Age a deterrent in recruiting

Occupational gossip finds its way back to Bill Snyder.

In fact, it gets back to him often. The 76-year-old coach at Kansas State hears about it through back channels. Other coaches use his age against him on the recruiting trail. It's been happening for years, and it certainly isn't slowing down now.

The tactic isn't overblown or exaggerated. Snyder himself knows his birth year gives rival coaches ammunition on the recruiting trail. At this point, the K-State legend is used to it.

"I hear about it happening [to me] quite a bit," Snyder said. "At least from I'm told, it happens. … It goes back a ways and it's ongoing."

Of course the practice is not just limited to Snyder. Recruiting in college football is a young man's game. Rightly or wrongly, being of 'retirement age' is exploited as a weakness all over the country. Snyder has been affected. So was former South Carolina head coach Steve Spurrier, who referred to himself as a "recruiting liability" when he stepped down as the Gamecocks' head coach earlier this season.

"The recruits want to know that the [coach] going to be there five, ten years from now," Spurrier said in his resignation press conference. "With a new coach here, I think it's going to really pick up recruiting."

Youth, conversely, is a selling point. You need not look far to find an instance in which it works as a deal-sealer. Rivals250 defensive end Xavier Kelly was once committed to Snyder's Wildcats. The Kansas-based recruit broke that pledge and ultimately decided to leave the state to play for 46-year old Dabo Swinney at Clemson, more than 1,000 miles away from his family's Wichita home.

"It's always good to have a younger coach because you know he's going to be around for a while," Kelly said. "Older coaches, they sometimes retire. It's always good to have a younger coach."

And it's not just the possible retirement factor. According to Kelly, there's a vibrancy factor in play as well. Respect for a veteran head coach is certainly something today's player has instilled. There's still something to be said for a decades-long track record.

But, as it turns out, there's also plenty to be said for youthful exuberance.

"I like Coach Swinney's personality," Kelly said. "He dances and really interacts with all the players. I really like how he dances with the players after the games. It's funny, man. It's great."

Post-game dancing matters little in the larger scheme, obviously. Nobody in the history of the sport has committed to a coach because of his dance moves. It does, however, help create a perception. In recruiting, perception is everything. And being perceived as relatable, well, that can do wonders.

"Youth and energy is right up there with winning and facilities, maybe not quite as important but right up there," said Rivals.com national recruiting director Mike Farrell. "It's something kids expect nowadays in recruiting. They compare the energy of coaches and it can make a big impact."

Certainly Clemson's current No. 1 rankings is the main reason for its recruiting successes, but the program's success at attracting players from across the country isn't new this year. Every time a Vine of Dancing Dabo hits Twitter or a video clip pops up on the airwaves, recruits take notice.

A program run by a guy seen as "loose" or "fun" is attractive to teenagers, and Clemson's current reputation falls right in that sweet spot. This is, of course, partly by design. Is dance move-fueled persona a recruiting gimmick? Possibly. But, hey, it's certainly an effective one if so.

"We think of [Swinney] as up-to-date," said four-star linebacker Markail Benton of Phoenix City, Ala. "It feels good when your coach knows all the dances and all that. That kind of stuff makes you think you could be yourself around him.

"We want to be ourselves, and it seems like the younger coaches let you do that more."

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