Proximity to recruits

[SnohomishRed]

How many times have we heard Nebraska can not get back to elite because they do not have access to recruits.

One question if proximity to recruits is the driving factor why does Texas continue to suck?

 

[DudznSudz]

How many times have we heard Nebraska can not get back to elite because they do not have access to recruits.

One question if proximity to recruits is the driving factor why does Texas continue to suck?

It's a good question with a fairly simple answer; coaching and scheme. FSU also is loaded with talent and they got beat down by Virginia Tech. Badly.

Historically, NU was able to get their hands on pretty good recruits for the following reasons:

1.) TV coverage when not every team got TV coverage.
2.) Little to any oversight on scholarship limits.
3.) Black players from the South happy to escape to somewhat less racist areas of the country.
4.) After the mid 1970's, a reliance on an offensive scheme that was fairly unique and not easy to defend, required athletes not necessarily "skill" flashy players, and excellent strength and conditioning (read: player development), yielding a lot of success on the field. People wanted to play here.

Also, see Oregon under Chip Kelly. They recruited "ok," had a track record of success but nothing wild, and are not near traditional recruiting hotbeds, but add in good coaching and a truly revolutionary scheme, and BAM. Dominance.

 

[barney44]

It takes top notch coaching and a group of solid players. You arent required to have elite players, they’re icing on the cake but leadership is absolutely necessary. We haven’t been great since we lost a hall of fame coach to retirement.

 

[jlb321_rivals110621]

Every single national champion since we won in 1997 or maybe Tennessee 1998- 2 decades - has what most would determine as "close proximity" to recruits.

one could easily conclude that over the last 2 decades, proximity to recruits alone isn't sufficient to win a national title but it has been necessary.

we can be elite but it is more difficult . ... I do not believe Urban Meyer and Nick Saban have the same success coaching at Nebraska as they do at OSU and Alabama

 

[BleedHuskerRed]

How many times have we heard Nebraska can not get back to elite because they do not have access to recruits.

One question if proximity to recruits is the driving factor why does Texas continue to suck?

Another Question is why does our Volleyball team seem to thrive? Look at our Volleyball roster. We have one current player from Nebraska, The rest are Tennessee, Indiana, California, Texas, International... It's an excuse that needs to go away.

 

[HUSKERFAN66]

How many times have we heard Nebraska can not get back to elite because they do not have access to recruits.

One question if proximity to recruits is the driving factor why does Texas continue to suck?

Sometimes it is as simple as this. Chemistry. Too much talent can hurt you if they aren't well grounded.

 

[otismotis08]

Longhorn football. Doing less with more.

 

[jlb321_rivals110621]

Below are the top 20 programs since 2000 in terms of wins/winning% - there are 15 power 5 programs on that list - did not include TCU and Louisville as they became power 5 schools mid 2000s

Oregon, Wisconsin and maybe V tech are the only schools without close proximity to high level recruits



Boise st
Ohio State
Oklahoma
LSU
USC
TCU
Alabama
Oregon
Georgia
FSU
AppSt
Texas
Virg Tech
Florida
Wisconsin
Clemson
Old dominion
Louisville
Auburn
Miami

 

[Hawkeye_311]

It's a good question with a fairly simple answer; coaching and scheme. FSU also is loaded with talent and they got beat down by Virginia Tech. Badly.

Historically, NU was able to get their hands on pretty good recruits for the following reasons:

1.) TV coverage when not every team got TV coverage.
2.) Little to any oversight on scholarship limits.
3.) Black players from the South happy to escape to somewhat less racist areas of the country.
4.) After the mid 1970's, a reliance on an offensive scheme that was fairly unique and not easy to defend, required athletes not necessarily "skill" flashy players, and excellent strength and conditioning (read: player development), yielding a lot of success on the field. People wanted to play here.

Also, see Oregon under Chip Kelly. They recruited "ok," had a track record of success but nothing wild, and are not near traditional recruiting hotbeds, but add in good coaching and a truly revolutionary scheme, and BAM. Dominance.

Having 6 other schools in the same conference that could care less if they fielded a football team or not didn't hurt either.

 

[jlb321_rivals110621]

since the playoff format there have been 16 teams make the playoffs - 13 of the 16 -- 81%
have been from recruiting hotbeds

the other 3 - MSU, Oregon, and I included Washington

 

[Harry Caray]

Another Question is why does our Volleyball team seem to thrive? Look at our Volleyball roster. We have one current player from Nebraska, The rest are Tennessee, Indiana, California, Texas, International... It's an excuse that needs to go away.

KU Basketball as well. And UConn Women's Basketball.

A winning coach makes all the difference. Plenty of great players will move to an obscure location if it means playing for a winner. They did it here in the 90s.

 

[HUSKERFAN66]

But back to the op original question. What's wrong with Texas?

 

[SOHusker11]

Having 6 other schools in the same conference that could care less if they fielded a football team or not didn't hurt either.

Stupid. Sounds more like the Big Ten to me.

 

[F5Tornado]

Iowa Fan=

Stupid. Sounds more like the Big Ten to me.

 

[SOHusker11]

Iowa Fan=

Damn, that's perfect. I laughed my *** off.

 

[mgbreeze]

JMHO, but I think for MOST programs today the line between success and failure is much thinner than it used to be. Scholarship limits mean that good players will go places they wouldn't have 20 years ago. There are a few dominant programs that can recruit and discard 4-5 stars over and over. The rest of us better not miss on too many, better develop the talent we do get, and damn well better have everyone associated with the program rowing in the same direction at all times. I already feel great about Frost's guiding principle of "unity of purpose". Time will tell on the rest, but signs are positive!!

 

[RealTucoSalamanca]

But back to the op original question. What's wrong with Texas?

The two issues raised in the OP don't have to be related. A team that isn't located in a fertile recruiting ground, will still have to recruit well in those fertile recruiting grounds in order to win titles. (miss me on the Wisconsin until they win one). A team that is in fertile recruiting grounds can still struggle to win games. The two issues are not mutually exclusive.

 

[barney44]

Having 6 other schools in the same conference that could care less if they fielded a football team or not didn't hurt either.

What about Colorado? They’ve accomplished more than much of the B1G.

 

[Hawkeye_311]

What about Colorado? They’ve accomplished more than much of the B1G.

Yes, but you only get 4 downs to make a first down in the B1G not 5.

 

[jolley]

Below are the top 20 programs since 2000 in terms of wins/winning% - there are 15 power 5 programs on that list - did not include TCU and Louisville as they became power 5 schools mid 2000s

Oregon, Wisconsin and maybe V tech are the only schools without close proximity to high level recruits



Boise st
Ohio State
Oklahoma
LSU
USC
TCU
Alabama
Oregon
Georgia
FSU
AppSt
Texas
Virg Tech
Florida
Wisconsin
Clemson
Old dominion
Louisville
Auburn
Miami

Are you sure about a lot of population around Boise ID (not on the short list above) Where are old dominion and app st located?

 

[BleedHuskerRed]

KU Basketball as well. And UConn Women's Basketball.

A winning coach makes all the difference. Plenty of great players will move to an obscure location if it means playing for a winner. They did it here in the 90s.

Excellent examples. We were pretty good at baseball at one time too.

 

[Solana Beach Husker]

The real question should be: Are we actually in a hotbed for talent? NU is by far the most prominent program in Nebraska, Colorado, Iowa, North Dakota, South Dakota, .Missouri, Kansas. That is 15 million people. Florida has 65 million people...but Florida, Florida State, Miami, Georgia, Auburn, Alabama are all top flight programs who compete for the population. So 6 schools fighting over 65 million sounds similar to one big program fighting smaller fish over 15 million. Many of our greats came from Omaha, Kansas, Missour and there are still talented players in those regions. Some of the best Juco players are from Omaha and Kansas...and North Dakota and Wyoming have somehow scraped enough talent together to have First round draft pick qbs. If we win our surrounding states to the point where iowa, missouri, colorado even stop recruiting against us...then we will win championships. Our program was so unattractive at times that missouri kids started to go to missouri again...oh and they became a top team...kansas kids started going to kst and kansas, and oh they became top teams...we are in a special position because our surrounding states have good football but bad college programs...win our neighbors and we will win championships.

 

[jlb321_rivals110621]

Are you sure about a lot of population around Boise ID (not on the short list above) Where are old dominion and app st located?

excluded non-power 5 schools

 

[jolley]

excluded non-power 5 schools

I see, thanks

 

[RealTucoSalamanca]

The real question should be: Are we actually in a hotbed for talent? NU is by far the most prominent program in Nebraska, Colorado, Iowa, North Dakota, South Dakota, .Missouri, Kansas. That is 15 million people. Florida has 65 million people...but Florida, Florida State, Miami, Georgia, Auburn, Alabama are all top flight programs who compete for the population. So 6 schools fighting over 65 million sounds similar to one big program fighting smaller fish over 15 million. Many of our greats came from Omaha, Kansas, Missour and there are still talented players in those regions. Some of the best Juco players are from Omaha and Kansas...and North Dakota and Wyoming have somehow scraped enough talent together to have First round draft pick qbs. If we win our surrounding states to the point where iowa, missouri, colorado even stop recruiting against us...then we will win championships. Our program was so unattractive at times that missouri kids started to go to missouri again...oh and they became a top team...kansas kids started going to kst and kansas, and oh they became top teams...we are in a special position because our surrounding states have good football but bad college programs...win our neighbors and we will win championships.

Nebraska has what 6 or 7 division 1 recruits in the state. We have that many on our high school team. Our enrollment is about 1835 students.

 

[HUSKERFAN66]

The two issues raised in the OP don't have to be related. A team that isn't located in a fertile recruiting ground, will still have to recruit well in those fertile recruiting grounds in order to win titles. (miss me on the Wisconsin until they win one). A team that is in fertile recruiting grounds can still struggle to win games. The two issues are not mutually exclusive.

Understood. The litany that was very good and insightful but it didn't address why Texas is an underachiever.

 

[Solana Beach Husker]

Nebraska has what 6 or 7 division 1 recruits in the state. We have that many on our high school team. Our enrollment is about 1835 students.

NU doesn't need 7 d1 recruits from 1 school, they just have to get the elite talent from each surrounding state. What is the point of nebraska having 600 d1 recruits when we can only take 25...and likely only 8-10...plus walkons, which give the best bang the buck anyway. We are in a prime position because we have almost no competition, especially if we have a stud like Frosty at HC. We have had the most pathetic set of HCs possible since TO...Frankie, Cally, Bo, MR are the such pathetic group of candidates and we should be embarrassed by it. I think it stems from an inferiority complex that we can't do any better., much like all of the pathetic programs around us. If we get the #1 guys from Iowa, Missouri, Kansas, Colorado...some top walkons from Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wyoming(get these guys for free), and then supplement by going all in on a couple of Cali, Texas, West coast guys, we will have enough talent to beat 90% of our schedule...then we just need some luck for the last 2 games.

 

[SnohomishRed]

Below are the top 20 programs since 2000 in terms of wins/winning% - there are 15 power 5 programs on that list - did not include TCU and Louisville as they became power 5 schools mid 2000s

Oregon, Wisconsin and maybe V tech are the only schools without close proximity to high level recruits



Boise st
Ohio State
Oklahoma
LSU
USC
TCU
Alabama
Oregon
Georgia
FSU
AppSt
Texas
Virg Tech
Florida
Wisconsin
Clemson
Old dominion
Louisville
Auburn
Miami

This is really misleading imo. How many programs are not in recruiting hotbeds but are still considered a blue blood program. Short answer is 1 us

Instead of thinking about recruiting the same as texas we should consider the advantages we have in our recruiting area that alabama does not

 

[SnohomishRed]

NU doesn't need 7 d1 recruits from 1 school, they just have to get the elite talent from each surrounding state. What is the point of nebraska having 600 d1 recruits when we can only take 25...and likely only 8-10...plus walkons, which give the best bang the buck anyway. We are in a prime position because we have almost no competition, especially if we have a stud like Frosty at HC. We have had the most pathetic set of HCs possible since TO...Frankie, Cally, Bo, MR are the such pathetic group of candidates and we should be embarrassed by it. I think it stems from an inferiority complex that we can't do any better., much like all of the pathetic programs around us. If we get the #1 guys from Iowa, Missouri, Kansas, Colorado...some top walkons from Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wyoming(get these guys for free), and then supplement by going all in on a couple of Cali, Texas, West coast guys, we will have enough talent to beat 90% of our schedule...then we just need some luck for the last 2 games.

This is my thought also this stat you need a top five recruiting class is only true until its not.

 

[jolley]

NU doesn't need 7 d1 recruits from 1 school, they just have to get the elite talent from each surrounding state. What is the point of nebraska having 600 d1 recruits when we can only take 25...and likely only 8-10...plus walkons, which give the best bang the buck anyway. We are in a prime position because we have almost no competition, especially if we have a stud like Frosty at HC. We have had the most pathetic set of HCs possible since TO...Frankie, Cally, Bo, MR are the such pathetic group of candidates and we should be embarrassed by it. I think it stems from an inferiority complex that we can't do any better., much like all of the pathetic programs around us. If we get the #1 guys from Iowa, Missouri, Kansas, Colorado...some top walkons from Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wyoming(get these guys for free), and then supplement by going all in on a couple of Cali, Texas, West coast guys, we will have enough talent to beat 90% of our schedule...then we just need some luck for the last 2 games.

but, one good thing is, we didn't have neuheisal.

 

[dand84]

Proximity to talent is an advantage, that is all. You also have loads more competition for those recruits. The most important factor is a good coach with a strong program behind him. Lots of programs with access to loads of talent perennially suck.

 

[jlb321_rivals110621]

Proximity to talent is an advantage, that is all. You also have loads more competition for those recruits. The most important factor is a good coach with a strong program behind him. Lots of programs with access to loads of talent perennially suck.

That is absolutely true. But I will ask a question along the same lines - how many programs without proximity to loads of talent are perennially elite?

 

[inWV]

If Frost turns out to have the goods in terms of running the program and upping recruiting from 20-25 to 15-20, NU will be more than fine. The difference in team speed this year alone is going to be noticeable.
I hope NUs underperforming its talent level is a thing of the past.

 

[dand84]

Better coaches coach in the south for the most part. No doubt about that.

 

[RealTucoSalamanca]

That is absolutely true. But I will ask a question along the same lines - how many programs without proximity to loads of talent are perennially elite?

People are always looking for the exception to the rule to validate their opinion. I suppose it is human nature.

From what I read on here, Nebraska can recruit top 15-25 classes and be fine because The University of Texas, and other schools in recruiting hot beds, have underachieved with highly rated classes.

 

[RealTucoSalamanca]

NU doesn't need 7 d1 recruits from 1 school, they just have to get the elite talent from each surrounding state. What is the point of nebraska having 600 d1 recruits when we can only take 25...and likely only 8-10...plus walkons, which give the best bang the buck anyway. We are in a prime position because we have almost no competition, especially if we have a stud like Frosty at HC. We have had the most pathetic set of HCs possible since TO...Frankie, Cally, Bo, MR are the such pathetic group of candidates and we should be embarrassed by it. I think it stems from an inferiority complex that we can't do any better., much like all of the pathetic programs around us. If we get the #1 guys from Iowa, Missouri, Kansas, Colorado...some top walkons from Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wyoming(get these guys for free), and then supplement by going all in on a couple of Cali, Texas, West coast guys, we will have enough talent to beat 90% of our schedule...then we just need some luck for the last 2 games.

Well the point is, that if I can choose the best from 600, and get 25 of those best players the chances I have a great team is better than if I have to get all 7 in state kids and I have to hope the 1 kid I sign from the Dakotas will pan out and that I can get the best players from Kansas and Missouri will sign with me and that they will all pan out. The margin for error is the biggest difference.

 

[Solana Beach Husker]

That is absolutely true. But I will ask a question along the same lines - how many programs without proximity to loads of talent are perennially elite?

It pointless to argue this point because NU is positioned to reap tons of talent in a 6 state radius around Nebraska...all of that doesn't matter because when Frost turns this thing around he will choose the best players in this area and then put all resources into top targets in high talent regions. We have never been Alabama, Florida, Ohio State...but we have been the best team of all time...and the demographics are little different in nebraska...

 

[jeans15]

People are always looking for the exception to the rule to validate their opinion. I suppose it is human nature.

From what I read on here, Nebraska can recruit top 15-25 classes and be fine because The University of Texas, and other schools in recruiting hot beds, have underachieved with highly rated classes.

It means you can be successful.

We were 2 plays from being conference champions twice with just top 25 recruiting.

 

[RealTucoSalamanca]

It means you can be successful.

We were 2 plays from being conference champions twice with just top 25 recruiting.

Exactly. The exception to the rule phenomenon.

The lack of success Texas has had over the years, or any other school in fertile recruiting grounds has had over the years, is independent to Nebraska needing to recruit those fertile areas to be successful.

 

[RealTucoSalamanca]

It pointless to argue this point because NU is positioned to reap tons of talent in a 6 state radius around Nebraska...all of that doesn't matter because when Frost turns this thing around he will choose the best players in this area and then put all resources into top targets in high talent regions. We have never been Alabama, Florida, Ohio State...but we have been the best team of all time...and the demographics are little different in nebraska...

No one is saying you have to be those schools.

The 2 biggest differences to the way Osborne did it, in my opinion, is style of play Frost plays and Kansas, Kansas St, and Missouri not being in the same conference as Nebraska.

Osborne was an offense where you could take walk on wideouts from Papillion and Fremont, take and develop OL/ DL from the 500 mile radius. Frost’s scheme puts a premium on speed and athleticism. He can have a couple of WR from the area, but not a roomful. There simply aren’t the number of difference makers at the skill positions in the plains states as there is in the south.

When Nebraska was in the Big 8/12, they could go into those border states and take the best players. Now, the best players in Missouri might look to the SEC and LSU or Alabama, the best players in Kansas might look to Oklahoma or Oklahoma St.