As we have all seen, Dooley's recruiting plan may not be geared towards the less patient fan at all, but in fact patience is something that we need to get our arms around because this isn't going to be an easy task to get UT back to the top of the SEC, where it belongs in this fan's eyes. I want to take a bit to examine some of Coach Dooley's quotes from a recent GVX article, which seem to be misinterpreted by some of our members at best.
Quote #1
This quote probably doesn't sit well with the "I want it now" crowd, but Coach Dooley is exactly right where he is going with the recruiting process. We want to form classes that can be accountable with one another, and that will mesh in character and ability together. That doesn't mean that we take all marginal players or blue chippers, instead I think it means that you take players that can motivate one another to be better everyday.
Quote #2
Once again, Coach Dooley is right on the money with this quote. All he is saying here is you take some risks with the higher rated guys because of potential, but you don't take the same risks with the lower tier guys, because it's not worth the risk if they aren't going to help you in some aspect of the game.
Quote #3
Here is one that can be quickly misinterpreted without thinking about it first. All he is saying here is that he wants players to bleed orange, highly rated or not. He wants leaders, not followers, and that's what a team sport is about.
Quote #4
Yet again, Dooley is sending the message that he doesn't want kids who don't want to be a part of a program from the get go. He wants kids that will be here for the right reasons, not just to get to the league, which this staff has plenty of practice providing that service as well. He wants to recruit the RIGHT kids to UT, and that's going to be a balance of risk and character.
Quote #5
I love this in a coach. He doesn't care what people think, instead he wants to work and prove himself. Winning the opinion poll didn't work for this team last year, as they finished 7-6 and had more mishaps and violations than they did wins. Coach Dooley wants to work for approval, and has done this all his life by making his own way, which some of our fans don't agree because of his last coaching gig in the WAC. Coach Dooley will work for UT, not himself, as he understands that you must make the school the focal point of recruiting, and not the coaches.
So, in all reality, Coach Dooley is not looking for square peg in a round hole, but is instead looking for the best fit in players for this team and this school. I have seen plenty of highly rated kids never contribute here at UT in the past few years, and honestly I am tired of it. Yet, we will have a walk-on as our starting MLB, and one of our former coaches seemed to think that he had NFL ability. So, it's all going to be a balancing act, and finding those players that fit well together, highly rated and character guys alike. So, be patient, and even if Coach Dooley doesn't work out over time, at least some stability can somewhat be brought back to The Hill.
Have a great rest of the evening VN. :hi:
