National recruiting director Mike Farrell and national recruiting analyst Adam Gorney tackle three topics daily and determine whether they believe the statements or not.
MORE FACT OR FICTION: Alabama is just getting warmed up
CLASS OF 2021 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | Position | Team | State
CLASS OF 2022: Top 100
1. Losing the Brockermeyer twins won’t hurt Texas.
Farrell’s take: FICTION. Losing Tommy and James Brockermeyer hurts. I don’t care how big a diehard Texas fan you are, there’s no way to spin this. These are Texas legacies during a pandemic where more and more prospects are staying home, and yet they still leave for Alabama.
I know it’s not a loss to a conference rival and every recruiting loss to Alabama can be explained away by Nick Saban’s amazing recruiting but this stings. The OL is a big need for Texas and these two would be multi-year starters in Austin. There was no better time to keep them home and Tom Herman couldn’t do it.
Gorney’s take: FICTION. This is a major loss for Texas but really not all that surprising if you look at recent trends. It’s hard to believe, but the Longhorns have not done all that well with elite in-state recruits in recent recruiting cycles. In the Mack Brown days, he would hold a junior day and basically load up the entire recruiting class mainly with in-state prospects. That hasn't been the case under Herman. No one expects Texas to get all the top guys, but they need to start getting some if they want to build themselves back into national title contenders.
2. Boston College recruiting is on the come up.
Farrell’s take: FACT. Jeff Hafley has always been a great recruiter from his days at Rutgers and, obviously, Ohio State. He’s also a smart guy and hiring Aazaar Abdul-Rahim was huge for Boston College. Hafley is a coaching legend in the DMV from his high school days and has many prospects from the area interested. And taking Clinton Burton out of St. Frances away from the Florida Gators is a big deal. BC's class is ranked just inside the national top-30 and right behind Florida State in the ACC. It’s only going to get better under Hafley.
Gorney’s take: FACT. Flipping Burton from Florida was a huge move by Boston College, but it speaks to the aggressive style that Hafley and his staff are bringing to recruiting in Chestnut Hill and the Eagles should only build upon that. There was a staleness to the old regime under coach Steve Addazio, but Hafley is going to make Boston College more exciting and fun and recruits are going to be more interested. BC has done well in the Southeast, Midwest and all across the Mid-Atlantic this recruiting cycle and that’s before Hafley has even coached a game.
3. Kobe Boyce is an inspiration.
Farrell’s take: FACT. The Texas cornerback went public with his battle with depression and explained his reason for stepping away from football on Twitter. Depression is not talked about enough and having a player like Kobe Boyce speak about it publicly is good for everyone. It allows others to see that the stigma around mental health needs to be banished and that so many who suffer from it should speak to it. He wasn’t a star at Texas on the field, but he was solid. But he’s a star off the field by sharing his experience.
Gorney’s take: FACT. Mental health issues are definitely not discussed enough at any level and in society in general and maybe Boyce’s story will help others work through their personal difficulties. Football is incredibly important to many people for many different reasons - one of them helping them cope with issues off-the-field - but if Boyce feels it is best for his well-being to step away from the game to work out some problems then I applaud him for it. Hopefully his courage can inspire others to face their situations head on and overcome them.
