Brian McClendon, on Georgia’s accelerated pace of making offers:
Another new thing UGA is trying to do is to evaluate and offer kids at an earlier age. The Bulldogs were traditionally conservative in this area until new defensive coordinator Jeremy Pruitt arrived in January 2014.
“I think it’s where recruiting has gotten,” McClendon said. “You have to jump out there and really be a year ahead of the evaluation process (compared) to where things used to be. You get those evaluations … and there’s no reason to hold back. In doing that, you’ve got to be more sure on a guy as far as what you think he can be down the road, as far as growth potential. But I think it is where recruiting has gotten.”
I’ve been under the impression this was a reaction to Nick Saban, but if you look at this chart…
… through 2013, Alabama’s been about as conservative as Georgia. Not anymore, though. In the case of both schools, it now looks like there’s been a reaction to some of the insane number of offers handed out by schools like Ole Miss (321 for the class of 2013), Kentucky (313 for the class of 2015) and Tennessee (232 for the class of 2016).
But even Georgia currently has six offers out to kids – and kids they truly are – who won’t be able to sign a NLI until 2018. There was a day not too long ago when I never thought I’d see Mark Richt do business like that. Weird times.
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I’m curious…Richt made a comment some years ago (In an answer to other schools offering early) that he didn’t want to offer to kids and then not be able to honor the offer…may question is…if one of these kids we offer early, accepts early, then doesn’t pan out…do we honor the offer? …or has that mentality changed too?
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I’m thinking primarily of the guy who verbally accepted UGA last year, then wound up committing to Texas. I’m not sure we actually pulled the offer, but it seems we made it clear our interest had waned and the change was mutual.
Seems to me CMR honored the offer for OT Benedict. He committed and attended but never played a game for UGA and ended up transferring. Perhaps someone has a more recent example.
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I’ve heard of schools offering “non-commit-table” offers (as ridiculous as that sounds), so that’s probably what’s going on in a lot of these cases.
Regardless, if it’s obvious that a kid isn’t going to pan out before it’s time to sign the NLI then I sure hope we’d rescind the offer. I get that winning isn’t ALL that matters but our football team isn’t a charity, either.
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“I get that winning isn’t ALL that matters but our football team isn’t a charity, either.”
Agreed. I think as long as we are up front about the possibilities that may bring change btw the time we offer and the day they sign, we can sleep with our actions.
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Wow UT! Those are some desperate numbers they’re throwing out. I didnt think it was all that bad there, until I saw those numbers. I have a pulse and can run forward, wonder if that makes me offer-worthy?
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I think of Stanley Boom Williams who now plays for UK. He was a verbal to UGA and then Chubb and Michel became verbals and he drifted away. It appeared to be the staff backing off. I wonder how that would have gone down had he tried to push them to honor their initial offer. He is a good back.
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All I would say is that I won’t count on the QB from Washington? until he’s on campus. I’m sure mike leach is telling him he can throw the ball 100 times a game and we actually lost out to freaking ucla for several guys this year.
That being said I like the new assistants and recruiting philosophy. Gotta keep up with the Sabans. Though honestly I less begrudge a georgia kid going to the best program in the country arguably than the ones that go to the cesspool on the plains.
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I’m also hoping that the new coaches will focus more on keeping the big hoss o linemen from the state from the dirtiest little cesspool on the plains et al at home.
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Like in everything I am sure that communication and making sure that everyone is on the same page is the most important part and you certainly dont want to find yourself in a situation where you have to do something like Corch.
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