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Take Two: Iowas chance, USCs hire, Pitt

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Storyline: USC has had two disastrous coaching hires in
Lane Kiffin and
Steve Sarkisian and athletics director Pat Haden has more pressure than ever to make
the right hire this time around.
But does it even matter when it comes to recruiting? The argument is that USC
football sells itself, so a flashy, "hot name" is not necessarily needed with the
Trojans. Maybe USC needs a great X's and O's coach who knows how to win, get some
assistants who can handle the recruiting and top classes will take care of
themselves.
The days of Pete Carroll are over. It's time for USC to move on. The Trojans
regularly have top recruiting classes, they have the talent, so they need a coach
who could maximize all that ability.
First take: "USC needs a big-time hire this time around," said Chris Swanson of
TrojanSports.com. "Not because of recruiting, that will take care of itself for
the powerhouse program. USC will always recruit well, as evidenced by its lofty
recruiting rankings during a time of scholarship limitations.
"The feeling that a big-name hire is necessary is because of immense pressure
from USC fans, boosters and the national media. A smaller-name coach will be
viewed as a failure for USC in this coaching search. Just look at what happened
with Steve Sarkisian at USC before he was fired. … Trojan fans never fully
supported Sarkisian and made it clear."
Second take: "I don't think the landscape of recruiting is going to change,"
Farrell said. "USC and UCLA will be fighting for those kids. USC needs to win.
There are certain programs that recruit themselves. They have guys going to the
NFL and guys who win Heismans. They recruit themselves. If it becomes a
disaster, if you don't win, if you become the fourth-best team in your
conference, it can fall apart."
3. Can Pitt make its mark?
Storyline: Penn State has generally dominated Pittsburgh in the team recruiting
rankings during the Rivals era (dating back to 2002) with the Nittany Lions
beating the Panthers in all but four cycles.
But two of those Pitt recruiting wins came in the 2012 and 2013 classes and with
the Panthers ranked in the AP Top 25 again and Penn State at 5-2 but clearly not
a Big Ten contender yet, can the ACC school start pulling some top Pennsylvania
talent?
Penn State continues to dominate the in-state recruits with four of the top five
commits pledged to the Nittany Lions, but will that change if coach Pat Narduzzi
keeps winning at Pitt and Penn State continues to look average?
First take: "Narduzzi was already going to make Pitt stronger in recruiting
-- particularly in Pennsylvania -- just based on his approach and the approach of his staff,"
said Chris Peak of Panther-Lair.com. "The coaches are energetic and dynamic
recruiters, and the effects of that approach were already being felt. But with
the added element of on-field success, which is always necessary for a school
like Pitt, the chances of recruiting success are even higher. With a winning
product on the field, Narduzzi was primed to compete with Penn State for
Pennsylvania's top talent, and PSU's on-field struggles will only help that
cause."
Second take: "Narduzzi is not likely to pull a 'Todd Graham' and just leave,"
Farrell said. "They hung with Penn State in recruiting very much so under (Dave) Wannstedt.
They were getting a lot of Western Pennsylvania kids. The difference is he was
a hometown guy. I just don't see for the foreseeable future Pitt out-recruiting
Penn State simply because James Franklin is such a great recruiter and the
recruiting has improved so much since Joe Paterno."
Adam Gorney
National Recruiting Analyst
Mike Farrell
National Recruiting Director
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