A depressing chart, via Doc Saturday:
If you need it spelled out, here’s what Matt observes:
… But that still doesn’t change the bigger picture: Those 13 schools alone have consistently produced a majority of the top five in the final polls, half of the top 10, at least half of the teams in the BCS and all of the national champions in the BCS era. (With Auburn’s triumph – thanks mainly to über recruit Cam Newton, the five-star headliner of a top five class last year – only two of the top dozen recruiting powers have failed to win a BCS championship: Georgia and Michigan. [Emphasis added.] Last year, Oregon was only the third team form outside of the group to even play for a BCS title, joining Virginia Tech in 1999 and Nebraska in 2001, and we might find the ’01 Cornhuskers were a pretty highly regarded bunch themselves if those numbers were available.)
I’m excited about the recent news on Georgia’s recruiting front, as much for what it indicates about a motivated coaching staff as for the potential talent infusion itself. But if recent history is relevant, that’s only part of what needs to be addressed for Mark Richt to get things turned around this year. If he can’t get the longstanding flaws suggested by Hinton’s data fixed, all he will have accomplished by signing a stellar 2011 class would be to leave a nicely stocked roster for his successor. That’s not exactly the epitaph for his career at Georgia that Richt wants.
Get The Picture 
I think Richt understands a team has to have very strong solid running game. UGA has not had that since Moreno left. When you field a team that depends on a WR making a play 20-30 yards down field, and that is what he brought from FSU with people like Van Halinger and Lilly, well, it just does not work in the SEC. Plus it adds to teams not being tough. Running teams are tough mentally and physcially. Georgia needs to get back to or into a primary running offense. You build championship teams primarily along the line of scrimmage…end to end. Lately, too many teams at UGA and that is all three of the men’s major are just not tough enough.
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It would be interesting to see some data on the recruiting jobs done by coaches who know the ground is opening beneath them and they may get only one more shot.
Jim Donnan comes to mind.
Ron Zook
Tommy Tuberville
etc.
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Les Miles?
Wasn’t he on the “warm” seat with CMR last offseason? I don’t follow ‘cruitin enough to know how LSU did last year.
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Mark Richt reminds me of the old fable of the scorpion and the frog. The scorpion begs the frog to carry him across the stream on his back but the frog says no you will bit me. The scorpion assures the frog that he won’t because to do so would be suicide, so the Frog says ok. Half way across the scorpion bits the Frog and as the frog is dying he asks the scorpion Why did you do this, to which the scorpion replies “It’s just what I do.” Mark Richt will never change his offensive philosophy even if it gets him fired.
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I’m disappointed with your story.
I was hoping it was about a Frenchman and these guys:
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I thought it was going to be the parable of Pesci, Rickles and Clarence Frogman Henry- nsfw
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The other interesting thing that these data tell me is that the ranking of the five year periods is slowly declining; 4, 6, 6, 6, 7. This could indicate a downward trend of the quality of recruiting classes.
Let’s just GA some As next year and be done with it.
Woof!
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Another thing pops out — as well as we have recruited, in our better years we still have had to play teams that have more talent. One thing that doesn’t show up is that while we have recruited well overall, we have always had one or two positions where there is a lack of talent, inexperience, or both. Our recent results have been a combination of losing some talent, not playing as well as used to, and many of the teams getting better. A #1 recruiting class with key players in the right spots would go further than most people are giving credit I think.
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This very problem (lack of depth at 1 or 2 key positions) is a direct result of not using all available scholarships, which is a direct result of the “I don’t want to oversign” mentality. When UGA will not oversign and ends up with fewer kids that can actually play than, say Bama, the Dawgs are put at a competitive disadvantage. I do not like the practice either but if everyone else is doing it……….
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“only two of the top dozen recruiting powers have failed to win a BCS championship: Georgia and Michigan”
Gahhh.
I really did not need that gut punch this morning. 😦
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Right there with you — Meeeshigan? Really?
Funny thing is, my brother-in-law (huge Michigan fan) complained until 2007 about Lloyd Carr’s unimaginative offense and conservative playcalling (real citation: “Why is Hart running??? They have 8 in the box and there’s 2 open receivers!!” [prays to Schembechler]). What he praised: Carr’s loyalty towards assistants.
Funny how things work out, eh?
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When our players from those highly rated classes turn out to be busts or get injured, they stay on the roster. (As they should.)
When SEC West highly rated players turn out to be busts or get injured, they get kicked off the team. So the overall depth ends up being much greater.
Let’s start oversigning and roster purging, Senator. How ’bout it?
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Am I going blind–Miami is up there every year without even a top 25 finish to show for it…
Can we at least be optimistic that we aren’t THAT bad??
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Also, FSU…
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I still believe that in the last 6 years only 06 was an above average recruitment class. A lot of them left early. 05 was a total bust & the Dawgs had to go for some JC players because of it. There has been a lack of talent at UGA compared to some of our main rivals since 2005. Hopefully that is going to change with the 2011 class we are now recruiting.
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