Rivals.com National Recruiting Director Mike Farrell’s Three-Point Stance is here rating the most recent Power Five coaching hires, listing the 10 best wide receivers returning to college football and explaining why the proposed one-year transfer rule is a great, but late idea.
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1. GRADING RECENT COACHING HIRES
There have been quite a few new Power Five coaching hires since the end of the football season with Colorado still to go. Here’s my grade for each hire in order from best to not so best.
1. Lane Kiffin, Ole Miss — A — I like this hire a lot and don’t think Ole Miss could have done any better. Does that mean Kiffin will break through in the SEC West? I’m not so sure about that, but I know he will recruit well and bring excitement to a program that needs it.
2. Jeff Hafley, Boston College — A — Boston College needed a shot in the arm especially in recruiting after the Steve Addazio era and Hafley will certainly provide that. He’s a young and energetic coach with NFL experience and, coming from a huge program like Ohio State, he will attract better players.
3. Mike Norvell, Florida State — A — I like this hire quite a bit as well. Norvell is an excellent offensive mind and recruiting takes care of itself somewhat at FSU. That being said, he’s also a very good talent evaluator and recruiter.
4. Mel Tucker, Michigan State — B-plus — Everyone will point to his 5-7 record at Colorado, but this is a big hire. Tucker worked at Georgia and knows how to recruit the Southeast, which is key for Big Ten success.
5. Greg Schiano, Rutgers — B-plus — You could make a case for an A here because doing better would be impossible for Rutgers. The only reason it’s not an A? I’m not sure if Schiano can do what he did in the Big East in a killer division in the Big Ten.
6. Mike Leach, Mississippi State — B — Leach is eccentric for sure and you never know what you’re getting from a recruiting standpoint, but he’s a winner pure and simple and it was very smart of MSU to lure him down south.
7. Jimmy Lake, Washington — B — It’s not an exciting change as things will remain steady with Lake being hired from within, but that’s not a bad thing for Washington.
8. Eli Drinkwitz, Missouri — B-minus — Drinkwitz is taking a huge step into the SEC and there are plenty of unknowns, but I like his resume and the passion he shows in recruiting.
9. Dave Aranda, Baylor — C — Aranda is a very good coordinator who know that but part of the grading system is “how much better can this coach make the program” and Matt Rhule set the bar very high.
10. Nick Rolovich, Washington State — C — Rolovich will keep the excitement going at Washington State, but Leach’s shoes are very big to fill and it’s a tough job to win at consistently.
11. Sam Pittman, Arkansas — C-minus — Pittman is a very good recruiter but his lack of head coach and coordinator experience along with that SEC schedule make this a tough job.
2. THE TOP RETURNING RECEIVERS IN COLLEGE FOOTBALL
I continue my look position-by-position look at the best returning players in college football with a look at the wide receivers.
1. Ja’Marr Chase, LSU — Chase put up insane numbers last season and while they might drop a bit without Joe Burrow, he’s still the best in college football.
2. Devonta Smith, Alabama — Smith was a touchdown machine for Alabama last season and could have entered the NFL Draft, but he decided to return and will likely put up similar numbers.
3. Jaylen Waddle, Alabama — Alabama has some talent, right? Waddle could easily be No. 1 on this list by the end of next season.
4. Tylan Wallace, Oklahoma State — I love Wallace’s ceiling and I look for huge things from him as he returns from injury.
5. Rashod Bateman, Minnesota — Bateman is the best receiver you probably haven’t heard much about and he will be a key to Minnesota’s run towards the Big Ten West title next season.
6. Justyn Ross, Clemson — Ross will now be the man at Clemson with Tee Higgins gone, and he gets to catch passes from the best quarterback in college football.
7. George Pickens, Georgia — Pickens had a great freshman season last year and should only take it up a notch further with a potentially better offense.
8. Rondale Moore, Purdue — Moore is still dynamic beyond belief and should come back from injury with a vengeance.
9. Chris Olave, Ohio State — Olave will be target No. 1 for Justin Fields in the Ohio State offense and that could mean huge numbers.
10. TuTu Atwell, Louisville — Haven’t heard of him? Look at his numbers from last season and watch him do the same thing this year.
3. LOOKING AT THE PROPOSED TRANSFER CHANGES
We all know the NCAA will pass the one-time transfer proposal now that the Big Ten and ACC support it. That's definitely for the good of college football, despite the protests of some like former Miami coach Mark Richt, but it’s a bit late and it would have been nice for tight end Luke Ford, a transfer from Georgia to Illinois who was denied his waiver despite wanting to head back close to home for his ailing grandfather.
It’s puzzling to understand why players like Justin Fields and Tate Martell were granted immediate eligibility and someone like Ford was not. Now, I don’t know what all went into the Fields and Martell paperwork and waiver situations and I’m sure they had very legitimate reasons, but so does Ford, right? Once the NCAA passes this new transfer rule, players like Shea Patterson won’t be held hostage anymore by slow decisions and most important, players like Ford will get to go home. It’s just a shame it came too late for the talented tight end for no good reason.