Our weekly Twitter Tuesday mailbag continues this week where you ask National Recruiting Director Mike Farrell your football questions via social media. Here are numerous questions including whether the Vols will land some future five-stars.
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I think Quavaris Crouch ends up elsewhere but Tennessee has a good shot at Darnell Wright. Alabama is tough to beat in any recruiting battle, but Wright has a lot of Tennessee supporters in his camp and the distance from home is much better. However, many feel the Tide will win this battle in the end but I think it’s a toss-up. The Vols have done a good job recruiting both players and staying in the mix against playoff teams. Even if they lose both, I’m impressed with the job they have done. Imagine if they can land Wright along with Wanya Morris what that would do for their offense down the line.
I wish I knew, but maybe teams have figured out the Penn State offense. I’m not really sure, but since the second half of the Ohio State game, the Nittany Lions' offense hasn’t been in sync and the defense has been underperforming. This has made Penn State an afterthought overall in the Big Ten which is a bit of a surprise. The Nittany Lions could still pull off some big wins against Iowa, Michigan or Wisconsin, but they have been playing down to opponents and have been far from the “elite” team James Franklin promised.
I’ll give quick answers to each of these.
... Yes, the photo you’re talking about where Butch Jones is smoking a celebratory cigar with a player after Alabama's win over Tennessee is in poor taste. Jones was a failure as the Vols' head coach and the last thing he should be doing is bragging about a win as an “analyst” on the ‘Bama staff. I laughed out loud when I saw the photo because it made him look so petty and foolish.
... No comment on the refs.
... I’m going to dig into that tomorrow in my Three-Point Stance column, but I think right now it’s Alabama, Clemson and Notre Dame with the Big Ten winner (if it’s Michigan) or perhaps the Big 12 champion (if it’s Oklahoma or Texas).
... They are young and improving so they will be fine. I expect a much better season next year.
... UCF is better right now but Scott Frost is a great coach and will do some damage at Nebraska before all is said and done.
... No. ‘Bama wins and wins big.
The simple answer right now is yes. Notre Dame will get in, Clemson will get in but I think Alabama and Georgia would both get in while Ohio State would be left out because of the awful loss to Purdue. The Pac-12 is done and the Big 12 could easily get left out, so it comes down to Ohio State versus Georgia and Alabama and I think the SEC would win. Alabama, especially if the Crimson Tide win out and are as dominant as they have been, would still get in with a close loss to Georgia in the SEC Championship Game as long as Georgia has that lone loss to LSU. I can’t see Alabama getting left out after the season they are expected to have despite a close loss to Georgia.
I could be wrong because a conference title, especially in the Big Ten, is a big deal, but if it’s Ohio State with that lone loss to Purdue, you could see the conference getting snubbed. I’m sure I’m in the minority here but that’s my take. Now if Michigan wins out, that’s another story.
No, but Florida should finish in the top 15 or so. Right now, the Gators are No. 25 in the Rivals.com Team Recruiting Rankings with 15 commitments and an average star ranking of 3.53, which would put them in the 14-15 range overall in the end. I’m not sure if Dan Mullen will be the type of head coach that delivers top-10 classes every year, but he finds guys that fit his system and that’s more important.
If I’m a Florida fan, I’m slightly disappointed in the recruiting class to date, but again it’s all about coaching in the end. Mullen can coach his players to very high levels and get more out of a three-star than most can. And, as they win, recruiting will improve overall as well.
If it happens, you have to like Alabama here. The Crimson Tide have just looked so dominant and with a freshman quarterback you have to figure Clemson would struggle on some level. Both defenses are great with Clemson having an edge there, but offensively Alabama seems much more balanced.
