Ohio State Football: Recruiting Synergy

Time for more recruiting talk!  But hey, what else is there to discuss right now in this very dead time for college football?  Soon word will be leaking out of camp, and we’ll all be so excited we can’t see straight.  But for now, recruiting reigns supreme.

One of the great fallacies of recruiting services is that they give ratings on one class at a time and often fail to see how a class meshes with the previous one, or the one that follows.

Another weakness in most rating systems is failure to address a school that loads up on one position, getting a glut of athletes for a particular spot, but failing to address needs at other positions.

Take Alabama for instance.  Some people ranked them as the No. 1 class for 2008.  Now, besides the obvious fact that they signed 32 guys in that class (apparently confident that some would not meet academic requirements), they actually received signatures from no less than eight defensive linemen.

Hey, that’s a great haul, as most were highly rated, but you can only play four at a time, so you know some of those guys will wind up transferring when they find themselves glued to the bench.  Big linemen aren’t usually guys that will fill the special teams, either.

Alabama’s lofty ranking may have been a little high when you take this into account.

In the past I have seen schools sign as many as four quarterbacks in one class, and up to six running backs.  Generally, when they wind up with too many at one position, they also miss out on another position altogether.   

What wise coaches do is seek to build solid classes that address all of their needs, and dovetail with previous classes so that there is strength at each position.  I call it recruiting synergy.

The dictionary defines synergy as, “The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.”

That’s how a school that never has a top-ranked class can still be a national champion.  If every class is solid and compliments those before and after it, then synergism occurs.

Let’s quickly take a look at the class of 2008, combined with what we have so far in 2009.

Everyone loved last year’s class, headlined by Terrelle Pryor, and the Block-O linemen.  It pretty well addressed every need, but there were a couple of weaknesses:

1) The lack of a big-time runner.  When we had to pull the scholarship offer to Devoe Torrence, it left a gaping hole.  Sure, Lamaar Thomas could be a tailback, but the staff sees him as a receiver and kick returner.  We also brought in Jermil Martin, but most see him as a fullback, and he wasn’t highly rated anyway.

2) Secondary speed.  The Bucks signed three defensive backs, but only Travis Howard was highly recruited and ranked.  Both Orhian Johnson and Zach Domicone played more quarterback in high school than defensive back, and neither was considered a super talent.  Some think Domicone will grow into a linebacker anyway.

Now they may each wind up being great players, but in both number and perceived quality, the ’08 defensive back haul appears less than stellar.

So let’s see what we have so far in the 2009 class in these two areas:

1) Three backs signed, with another one being courted.  In Carlos Hyde and Jordan Hall, we have two tailbacks of very different sizes and styles.  We are also putting the full court press on Jamaal Berry, who appears to be special.  Plus we have a fine fullback candidate in Adam Homan.

2) Six (are you kidding me?) speedy defensive backs in the bag, with room for another.  You have to love the potential of C.J. Barnett, Corey Brown, Dominic Clark, Justin Green, Bradley McDougald and Jamie Wood.  And some think we may still take E.J. Banks or possibly even Vlad Emilien, with D.J. Hunter not being a total impossibility.

Facing the spread more of the time, and with a bit of a disappointing group of DBs in ’08, there is no doubt this need has been addressed and met.  (And the good news is that DBs make the best special teams players.)

Anyway, take a look at all the players from this year, and the young men who have given their verbal commitment for next year, and I think you will really like what you see.  I challenge you to find one position that isn’t well manned.

Of course anything can happen: defections, ineligibilities, injuries, etc.  But Tress and company have certainly addressed the needs and made sure quality players are coming at every position.

If the anticipated synergy occurs, look out.  We might see something truly special on the field in a couple of years!

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