Ash and recruiting

[njknightsfan]

Well, regardless if Coach Ash has the charisma or not, few things will have to happen this year for him to change the narrative and improve recruiting, and we can all agree:

- He need to avoid the 70-0 beat downs, be competitive in the games, have a pulse, show you belong even if you lose
- The offense has to have a pulse this year and I think we have a stable of QB's, RB's, TE's WR's and most important, a competent OC. If a QB can emerge this year, all of a sudden Ash becomes a great coach, funny how that happens.
- Needs to steal one from one of the BIG Boys, that will give unprecedented press and recruiting will really take off. Anything is possible, hell, we get Ohio St. early, you never know!
- I expect a better defense this year, strong back 7, lack of depth at DL could hurt if injuries start racking up, but if the DL can stay healthy than with an even better improving defense and a serviceable offense, sky's the limit
- Go to a bowl game, any bowl game

I think the team wins a minimum of 6 games this year. We give a scare to one of the BIG boys if not stealing a game from them. The team looks much improved and doesn't embarrass with any lopsided scores.

This is the year the sleeping giant finally wakes up and flood gates open for recruiting!!!! I don't know, I just think this is going to be a special year, we are due. Than again I can be brought back to reality with a 53-0 drubbing in week 2, who knows, but I like to think the opposite and have hope/faith until we play them. Hell, we are tied for 1st in our division so far aren't we?

 

[LETSGORU91_]

Schiano was a good recruiter at RU not the great recruiter some imagine him to be.

Kind of like the big catch from years ago while fishing. The fish gets bigger every year as the story gets told more and more.

 

[sct1111]

Kind of like the big catch from years ago while fishing. The fish gets bigger every year as the story gets told more and more.

He was the best recruiter we've ever had as a head coach.

 

[realhoops2]

He was the best recruiter we've ever had as a head coach.

That may be true but talk of him being this "great recruiter" is overblown. He had a few good, maybe even very good recruiting classes, but nothing that should be consider great.

 

[realhoops2]

Kind of like the big catch from years ago while fishing. The fish gets bigger every year as the story gets told more and more.

Excellent analogy!

 

[RutgHoops]

Huh ? Have any of those guys completed a meaningful game day pass ?

Thats funny. You believe Ash can't recruit based on rankings and offers, yet pointing out three highly regarded kids that he landed at the most important position on a football team with high rankings and lots of offers is me jumping the gun.

Have any of the kids who lead you to believe Ash isn't a good recruiter missed a block or tackle?

 

[sct1111]

That may be true but talk of him being this "great recruiter" is overblown. He had a few good, maybe even very good recruiting classes, but nothing that should be consider great.

Recruiting is relative. A recruiting class that is great for Rutgers may be average for another a school. For Rutgers, Schiano was a great recruiter.

 

[MYHATINTHERING]

He was the best recruiter we've ever had as a head coach.

I'd say he was best at finding kids that were not as highly regarded and recognizing their ability and putting them in positions to succeed but I wouldn't say best recruiter.

 

[MYHATINTHERING]

You did say good.
And you are also correct about guys over performing.
As always, just making the point we won’t win many games until we have those kinds of players.
Before he got hurt, Grant was as good as you can be at returning kicks.

we need another willie foster, no one we've had was as electric or gave us the field position.

 

[Scarlet_Scourge]

Recruiting is relative. A recruiting class that is great for Rutgers may be average for another a school. For Rutgers, Schiano was a great recruiter.

For that matter, we would kill for a class with three 4 four stars and that will get you fired somewhere else.

The truth is a in college football, only a small fraction of the 130 FBS schools actually have any chance of winning a national championship. Like less than 10.

 

[wheezer]

Kind of like the big catch from years ago while fishing. The fish gets bigger every year as the story gets told more and more.

-----
just before Gregg left, a moderator here posted that RU was doing well recruiting, and we were on the verge of getting some serious talent late in that cycle, with little obstacles in the way.....

the unforeseen obstacle turned out being Gregg leaving......

I will always remember that input by the mods..... the season he left could have been the start of a string of very good recruiting years.

I also think he would be killing it now as a head coach in the big 10

 

[PIN2WIN624]

-----
just before Gregg left, a moderator here posted that RU was doing well recruiting, and we were on the verge of getting some serious talent late in that cycle, with little obstacles in the way.....

the unforeseen obstacle turned out being Gregg leaving......

I will always remember that input by the mods..... the season he left could have been the start of a string of very good recruiting years.

I also think he would be killing it now as a head coach in the big 10

Pretty sure we held onto most of those kids. Hamilton, Caroo, the 4 offensive lineman. That was great class but as Flood took over the level of recruiting fell. Maybe GS could have started to string a lot of good classes together but.....

 

[wheezer]

Pretty sure we held onto most of those kids. Hamilton, Caroo, the 4 offensive lineman. That was great class but as Flood took over the level of recruiting fell. Maybe GS could have started to string a lot of good classes together but.....

You are correct but there were a couple of near verbals we would have gotten. One being the player who wound up at UCLA

 

[LC-88]

Pretty sure we held onto most of those kids. Hamilton, Caroo, the 4 offensive lineman. That was great class but as Flood took over the level of recruiting fell. Maybe GS could have started to string a lot of good classes together but.....

and Halfey left.

 

[tico brown]

Bad comparison. In the 4 years prior to the 2017 season, Baylor was 39-13 with two first place finishes in the Big 12. Not at all analogous to RU's situation.

Even though it eventually dont mean much on the NCAA level, Baylor is lucky theres govening body who couldve put them into some serious sanctions for their shenanigans during that time.

 

[tico brown]

Schiano could sell Oil to the Texans....this guy is low energy.
imo

As long as Haffley and that other coach, who's name escapes me, is around by his side.

 

[Abro1975]

As long as Haffley and that other coach, who's name escapes me, is around by his side.

Angellico (sp?). But give Greg credit for having the foresight to hire these very good recruiters.

 

[tico brown]

Pretty sure we held onto most of those kids. Hamilton, Caroo, the 4 offensive lineman. That was great class but as Flood took over the level of recruiting fell. Maybe GS could have started to string a lot of good classes together but.....

As we found out, theres a difference between holding on to those kids and coaching up those kids to BCS/NY6 levels. Maybe if Schiano stayed (YES I SAID IT!!!) or if he left in December/early January (instead of a week from LOI Day) for Rutgers to get a better head coach, Rutgers wouldve had better success in those years. But...

 

[tico brown]

Angellico (sp?). But give Greg credit for having the foresight to hire these very good recruiters.

I have. This was never my issue on Schiano.

 

[RUMountie]

Didn't read every post, but I don't remember Schiano getting so many players from programs like the Peddie School, The Hun School, etc. Kids from those programs have been almost exclusively ABR in the past. Also we almost got a kid from Bergen Catholic this year. Schiano did well with St. Joe's and Bosco, but I think Sam Johnson was the only recruit from BC that we landed. BTW two recruits (McSorley and Barkley) saved Franklin's *** at PSU otherwise anybody, charisma or not, can recruit at schools like that. Many people confuse charisma for sociopathy (millions did in the last presidential election). Ash will look alot more charismatic when he starts winning more games.

 

[AreYouNUTS]

Didn't read every post, but I don't remember Schiano getting so many players from programs like the Peddie School, The Hun School, etc. Kids from those programs have been almost exclusively ABR in the past. Also we almost got a kid from Bergen Catholic this year. Schiano did well with St. Joe's and Bosco, but I think Sam Johnson was the only recruit from BC that we landed. BTW two recruits (McSorley and Barkley) saved Franklin's *** at PSU otherwise anybody, charisma or not, can recruit at schools like that. Many people confuse charisma for sociopathy (millions did in the last presidential election). Ash will look alot more charismatic when he starts winning more games.

Excellent post.

 

[vandalen1]

There's a BIG difference between Rutgers and Baylor. Rutgers has about 40 (NJ) D1 kids a year, it's a small state so a kid could travel to MD and still be considered close to home. And many of those kids want out of the state.
Baylor has about 350 D1 (Texas) kids to go after and those kids for the most part want to stay close to home, unless it's OU offering. Rhule can get a top 30 class every year because you have UT, A&M, TCU, TTU and then Baylor. If they all get 25 each, that still leaves 225 D1 prospects out there going to other schools in or out of state.

 

[Yeah Baby]

Angellico (sp?). But give Greg credit for having the foresight to hire these very good recruiters.

It wasn’t just Schiano leaving. Yes, he was a great recruiter, but he also took a lot of his top assistants plus guys like McNulty and Fleck who moved onward and upward. It’s a lot to fill those sits and get these kids to believe RU is still the same program.

 

[ZMR512]

BTW two recruits (McSorley and Barkley) saved Franklin's *** at PSU otherwise anybody, charisma or not, can recruit at schools like that.

FWIW, McSorley wasn't a major recruit. In fact, PSU was one of the few major programs (if not the only one) that would take him as a quarterback.

 

[ru66]

and greg was a lousy game coach according to this board---ru fans are insufferable

 

[RUMountie]

FWIW, McSorley wasn't a major recruit. In fact, PSU was one of the few major programs (if not the only one) that would take him as a quarterback.

True but McSorley turned out to be a 5 star guy in terms of college production. Without him the are a good team but nothing special.

 

[tico brown]

and greg was a lousy game coach according to this board---ru fans are insufferable

How many Conference titles he won in 11 years?

 

[TODDB33]

Recruiting is relative. A recruiting class that is great for Rutgers may be average for another a school. For Rutgers, Schiano was a great recruiter.

When Schino first got here he made a comment that - paraphrasing - if we had 5 div1 players on our roster we had a lot. He was an excellent recruiter based on what he had to work with. I can compare Ash' s first 2 years to be similar to Schianos. As Schiano sartedd to improve on field performance we started to get betterball plyer.owever those players were not Big players they were more in the mold of BigEast and what GS wanted - small and fast. The recruiting philosophy changed the day we were admitted to the Big.

 

[zappaa]

How many Conference titles he won in 11 years?

The Zebras took one from GS, Slaton fumbled, along with a dropped pass in the end zone.
To be fair, Flood was a blatent drop away from a title

 

[KevH]

Thats funny. You believe Ash can't recruit based on rankings and offers, yet pointing out three highly regarded kids that he landed at the most important position on a football team with high rankings and lots of offers is me jumping the gun.

Have any of the kids who lead you to believe Ash isn't a good recruiter missed a block or tackle?

Wow! Mic dropped.

 

[tico brown]

The Zebras took one from GS, Slaton fumbled, along with a dropped pass in the end zone.
To be fair, Flood was a blatent drop away from a title

In other words: zero. They sharted the bed vs Cincy the week after Louisville. They also sharted vs UConn in 2011 when they couldve won a BCS berth. Schiano bailed after that.

And you want to add Flood, they shouldve won at Pitt to make that last 2012 game moot.

 

[satnom]

True but McSorley turned out to be a 5 star guy in terms of college production. Without [Saquan Barkley] they are a good team but nothing special.

Fixed that for you.

GO RU

 

[Knight Shift]

The Zebras took one from GS, Slaton fumbled, along with a dropped pass in the end zone.
To be fair, Flood was a blatent drop away from a title

And a BS ineligible receiver downfield call.

 

[RUbacker]

And a BS ineligible receiver downfield call.

That call is still killing me.

 

[RUMountie]

Fixed that for you.

GO RU

QB >>>>>> than RBs not even close.

 

[satnom]

QB >>>>>> than RBs not even close.

The top rb in the country with talent seen only every few years can make a 2-3 * qb and offense look a lot better than it actually is. Watch the PSU offense come back down to earth this season.

GO RU

 

[BOGDANOVICH]

Well, regardless if Coach Ash has the charisma or not, few things will have to happen this year for him to change the narrative and improve recruiting, and we can all agree:

- He need to avoid the 70-0 beat downs, be competitive in the games, have a pulse, show you belong even if you lose
- The offense has to have a pulse this year and I think we have a stable of QB's, RB's, TE's WR's and most important, a competent OC. If a QB can emerge this year, all of a sudden Ash becomes a great coach, funny how that happens.
- Needs to steal one from one of the BIG Boys, that will give unprecedented press and recruiting will really take off. Anything is possible, hell, we get Ohio St. early, you never know!
- I expect a better defense this year, strong back 7, lack of depth at DL could hurt if injuries start racking up, but if the DL can stay healthy than with an even better improving defense and a serviceable offense, sky's the limit
- Go to a bowl game, any bowl game

I think the team wins a minimum of 6 games this year. We give a scare to one of the BIG boys if not stealing a game from them. The team looks much improved and doesn't embarrass with any lopsided scores.

This is the year the sleeping giant finally wakes up and flood gates open for recruiting!!!! I don't know, I just think this is going to be a special year, we are due. Than again I can be brought back to reality with a 53-0 drubbing in week 2, who knows, but I like to think the opposite and have hope/faith until we play them. Hell, we are tied for 1st in our division so far aren't we?

'We are due"? Really? We may upset Ohio State? Seriously? Actually, Rutgers is not "due" anything. Rutgers will not win in this conference against the top teams with poor recruiting and questionable coaching no matter how much you may like Coach Ash. Let's hope he can win 5 or 6 games, but a victory against the behemoths is virtually impossible right now. Maybe this will change in five or ten years, but it is not going to happen anytime soon.
And that is an optimistic reading.

 

[angmo]

Schiano turned into a pretty awesome game day coach. He started to leave the offense alone and coached an insanely entertaining and devastating defense.

If the offense wasn't scoring enough points, he told the defense to take out the quarterback and they did. Wish he stuck around, but I don't want him back.

I was hoping Ash would have the same crazy explosive special teams and defenses that Schiano had. I haven't seen any creativity in Ash's defenses. Now he seems to have a solid group, I want to see some defensive creativity.

 

[ZMR512]

The top rb in the country with talent seen only every few years can make a 2-3 * qb and offense look a lot better than it actually is. Watch the PSU offense come back down to earth this season.

Saquon Barkley was special. Those players don't come around very often. But I'd be careful here. A fifth-year senior and Heisman candidate at QB, an OL that is progressing from a liability to a strength, a lead RB who was the top-ranked guy at the position in his class, and a number of elite pass catchers doesn't sound like a recipe for a major drop-off in offensive production to me.

PSU's Blue Chip Ratio this season will surpass the 50% mark "necessary" to win a national title, and it should skyrocket into the 60%-70% range over the next couple of cycles. Those expecting a return to mediocrity while Franklin is there and recruiting like this are setting themselves up for disappointment.

 

[njknightsfan]

'We are due"? Really? We may upset Ohio State? Seriously? Actually, Rutgers is not "due" anything. Rutgers will not win in this conference against the top teams with poor recruiting and questionable coaching no matter how much you may like Coach Ash. Let's hope he can win 5 or 6 games, but a victory against the behemoths is virtually impossible right now. Maybe this will change in five or ten years, but it is not going to happen anytime soon.
And that is an optimistic reading.

You can view the world as "sky is falling" and we are going to suck or you can take a a more positive view which I am taking until proven otherwise. Is there a chance we beat Ohio St.? Yes, there is a chance, but most likely we will get blown out, but suppose we make it a competitive game or just maybe we pull out a win? Our defense will be better in year 3 of Ash era, our offense can't go anywhere but up from the last 2 years. We have play makers on offense, Melton, Washington, Blackshear, Hillman, Pacheco and have stable of QB's and a seasoned OC. Our back 7 on defense, I think are above average in the BIG and if our Dline can avoid injury, could be respectable, we have over 8 Dlineman over 280+ lbs which I wasn't aware of. So until the games are played and see who are stating QB is and how he performs on gameday, I think 6-6 at a minimum and back to a bowl game! And yes, we are due after the Flood years and the 1st to years of Ash, we are due to breakout!!!