arizona doesn't get to a Rose Bowl, then OK. It's just a concern that may or may not pan out in harnessing momentum or skill level getting there. Based on known data.

[UALoco]

The lack of closure on 4 and 5* star recruits is not due to a lack of trying, it is due to a lack of a winning tradition. RR is building that tradition and we should expect higher ranked recruiting classes but one Pac12 South title does not qualify as a winning tradition. He will have to continue to exceed expectations with talent he has and talent should improve, that does not take away from the men currently on the team, it is always important to strive to improve. See you all at OKG day. I'll be there.

[Scummy Dick Douglas]

Just lost a lot of respect for rivals

Keenan Walker will never make it on campus, his academics are a mess. If he somehow does enroll @ UA in time for 2015 season, he will be living proof that UA does not have some magical higher education standard than the rest of the PAC.

[catinfl]

Just lost a lot of respect for rivals

Keenan Walker will never make it on campus, his academics are a mess. If he somehow does enroll @ UA in time for 2015 season, he will be living proof that UA does not have some magical higher education standard than the rest of the PAC.

Interesting, but likely not true. Complete different reports about Keenan from UA.

[Newportcat]

The lack of closure on 4 and 5* star recruits is not due to a lack of trying, it is due to a lack of a winning tradition. RR is building that tradition and we should expect higher ranked recruiting classes but one Pac12 South title does not qualify as a winning tradition. He will have to continue to exceed expectations with talent he has and talent should improve, that does not take away from the men currently on the team, it is always important to strive to improve. See you all at OKG day. I'll be there.

So why were we able to land a bunch of four stars last year????

Let's face it, from a stars and ranking perspective this class sucks. It just does. You can never truly judge a class until year 3 but for now this is a down class. The first class was awful but rich rod gets a pass there. Second class was much much better and last year seemed to be a fringe top 25 class and looked very strong on paper.

Now this year we have our best year since 1998 and we will finish 9th in the PAC 12 in recruiting rankings. That's pathetic and embarrassing

[whatisee]

After adding 13 guys the other day for spring football. I feel less dodgy about this class than I once did.

[catinfl]

After adding 13 guys the other day for spring football. I feel less dodgy about this class than I once did.

A lot of people forget that Devon Brewer, Sharif Williams, Jace Whittaker, and Jordan Morgan are technically apart of this class and if we can finish strong again I can see us grey-shirting a guy or two. Wasn't a fan of grey-shirting unless the kids are up for it or have to because of grades. There is always a surprise with this staff and I can't wait for #OKGDAY2015.

[Harvey Specter]

Many posters pointed to the lack of all-Conference performers on RichRod's first 2 teams as evidence that the cupboard was left bare by Stoops. Fair enough... A strong argument can be made that is a better measure of recruiting success than star rankings.

But let's be consistent and use that relative measure in the next couple seasons as evidence of recruiting success, too. That will indicate, overall, how effective recruiting has been.

The real measure, obviously, is win-loss record. RR has proven he can do more with less than almost anyone else in the league... But you still need players. Whether or not he can recruit at a high enough level to make us a regular contender is yet TBD, IMO.

[Newportcat]

One thing I can say is that in Rich Rod's first three classes, a third of those players are no longer with the team. That is pretty sad.

Another thing Rich Rod has done an absolutely terrible job is JC recruiting. Really bad, like awful. And to win at U of A you need to recruit JUCO's well. Gurrola was good but everyone else has been bad. Lets hope this years JUCOs contribute. Arizona has always had a nice history with JUCO's and hoping Rich Rod can turn around that recruiting.

[ASUHATER!]

Well RR has proven that he can make us an average 9-4 team that flirts with the top 25 consistently with whatever players he can get. If he gets top recruits ever, Arizona can be a 10+ win team year in year out.

[azcat49]

One thing I can say is that in Rich Rod's first three classes, a third of those players are no longer with the team. That is pretty sad.

Another thing Rich Rod has done an absolutely terrible job is JC recruiting. Really bad, like awful. And to win at U of A you need to recruit JUCO's well. Gurrola was good but everyone else has been bad. Lets hope this years JUCOs contribute. Arizona has always had a nice history with JUCO's and hoping Rich Rod can turn around that recruiting.

I actually like the turnnover in this case. RR has repeatedly spoke about getting his roster right and you either get em good or get em out while you are building.

3 bowl games and 26 wins in 3 years works for me. I do agree on your JC comment though. Seems we would have scored several starters on defense given the shortage there

[Newportcat]

Did marlan Gonzalez visit this weekend?

[dmjcat]

Cats get commitment from 3 Star Louisiana receiver:

http://heatwaved.com/2015/01/24/arizona ... ell-clark/

[whatisee]

Did marlan Gonzalez visit this weekend?

i think he cancelled all visits after revisiting USF

[Newportcat]

That sucks as he is the exact type of recruit we needed. Big strong Defensive End

Why don't need more small receivers, we need big strong lineman

[The Ooh Aah Man]

5 dlinemen in this class if you include Shariff Williams, that is a lot considering Arizona returns all but one on the Dline next year and only uses a three-man front.

[TuiTouchdown]

5 dlinemen in this class if you include Shariff Williams, that is a lot considering Arizona returns all but one on the Dline next year and only uses a three-man front.

Yep, I like those numbers. Shariff will be that big plug in the middle a lot of us fans have been asking for. Who knows if he will be as formidable as Shelton was this year or that guy from ASU the year before.

[Footballjunkie]

Folks,

Please STOP getting hung up on the number of "stars" that a recruit has and "study" more videos.
It looks like RichRod is also looking at character, the integrity of a recruit, along with their athletic ability. AKA an OK Guy.
Its not an exact science. Sometimes its the "little" things that make a man. Someone later in life you wouldn't mind calling a friend or chatting with after their college/pro days are over.

Look at the following list of DB's:
http://sports.yahoo.com/ncaa/football/r ... rank-536/0

You will notice that Antoine Cason is listed at #37 with three stars. I think he won some major awards here (Thorpe), and last I heard was with the Cardinals after being a #1 draft choice of San Diego.
I also see rated lower than him some kid named Darrelle Revis at #46, also a three star. At one time the best CB in the NFL, before injuries. Poor guy only had four or five offers.

Also, I was just in contact with Arizonas only Rivals 5 star player, Louis Holmes. He is in town and just signed with the LA Kiss Arena Football team this past weekend and hopes to make the team this year after being out of football for a while. He didn't have the career everyone hoped and had some "different" ideas about how to live his life. He says he's on a straight path and not into other "stuff". He said that he's will try to limit "distractions" so he can be all he can be. He is happy to get another chance. Deep down a good guy that got "Distracted". Just because you are a 5 star doesn't mean that you are guaranteed anything. You have to "Want" to play professional football. Its not an easy career especially if you get dinged up.

[Newportcat]

Oh god here we go again.

Telling people stars doesnt matter by bringing up the same recruits (Cason, Scobby, Tedy, and Cecil) gets old super quick. What about all the literally hundreds of lower ranked 2-3 star recruits we have had who didnt do anything.

Also, what about Gronkowski or Kadeem or Nick Wilson or Caleb Jones this year. All 4-5 star recruits, all studs and difference makers.

You guys are the same guys who probably loved it when Mike Stoops used to say "Hard work beats Talent when Talent doesn't work hard" aka you are not talented Arizona football players so you better work really hard.

I hated the fact we had that up as what happens when Talent does Work Hard...oh thats right you get to a Rose Bowl.

I know rankings don't mean anything apparently, but per Rivals our 2012 class (which was a giant train wreck) will be higher rated then our 2015 class unless we get some major swings in the end. That is sad

[CalStateTempe]

You guys are the same guys who probably loved it when Mike Stoops used to say "Hard work beats Talent when Talent doesn't work hard" aka you are not talented Arizona football players so you better work really hard.

I hated the fact we had that up as what happens when Talent does Work Hard...oh thats right you get to a Rose Bowl.

man I was just beginning to forgot how big of a tool Stoops was. Thanks for reminding me.

[UAEebs86]

Oh god here we go again.

Telling people stars doesnt matter by bringing up the same recruits (Cason, Scobby, Tedy, and Cecil) gets old super quick.

Newportcat,

You know what else gets old super quick? Every damn thread about our recruits turning into a fucking star argument.

I see both sides of the argument and I think the truth is probably somewhere in the middle as it is for most things.
But just once I would just like to come to a thread about our recruits and not have to rehash that argument over and over.

Mods, can we sticky a thread for bitching about OKGs vs. 4 & 5 stars? And leave this thread and others like it for discussing potential and verbal/signed recruits?

[The Ooh Aah Man]

I like winning, and so far Rodriguez is winning. Tough to argue against winning. On to the next one!

[Newportcat]

First off, I have brought up in this thread many questions and comments about recruits and sorry if I don't jump up for joy when we land a two star player.

I was very fired up about last years class but I hate hearing everyone bring up all the same excuses why this class is fine when the rankings and stars and offer lists say otherwise.

Proof will be in the pudding but the truth is the top programs universally recruit well. There are some minor exceptions like Wisconsin or Kansas state.

If we had a bunch if three stars committed to our basketball team and we all were saying they were OKG's there would be a mutiny against Sean miller.

From my study I posted before it's proven that higher ranked recruits have performed better then lower ranked recruits at Arizona.

Sorry for wanting our program to continue to improve and grow and get nervous when I feel like we are not bringing in better and better recruiting classes. ASU is so why can't we?

[catinfl]

First off, I have brought up in this thread many questions and comments about recruits and sorry if I don't jump up for joy when we land a two star player.

I was very fired up about last years class but I hate hearing everyone bring up all the same excuses why this class is fine when the rankings and stars and offer lists say otherwise.

Proof will be in the pudding but the truth is the top programs universally recruit well. There are some minor exceptions like Wisconsin or Kansas state.

If we had a bunch if three stars committed to our basketball team and we all were saying they were OKG's there would be a mutiny against Sean miller.

From my study I posted before it's proven that higher ranked recruits have performed better then lower ranked recruits at Arizona.

Sorry for wanting our program to continue to improve and grow and get nervous when I feel like we are not bringing in better and better recruiting classes. ASU is so why can't we?

Ok let's be real here. Basketball recruiting is sooooooooooooo much different than footaball. First of all basketball has something like 12 scholarships while football has 85. You see why coaches take 3*'s right? Matty D tweeted recently "It's not about stars it's about production" and I love that for this class because every single recruit produced at a very high level. We have a lot of kids who were under-rated for various reasons (Harper Sherman playing in Canada, Connolly going down for injury, Kendal Franklin just being overlooked). I look at this class and see a bunch of depth and solid players. I think some kids can be really good.

Catinfl's top 5
1. Keenan Walker (Straight up beast and will never understand why Rivals dropped him so much)
2. Darick Holmes (Tore up California again and the staff LOVES him. Not to mention his bro isn't to shabby http://sports.yahoo.com/ncaa/football/r ... mes-153212
3. Shun Brown (Was skeptical when we took him, but he proved he belonged at Slot receiver in high-school. 1300 yards receiving 26 TD's then went to the Semper-Fi Bowl and tore it up as a DB and was a top performer. Overall a great athlete that I think can play right away.)
4. Alex Kosiniski (Enrolled for the Spring and the coaches are also really high on him. I think he can be a depth guy this year and he is also a force on the defensive line. Check out his tape and it's pretty impressive and he is clearly under-rated.)
5. Anthony Mariscal (Practically a Jared Tevis clone and it's almost scary how much they look/play alike)

I didn't put JUCO guys on there, but Magiolore will contribute in some capacity and Morin is a really really good athlete. He has 3 to play 2 so he may red-shirt. Fotu is a force on the line and at the worst will contribute as a depth guy, but I think he starts.

[azcat49]

On paper it's a pretty disappointing class but on the field performance could change that. The one thing that gives me hope is thatvthis staff does a really good job evaluating who they want and who would fit and they offer early and we got a bunch of guys they wanted. If we filled this class late with these guys I would be more worried.

It does bother me that ASSU is getting multiple visits from 5 star kids and they have every recruit ranked in the top 100 At there position. That is impressive. Maybe another 10 win year gets us there.

Still RR's 26 wins in 3 years and a south title spsaks louder than anything else.

[catinfl]

On paper it's a pretty disappointing class but on the field performance could change that. The one thing that gives me hope is thatvthis staff does a really good job evaluating who they want and who would fit and they offer early and we got a bunch of guys they wanted. If we filled this class late with these guys I would be more worried.

It does bother me that ASSU is getting multiple visits from 5 star kids and they have every recruit ranked in the top 100 At there position. That is impressive. Maybe another 10 win year gets us there.

Still RR's 26 wins in 3 years and a south title spsaks louder than anything else.

asu doesn't give up on these 5*'s and they're pretty close to getting a few, but guess what? They've never gotten one. RR knows what tree to bark up and some of these kids have USC/Bama/UCLA/Etc. written all over them and they move on to kids they have a realistic shot at. Not to mention a lot of 5* kids involve some other factors trying to get them. (See Jalen Tabor)

[UALoco]

I'd rather be pleasantly surprised with the performance on the field and disappointed with the recruiting ranking than the other way around.

[TuiTouchdown]

Heard Orlando Bradford got an offer today from Mich and told them he was a solid commit to UA.

[CalStateTempe]

[btfd16]

I'd rather be pleasantly surprised with the performance on the field and disappointed with the recruiting ranking than the other way around.

Exactly who cares about stars. They're nice but as long as we win I don't care

[catgrad97]

As long as we're not being lazy and not entertaining offers, in contrast to post-1998 Dick Tomey.

There are certain recruits out there who can get this program to the next level, and we can't just rely on them to come to us or expect good fortune to fill the gap in talent at nose guard and corner, especially.

This team is no longer under the radar. Going to get everyone's best shot next season--especially Oregon's.

[azcat49]

We miss Oregon the next 2 years

[Merkin]

We miss Oregon the next 2 years

Just in the PAC championship game!

Ben Hansen posted this morning that Oregon is getting an elite QB from some smaller school that was a top prospect out of high school but didn't have the grades, but will come in and be immediately eligible.

[The Ooh Aah Man]

We miss Oregon the next 2 years

Just in the PAC championship game!

Ben Hansen posted this morning that Oregon is getting an elite QB from some smaller school that was a top prospect out of high school but didn't have the grades, but will come in and be immediately eligible.

Eastern Washington.

[azpenguin]

Seen online about the EWU guy: "He lit up UW this year, so he's already an Oregon QB."

[catinfl]

Interesting to see where Braxton miller goes now

[MrBug708]

UCLA is a possible destination, but I doubt he lands here.

[ANGCatFan]

Cryptic tweet from Matty D yesterday. Not sure if it has to do with the group of preferred walk-on's visiting this weekend or a surprise for Wednesday.

[Footballjunkie]

Cryptic tweet from Matty D yesterday. Not sure if it has to do with the group of preferred walk-on's visiting this weekend or a surprise for Wednesday.

Who are the recruits taking their official visit this weekend? Possibly someone who was committed to another program and "flipped" to Arizona?

[UAEebs86]

Who are the recruits taking their official visit this weekend? Possibly someone who was committed to another program and "flipped" to Arizona?

Mostly walk-ons I think:

Hope he turns out as good as a previous DB out of my alma mater. (Prince Amukamara).

I heard we might have gotten him if Stoops had offered.

[whatisee]

Cryptic tweet from Matty D yesterday. Not sure if it has to do with the group of preferred walk-on's visiting this weekend or a surprise for Wednesday.

Sounds like he's talking to the bunch around here that bitch about the quality of our recruits. Star watchers

[whatisee]

Goodbye Kendrick Jackson...not an OKG

[UAEebs86]

Two kids from Hamilton just announced they are walking on, a CB and a lineman. Are we starting to break in there finally?

[Newportcat]

Goodbye Kendrick Jackson...not an OKG

I thought this was pretty well known

Do we have any LB's in this class???? We need the Hulk now