Recuiting

[UtahFanSir]

Utah offered almost every 5* kid out there. We know Alabama does that as a routine along with all of the so-called perennial programs. Over the last few years, Utah has been getting closer to landing one. The Utes have secured the services of more 4* kids and if the LB who transferred from UCLA clears his medical, Utah will have a 5* kid there.

I’m not sure how many 5* recruits have tripped to Utah, if anyone knows the rough number, please share. But here is a WR from California who appears to be focused on Pac-12 programs with the obligitory SEC schools we have come to loathe. See this 247Sports article about 5* California WR Troy Franklin’s Top 11…

[Central Coast Ute]

It would be amazing to land him. He’s a 2021 kid so of the Utes show well for the rest of the year, they could make his top 5.

[User Suspended]

whoa, whoa, pump the breaks there champ.  Let’s focus on getting just one 4* high school player to commit this year…. it’s looking pretty sketchy at this point

[PhiladelphiaUte]

That’s right Pace.  We don’t want to recruit too many 4-star kids.  Because if we wind up signing more than 1, we’re basically f*cked.  Amiright?

[User Suspended]

As Utahfansir stated,  Utah basically offers hundreds of 4 and 5 star HS kids every single year.  The conversion rate is beyond horrendous.

There seems to be a huge disconnect between mailing and offer letter and actually having the recruiting chops to land a few of these top high school kids.

 

[ayoriver]

Pace, are you able to admit there is a disconnect between star rating and results when you can develop players like Utah can?

Everything about the Utes these last few years refutes your “there are no 5 stars so Whitt’s terrible” schtick.

Any fan whose honest will admit that we want to see some blue chips donning a red U on signing day, but we also know we don’t need it to be successful. We can see the progress enough to be excited.

Weirdly, the rest of the country seems to be realizing that too, yet here you are with the same bs. Did you not get the Oscar Meyer weinie whistle you desperately wanted when you were 8, or what?

[ThurstonW]

Pace, your pessimism is tiresome.  Since you seem to be confident enough in your recruiting knowledge to constantly criticize Whitt and his staff, why don’t you catch the next bus up to the U and submit an application/resume for the recruiting coordinator position.  I’m sure they will be amazed with your insight!

[Utahute72]

Remember that basically star ratings are based on measurables and HS performance. Utah recruits on potential and projected growth. So a Jake Heaps that’s maxed out in high school wouldn’t be as valued by Utah as other schools. But a 3 star Zach Moss would. How’d that work out?

[Central Coast Ute]

Zack Moss was rated .83 by 247. DHC in the same class was slightly higher. They dropped the ball on that one.

[Distantute]

Pace wants utah to land top recruits rather than relying on diamonds in the rough who must be developed over 4 years. Why is this a controversial take. If we recruited better combined with development and system wed be a perennial power. I dont get the hate on pace crowd.

[Utahute72]

Well Utah already passed on a 4* to take a 3* at that position because they felt he was a better fit. Utah recruits differently than most schools, and it’s shown to be pretty effective. Most the the stars on this year’s team were 3* recruits, the 4*s in that class didn’t pan out.

[User Suspended]

who is saying we passed on a 4*?  link?

[FtheY]

I think it was the rb that just committed

[Central Coast Ute]

It was. Gentry would likely be rated higher if he weren’t playing behind the #1 RB in the class. Stars aren’t everything, even if they are a good indicator.

[UtahFanSir]

Clearly Whittingham and staff take recruiting seriously. They work to get the best kids who are prepared to sign with Utah. The example you gave is one prime example. Utah wanted only one RB and the 3* RB was behind a 5* kid so that he ended up doing more receiving. Utah took him and not the 4*. It was about potential. The 3* RB in being a receiver, looks a lot like Moss, in style and technique. Assuming he signs, he is has massive upside.

[Central Coast Ute]

It was different position in a different class.

[ayoriver]

Darvon Hubbard is the 4 star that was passed up in favor of the 3 star RB previously committed to Arkansas, John Gentry.

[User Suspended]

Do you have a link to this?  the only article I found from John Gentry was this …. and he never mentioned that Utah passed on a 4 star to take https://247sports.com/college/utah/Article/BREAKING-Texas-running-back-John-Gentry-commits-to-Utah-138893696/

[mfaulk80]

It was discussed on the 247 forums for weeks and weeks that Hubbard was looking to commit.  If you search, then you’ll find quotes of him loving on Utah.  He was set to do his official visit the week that Gentry commited, so his official was cancelled.  Just prior to Gentry commiting, there was a lot of discussion with the 247 mods about who Utah liked more…and the answer was very obviously Gentry.  Utah may not have straight up passed on Hubbard, but they likely could’ve signed him had he been their primary focus.

I wouldn’t be surprised if Money Parks gets a bump to 4*.  He’s an 89 on 247 right now.  He had a great senior season, and he’s going to the Blue-Grey Bowl.  If he performs well on a national stage, then he could definitely get the bump.

I don’t know that Wegis will bump all the way up to a 4*, but I wouldn’t be surprised if he gets a big bump after his senior season and putting on weight.  Regardless, his talent and potential is obvious.

Based on rumblings, I think we land at least two 4* targets in the future, and maybe up to 4.  

[Stone]

Here’s my take.

Yes, of course, we would love to have recruits that are rated higher because, presumably, those recruits are better and can also be developed into NFL players. So, I agree with Pace’s desire for higher rated recruits… with the caveat that a high rating alone is not determinative (i.e., the recruit needs to buy into the program’s family culture and cannot be a prima-donna that destroys the culture Whit has sought to build).

Where I tire of Pace’s schtick is his premise that the lack of recruiting championships is somehow a failing of our coaches. It reminds me of the people that were frustrated that Jazz management didn’t trade Ostertag for Shaq. Utah’s coaches work very hard to recruit the best players (of course), but there is also reality. Pace postures like it is as easy as hiring a new coach–as if there is a coach out there, just pining to coach at Utah, that could exceed Whit’s on-the-field performance AND get better recruits. News to Pace—that coach is not out there. And even if we caught lightning in a bottle (ala Urban Meyer), that coach is not going to stay at Utah long term (ala Urban Meyer). Utah is not poor, but you need to be realistic. If Utah starts pulling in top 10 recruiting classes and winning championships with a new coach, odds are that coach will be poached by a USC or other big name school with even deeper pockets. Frankly, we are lucky Whit is essentially home-grown and wanting to be here because–despite his s**tty recruiting (according to Pace)–he is often the target of other schools. Wonder why those other schools would want him despite such s**tty recruiting? Somehow they see something Pace does not.

The other tiring thing about Pace’s schtick is that he is more concerned about recruiting rankings than actual rankings. He is the stereo-typical Zoob that cares more about paper championships. Would we like to get better recruits? YES, of course. But would we rather have a top rated recruiting class or a top rated team? I think everyone (except Pace) would choose the latter. UW’s recruiting class ranking or Utah’s on-the-field performance ranking? Would it be nice to get both? Of course. But, again, you need to be realistic. And it is not as if the coaches aren’t trying. Every coach for every school is out there hustling and doing the same thing. 

[User Suspended]

I don’t know how many times I need to say this… but I’ll say it again.

kwhitt does a tremendous job with the development of players – one of the best as proven by how many end up in the NFL and how Utah is ranked based on recruiting success.

The truly frustrating thing is that just a little bit better recruiting would change the face of Utah football.  I simply don’t buy the argument that kwhitt somehow would rather have “rudy’s” then All Americans. JJ was the rare elite athlete kwhitt somehow convinced to play at Utah and what happened? He started every game and played at an elite level from day one. Go figure.  Imagine have 6 or 7 of these guys on the team.

Kwhitt NEEDS to bring in coaches who can recruit the elite level athlete.  But he won’t, he’ll get some rodeo cowboy from Idaho…   

[pedro]

Why?  Why does he need to “bring in coaches that can recruit the elite level athlete?”  We’re 4\5\6th in the country.  Isnt’ that elite?  I certainly think so.  You base everything on arbitrary rankings.  Who’s to say the athletes  he brings in are not elite?  

This argument just makes you look foolish Pace and that’s why no one takes you seriously.  You bi%&# and moan, but never give the Utes their due.  

Please tell me Anae, Blackmon, Bernard, Fotu, Huntly, Moss, etc… are not elite.  Go ahead.  

[Central Coast Ute]

If Shah can’t bring in elite level athletes i don’t know who can. The problem with your argument is that you assume it’s all up to coaches. Do you honestly think that Oregon brings in top level talent like Sewells based on tradition and an amazing location to attend school and play football? When did Oregon start bringing in top talent? Answer, when Uncle Phil took the reigns. Why does USC keep bringing in top classes even after consistently under achieving year in and year out? Think about it. Utah doesn’t have as many billionaire donors.

[DrJazzy]

This is seriously such a dumb take. Coaches have been going hard after 4* kids, they just don’t want to come. Hiring new coaches won’t change that son. Under Whitt recruiting has improved yr to yr (overall trend is on an upswing). Most of this is because of Pac12 affiliation. 

SLC is still SLC. Very lacking with diversity, minorities. 

When I was applying for residencies SLC was in my top 5. BUT if I was single I would habe chosen SD, Chicago, NY, Oregon, LA, Denver, and on and on. All those cities are much more appealing. The U tried to recruit my classmate – she is African American. They basically asked her what they needed to do to get her to come to SLC, this was during her interview. Ultimately she opted out due to lack of African Americans. 

SLC is a pretty cool city, but unless you are really into the outdoors it isn’t the most ideal desirable place to live for the typical Athlete. 

Recruiting isn’t some easy thing – the staff went so hard at J Daniels last yr. Nick Saban would struggle to reel in 4* kids at SLC.

So yeah your take is pretty dumb and just shows how ignorant you are about College Football. That’s all. 

[Stone]

Completely agree. The take from Pace is that it is Whit’s fault or the fault of his assistant coaches. But they seem to do a pretty great job knowing the type of player that will come and thrive here. Of course it would be great to get 5* athletes into the Whit development program…but even if Urban or Saban were coach, there would still be challenges in landing top rated recruiting classes.

Larry K has landed a top 5 recruiting class. Kudos to him. I would have never guessed that was possible. I think there there is room for improvement in football recruiting–I would hate to see the success from last year and this not amount to a better class overall–but it is not as simple as waving a magic wand or changing coaches. You need coaches that fit the system and know the school/location. And ultimately, I would rather have Whit’s classes and game performance than Larry K’s classes and game performance (time will tell whether Larry K’s class actually lives up to the paper ranking).

[Utahute72]

I would say that if you have programs like Oklahoma, Nebraska and others following you around and offering behind you they must be doing something right. This year should be seminal for closing with some of those players that are looking for a high profile program.