The Evolution of Recruiting

[SamRebel35]

I posted this in a separate thread a couple of days ago, but I thought it would be an interesting conversation piece. These are just my opinions about recruiting. I would like to hear other people's perspective too.

Personally, I think the whole fascination with recruiting leads to greater pressure for highschool kids, and then even more pressure once they are playing in college. There are a lot of kids that handle the attention and expectations very well, but there has to be a boat load of them that are simply not ready for that kind of attention and scrutiny. I can't imagine being 18 years old and being idolized by an entire fan base before I even registered for classes. That's got to be a mountain of pressure for a kid.

Then, there's the pressure of trying to boost your Rivals or Scouts rating while you're still in HS. Not a lot of high schools do drug testing, and it is easy for a young man to entertain the notion of taking the "easy way" to being bigger, faster, and stronger. In summary, recruiting is fun to keep track of during the boring offseason, but I submit that the insanity surrounding the recruiting is actually to the detriment of the kids involved, and the football community at large.

 

[Lofton Jr.]

good thoughts. in the hoopla we forget that these kids are...well...kids. we treat them like they are professional athletes when they are nowhere near that.

 

[RCKYT0P]

good thoughts. in the hoopla we forget that these kids are...well...kids. we treat them like they are professional athletes when they are nowhere near that.

True

 

[wildberry14]

i like to think of them as commodities. just the truth

 

[Lofton Jr.]

i like to think of them as commodities. just the truth

haha, treat em like stocks. if theyre high, praise em, if theyre low, curse em

 

[Bear Bryant]

It is good for these kids. Tremendous success brings on pressure; it is natural. If a kid cannot handle the attention and responsibilty he will leave and be replaced by someone that can. I think it absurb to play the worlds smallest violin and try to feel sorry for these kids in any aspect. These kids are extremely fortunate and lucky to be given such an amazing oppurtunity to get an education, have an opputunity at the NFL and become part of an elite club forever while enjoying themselves as on campus celebrities for four years.

 

[SamRebel35]

It is good for these kids. Tremendous success brings on pressure; it is natural. If a kid cannot handle the attention and responsibilty he will leave and be replaced by someone that can. I think it absurb to play the worlds smallest violin and try to feel sorry for these kids in any aspect. These kids are extremely fortunate and lucky to be given such an amazing oppurtunity to get an education, have an opputunity at the NFL and become part of an elite club forever while enjoying themselves as on campus celebrities for four years.

I never mentioned that I felt sorry for them. I would love to be in their shoes. It is a lot of pressure, though, and some players that are physically gifted, get weeded out before they are ever really psychologically mature enough to deal with the pressure properly. This is why I think that the obsession with recruiting over the past decade has done some damage to college football.

 

[Bear Bryant]

I never mentioned that I felt sorry for them. I would love to be in their shoes. It is a lot of pressure, though, and some players that are physically gifted, get weeded out before they are ever really psychologically mature enough to deal with the pressure properly. This is why I think that the obsession with recruiting over the past decade has done some damage to college football.

I feel it has done great things. As you mentioned it weeds out the weak and lets the strongest players make an impact. This is simply capitalism at work. Dealing with pressure is part of becoming a big shot at any discipline. If certains kids cant deal with it then they fail. Look at the impact true freshman can have now with the highly competitive nature of the recruiting process: Eric Berry, Julio Jones, Joe McKnight, A.J. Green, etc.

 

[SamRebel35]

I feel it has done great things. As you mentioned it weeds out the weak and lets the strongest players make an impact. This is simply capitalism at work. Dealing with pressure is part of becoming a big shot at any discipline. If certains kids cant deal with it then they fail. Look at the impact true freshman can have now with the highly competitive nature of the recruiting process: Eric Berry, Julio Jones, Joe McKnight, A.J. Green, etc.

There have always been true freshmen that have been able to compete. I see where you are coming from with your other points, but I still have to respectfully disagree. I will still be paying attention to recruiting, though. Hahaha. It is something to do in the summer.