Let's Talk Football Recruiting.....

2016:

We currently have 15 commitments. This leaves us room for Simmons, Brown, Lashley, Jones, plus one more. We may be able to get more than 20 in this class if some of our underclassmen declare for the draft. I still think we get a Fred Ross type commitment this year. I know the coaches are talking with Justin McKinnis (he's extremely under rated..... probably because he's a canuck). I'm wondering if we only found out about him because we're looking at his teammate Mark Thompson. Either way, I'm not sure if he'll get a commitable offer if Brown joins the party. There's a lot of upside to this class, but it's looking more and more like the 2014 class.

2017:

This class is starting to look like our 2015 class. We currently have Champion, Myers, Pierce and Dabney in the boat. But those won't be our top guys in this class.

We are likely to get these guys:

CJ Avery (4* DB)
Kylin Hill (4* RB)
Brad Stewart (4* DB)
Willie Gay (4* OLB) - another Starkville guy we can't afford to lose.
Josh Lister (4* WR) - we need to be all in on this guy..... he's definitely a game changer with 4.3 speed. Keith Mixon type player.
Kam White (3* WR)
Keldrick Carper (3* DB) - J Banks type DB
Freddie Hartz (3* ILB)
Lavante Epson (3* OG)
J'Marick Woods (3* S) - he'll be a 4* next year easily. He's about 6'3" and fast as hell.
Ronald Ladd (3* OLB) - Rosa Fort is starting to produce some damn good players

I'm sure there are a ton of others to list for 2017, since it's probably going to be a big class. Ifyouonlyknew probably has more knowledge on the other prospects.

What about Cam Akers? Do we have a shot with him or is he expected to stick with Bama?

This dude is our top QB target, I've heard http://247sports.com/Player/Keytaon-Thompson-78058

What's up with gay? Isn't he about to commit to om?

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Originally Posted by msstate7

What's up with gay? Isn't he about to commit to om?

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Similar to the Nigel Knott situation..... he wants to go out of state, but the family wants him to stay close to home.

Alabama took care of Nigel's knee surgery and put their doctors on it. I fully expect him to commit to Alabama. If you remember, he was all FSU until the knee injury.

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Originally Posted by Jacksondevildog

Alabama took care of Nigel's knee surgery and put their doctors on it. I fully expect him to commit to Alabama. If you remember, he was all FSU until the knee injury.

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Is that not an impermissible benefit?

Who took care of Gerri green and Jesse jackson's knees?

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Originally Posted by Jacksondevildog

Alabama took care of Nigel's knee surgery and put their doctors on it. I fully expect him to commit to Alabama. If you remember, he was all FSU until the knee injury.

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How does that work? Can someone more educated than I am on this process explain it? I've heard this before on a few other players and I hold NO ill will to kids getting good medical treatment, just want to understand it. Do they send them to the doctor and the bills just never get sent or paid?

I'm sure someone directed the family on how to handle the situation. This isn't hard to figure out.

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Originally Posted by msstate7

Is that not an impermissible benefit?

Who took care of Gerri green and Jesse jackson's knees?

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Apparently only impermissible with Bracky and us. The rest of the SEC can do whatever the heck they want to with no fear of consequences. NCAA sucks.

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Originally Posted by Tripp McNeely

This dude is our top QB target, I've heard http://247sports.com/Player/Keytaon-Thompson-78058

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Thompson will most likely go to LSU. Here's a guy that'll probably start getting more recognition next year..... http://www.hudl.com/athlete/3493266/...s/302363392/v2.

Back to '16... When can we expect lashley to make it official? Are Kobe and aj gonna wait till signing day? Are any of our current commits a flip risk? Does mason have an offer? Will we get a visit from Calhoun? Will we get r. Davis and gooden as sign-and-place guys?

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Originally Posted by randyholloway

How does that work? Can someone more educated than I am on this process explain it? I've heard this before on a few other players and I hold NO ill will to kids getting good medical treatment, just want to understand it. Do they send them to the doctor and the bills just never get sent or paid?

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Just say they are Alabama and all is ok with the NCAA and SEC.

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Originally Posted by Jack Lambert

Just say they are Alabama and all is ok with the NCAA and SEC.

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Suggested doctors also do volunteer work in Birmingham

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Originally Posted by defiantdog

Thompson will most likely go to LSU. Here's a guy that'll probably start getting more recognition next year..... http://www.hudl.com/athlete/3493266/...s/302363392/v2.

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He has serious cutback ability. Looks like his passing skills aren't quite where his running skills are, but that's something he can improve on. Looks like a good prospect.

We lead for Keytaon by a wide margin. Things could always change but he has no interest in LSU as of right now. He was really put off by them during camp this past summer.

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Originally Posted by Ifyouonlyknew

We lead for Keytaon by a wide margin. Things could always change but he has no interest in LSU as of right now. He was really put off by them during camp this past summer.

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Who else is involved?

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Originally Posted by msstate7

Back to '16... When can we expect lashley to make it official? Are Kobe and aj gonna wait till signing day? Are any of our current commits a flip risk? Does mason have an offer? Will we get a visit from Calhoun? Will we get r. Davis and gooden as sign-and-place guys?

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We don't have anyone that will flip.... all current commits are pretty strong. Mason has work, but the same was thought with Leo last year. I don't see Calhoun giving us a visit. He's a Roswell kid, so we are closer to home. But I don't see it happening. R. Davis will hang with his Bama commitment, but eventually, he'll decommit because of grades. I see him and Gooden going Juco then opening up their recruitment again. We have a better opportunity to sign and place Gooden though.

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Originally Posted by Ifyouonlyknew

We lead for Keytaon by a wide margin. Things could always change but he has no interest in LSU as of right now. He was really put off by them during camp this past summer.

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Probably because LSU really wants Narcisse. I'm not sure how strong his commitment to Auburn is.

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Originally Posted by CadaverDawg

He has serious cutback ability. Looks like his passing skills aren't quite where his running skills are, but that's something he can improve on. Looks like a good prospect.

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Agreed, hard to tell based on the level of competition but looks like he has some great skills.

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Originally Posted by defiantdog

2016:

We currently have 15 commitments. This leaves us room for Simmons, Brown, Lashley, Jones, plus one more. We may be able to get more than 20 in this class if some of our underclassmen declare for the draft. I still think we get a Fred Ross type commitment this year. I know the coaches are talking with Justin McKinnis (he's extremely under rated..... probably because he's a canuck). I'm wondering if we only found out about him because we're looking at his teammate Mark Thompson. Either way, I'm not sure if he'll get a commitable offer if Brown joins the party. There's a lot of upside to this class, but it's looking more and more like the 2014 class.

I'm sure there are a ton of others to list for 2017, since it's probably going to be a big class. Ifyouonlyknew probably has more knowledge on the other prospects.

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I think we are going to sign closer to 22 with a few sign and place guys.

My hope:

Simmons
Brown
Lashely
Jones
Gooden
Crowell
Knott

THat would be a great finish

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Originally Posted by HancockCountyDog

I think we are going to sign closer to 22 with a few sign and place guys.

My hope:

Simmons
Brown
Lashely
Jones
Gooden
Crowell
Knott

THat would be a great finish

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All but the last 2 are pretty realistic aren't they?

I don't feel good about Simmons. Only because most of our guys aren't confident and OM people are. Usually there is a reason for that

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Originally Posted by msstate7

All but the last 2 are pretty realistic aren't they?

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I think Crowell is ours, if we want him.

He doesnt have a spot with the bears. The longer Knott takes, the better our chances are.

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Originally Posted by msstate7

All but the last 2 are pretty realistic aren't they?

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If OM gets Crowell, it would be a Hampton 2.0 situation. Knott is going to Bama where he will red shirt. Because he's not jumping in front of Humphrey or Fitzpatrick. Good luck to him.

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Originally Posted by HancockCountyDog

I think we are going to sign closer to 22 with a few sign and place guys.

My hope:

Simmons
Brown
Lashely
Jones
Gooden
Crowell
Knott

THat would be a great finish

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Nobody is willing to take Crowell right now & the longer it goes with Knott the better our odds are. Bama hasn't even did an in home with him yet. It could get real interesting in January.

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Originally Posted by Big4Dawg

I don't feel good about Simmons. Only because most of our guys aren't confident and OM people are. Usually there is a reason for that

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OM people are confident about every prospect they offer. Last year, they had CeCe Jefferson in the bag.

AJ Brown
Justin Mcinnis
Scott Lashley
Gentle Williams
Emmitt Gooden
Kobe Jones
Jeffery Simmons
Jamal Couch
Reggie Todd
Kaderrion Mason
Vincent Calhoun
Lorenzo Dantzler
Jeremiah Moon
Nigel Knott
John Broussard
Raekwon Davis

All of these guys are in play right now. Some others will be included but this is the main list right now. I'm sure I've missed somebody.

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Originally Posted by Ifyouonlyknew

AJ Brown
Justin Mcinnis
Scott Lashley
Gentle Williams
Emmitt Gooden
Kobe Jones
Jeffery Simmons
Jamal Couch
Reggie Todd
Kaderrion Mason
Vincent Calhoun
Lorenzo Dantzler
Jeremiah Moon
Nigel Knott
John Broussard

All of these guys are in play right now. Some others will be included but this is the main list right now. I'm sure I've missed somebody.

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So which ones you predict we get on that list?

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Originally Posted by Big4Dawg

I don't feel good about Simmons. Only because most of our guys aren't confident and OM people are. Usually there is a reason for that

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Your going to hear tons of stuff, but that doesn't mean anything. PJ has continued to say Simmons will most likely sign with MSU.

It's going to be a wild ride, but I have growing confidence that we'll survive & finish with a class ranked 18-22.

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Originally Posted by Ifyouonlyknew

AJ Brown
Justin Mcinnis
Scott Lashley
Gentle Williams
Emmitt Gooden
Kobe Jones
Jeffery Simmons
Jamal Couch
Reggie Todd
Kaderrion Mason
Vincent Calhoun
Lorenzo Dantzler
Jeremiah Moon
Nigel Knott
John Broussard

All of these guys are in play right now. Some others will be included but this is the main list right now. I'm sure I've missed somebody.

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That's 9 4 stars. If land a good amount of these, we'll have a class that continues to improve our talent level from the team we had this year.

Notice you didn't put Rekwon Davis on there. Is that just because he's going to JUCO or is that because you don't think we'll sign him .

Interesting on the Broussard name. Haven't seen his name since this summer. Also curious about Lorenzo Dantzler, was he just a late bloomer?

What happened with Damion Dicksns and KaDerrion Mason?

Would love to get Gentle Williams. He was the best OL at BDC and it wasn't close.

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Originally Posted by ShotgunDawg

Is that just because he's going to JUCO or is that because you don't think we'll sign him .

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Yes

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Originally Posted by ShotgunDawg

That's 9 4 stars. If land a good amount of these, we'll have a class that continues to improve our talent level from the team we had this year.

Notice you didn't put Rekwon Davis on there. Is that just because he's going to JUCO or is that because you don't think we'll sign him .

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Just an oversight on Raekwon. I'll add him.

Let me preface by saying that I am not a "star" whore when it comes to recruiting. Dan and co. have done a great job of evaluating, signing, and developing underrated talent...but unfortunately that doesn't translate to trip to Atlanta. Yes, the star and entire team ranking system is flawed, but we got whipped by almost every 4 & 5 star we faced this year. This stat says it all:

http://i.imgsafe.org/08e76b5.jpg

We HAVE to revamp our recruiting strategy/system so that we are consistently, or at least every other year, finishing in the top third of the SEC in recruiting. Signing day may not be until February, but being currently ranked 38th overall, and 11th in the SEC, is very disturbing. I don't know who to blame? Dan, the entire football staff, F'n Bracky, our soft "network"? Regardless who is most at fault, we either find a way to start landing 4 & 5 stars or return to being irrelevant in the SEC.

For those who are not concerned, and confident we will finish strong by landing some of our top prospects... I pray to "8lb 6oz newborn infant Jesus" that you are right. But why such the slow start this recruiting year? Teams that get an early start and land a couple of big ones early almost always seem to finish stronger. These teams are the ones flipping players, not the teams with their top prospects still uncommitted in January. Not having some solid early commits to help us recruit this year hurt, but it's not their job. Not sure how we got so far behind this year, but I see us finishing in the upper 20's...which isn't the end of the world to some, but I would consider it extremely disappointing.

Last request: SIGN SOME F'N TALENTED OL's AND LOTS OF THEM EVERY YEAR. End of my recruiting rant. Nothing would make me happier than to have this post shoved in my face in mid February after we sign a great class. Go Dawgs!

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Originally Posted by BankerDog

Interesting on the Broussard name. Haven't seen his name since this summer. Also curious about Lorenzo Dantzler, was he just a late bloomer?

What happened with Damion Dicksns and KaDerrion Mason?

Would love to get Gentle Williams. He was the best OL at BDC and it wasn't close.

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Broussard was close to Boom & committed to Auburn due to their defensive coaches. It was apparently close between MSU & Auburn, so with Boom leaving for USC, we are now back in it.

If we can land Broussard, Moon, & maybe one other surprise to go along with the Golden Triangle 4, this class has a chance to be really good compared to our standards.

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Originally Posted by Perpetual Underachiever

Let me preface by saying that I am not a "star" whore when it comes to recruiting. Dan and co. have done a great job of evaluating, signing, and developing underrated talent...but unfortunately that doesn't translate to trip to Atlanta. Yes, the star and entire team ranking system is flawed, but we got whipped by almost every 4 & 5 star we faced this year. This stat says it all:

http://i.imgsafe.org/08e76b5.jpg

We HAVE to revamp our recruiting strategy/system so that we are consistently, or at least every other year, finishing in the top third of the SEC in recruiting. Signing day may not be until February, but being currently ranked 38th overall, and 11th in the SEC, is very disturbing. I don't know who to blame? Dan, the entire football staff, F'n Bracky, our soft "network"? Regardless who is most at fault, we either find a way to start landing 4 & 5 stars or return to being irrelevant in the SEC.

For those who are not concerned, and confident we will finish strong by landing some of our top prospects... I pray to "8lb 6oz newborn infant Jesus" that you are right. But why such the slow start this recruiting year? Teams that get an early start and land a couple of big ones early almost always seem to finish stronger. These teams are the ones flipping players, not the teams with their top prospects still uncommitted in January. Not having some solid early commits to help us recruit this year hurt, but it's not their job. Not sure how we got so far behind this year, but I see us finishing in the upper 20's...which isn't the end of the world to some, but I would consider it extremely disappointing.

Last request: SIGN SOME F'N TALENTED OL's AND LOTS OF THEM EVERY YEAR. End of my recruiting rant. Nothing would make me happier than to have this post shoved in my face in mid February after we sign a great class. Go Dawgs!

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The main difference I see is the difference between 4 stars & 5 stars.

4 stars are good players, but they are still flawed. It's why a team like Iowa, which is full of all 3 stars, can beat teams that are full of 4 stars, but 5 star players are different. They are complete difference makers on the field & tilt the advantage in games. To me, this is what makes the top 5 recruiting teams so hard to beat. It's not that they always have more depth than you or that they don't have flaws on their team as well. It's because they have 5 to 8 players or so on their roster that are complete difference makers and cover up their mistakes.

For as much doom & gloom that everyone wants to put on this program we have a very legit shot at a Top 20 class.

Mullen needs to close strong between now and February. That includes a bowl win to get to 9 wins and sign the golden triangle 4 that are a 7-iron shot from Davis Wade Stadium.

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Originally Posted by Perpetual Underachiever

Let me preface by saying that I am not a "star" whore when it comes to recruiting. Dan and co. have done a great job of evaluating, signing, and developing underrated talent...but unfortunately that doesn't translate to trip to Atlanta. Yes, the star and entire team ranking system is flawed, but we got whipped by almost every 4 & 5 star we faced this year. This stat says it all:

http://i.imgsafe.org/08e76b5.jpg

We HAVE to revamp our recruiting strategy/system so that we are consistently, or at least every other year, finishing in the top third of the SEC in recruiting. Signing day may not be until February, but being currently ranked 38th overall, and 11th in the SEC, is very disturbing. I don't know who to blame? Dan, the entire football staff, F'n Bracky, our soft "network"? Regardless who is most at fault, we either find a way to start landing 4 & 5 stars or return to being irrelevant in the SEC.

For those who are not concerned, and confident we will finish strong by landing some of our top prospects... I pray to "8lb 6oz newborn infant Jesus" that you are right. But why such the slow start this recruiting year? Teams that get an early start and land a couple of big ones early almost always seem to finish stronger. These teams are the ones flipping players, not the teams with their top prospects still uncommitted in January. Not having some solid early commits to help us recruit this year hurt, but it's not their job. Not sure how we got so far behind this year, but I see us finishing in the upper 20's...which isn't the end of the world to some, but I would consider it extremely disappointing.

Last request: SIGN SOME F'N TALENTED OL's AND LOTS OF THEM EVERY YEAR. End of my recruiting rant. Nothing would make me happier than to have this post shoved in my face in mid February after we sign a great class. Go Dawgs!

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If land the players that we currently lead for, we'll finish between 18-22. If we land the players we currently lead for and add a few surprises, we'll almost assuredly finish in the teens.

I love landing tons 4 stars because they add depth & build the core of your team, but we really need to land a few difference making 5 stars that can change the game. This is the only way to beat Bama. You must have a few 5 star players that are mismatches for then. Not sure how we get them.