Twitter Tuesday: Vols, K-State and Jim Harbaugh as Ric Flair
Twitter Tuesday is back for another installment. This week, Southeast recruiting analyst Rob Cassidy tries his hand at answering questions hurled at him through social media. On the docket today: K-State’s new recruiting territory, Tennessee’s new staff, comparing football coaches to 1980s wrestlers and plenty more.
I’m not sure I have anything especially groundbreaking or provocative to say about Jeremy Pruitt or his staff. Everything worth saying has been written five times and poured over.
There are plenty of reasons to think he’ll do well at Tennessee. He has the coaching pedigree, the track record, the youth and the staff to be successful. He’s made some hires to expand his recruiting reach, including snagging former ASA College coach Joe Osovet and putting him in a support role. The Osovet hire didn’t get a ton of headlines, but it’s important because of what it represents on a philosophical scale. The hire shows Pruitt and company are committed to a truly national recruiting approach. Osovet, an incredible coach and a truly likeable guy, has strong ties to the junior college ranks and high schools in the Northeast.
The catch is, expanding your recruiting ground can go both ways. The benefits of a truly national approach are obvious. The drawbacks, however, are the things in the region could grow contentious. Local coaches and trainers don’t take well to out-of-area players taking up too many roster spots or garnering too many offers. It’s the finest of lines. Just ask Al Golden, who battled this kind of blowback from local coaches while at Miami.
As for how Pruitt and company will fare this season, I wouldn’t expect the world. Vol fan are tired of hearing about how rebuilding is a process, but that doesn’t make it any less true. That said, there’s a certain semblance of talent in place. A 7-5 finish is a fair expectation for year one.
Speaking of betting, I’d wager a decent amount of cash that there’s already a guy or two in Dade County that will book your National Signing Day bets. This is, after all, the same place where I once witnessed people (parents?) tossing cash on the bleachers to wager on linemen one-on-ones during a camp. That’s a true story. Ask around. I bet you can find odds on commitment changes flips, too.
Oh, and always remember to respect the decision.
There’s definitely a renewed focus on Florida. K-State has steered clear of the state in recent years, but the minute Eric Hickson was brought on as running backs coach, the offers started to fly.
Problem is – and maybe this is strategy – K-State isn’t getting many of the players it offered. Defensive end Samuel Brooks isn’t going to de-commit from in-state Miami to move to Manhattan, Kan. Rivals100 wide receiver John Dunmore isn’t going to choose the Wildcats over a long list of offers from power programs closer to his South Florida home. Ge’Mon Eaford probably isn’t coming, either.
There are plenty of players in Florida that can help K-State – players Hickson and Bill Snyder can land. If the strategy is to offer the big-time player so the buzz about K-State returns to the region, I get that. Let the top Florida prospects tweet about the offers and talk to their friends about K-State. It gets the coaching staff more local exposure and adds cachet to the logo. Silly as it sounds, this helps when it’s time to pursue actual targets. I understand the logic. A few more realistic offers have gone out in recent days.
Ultimately, where K-State needs to live – and where it wants to live – is with the Florida players that usually end up at Louisville, Pittsburgh, Nebraska or West Virginia. These are prospects the Wildcats can land. Before you scoff, remember that Heisman Trophy winner Lamar Jackson is one of those types. The surplus of talent in Florida can and will help K-State. The Wildcats just have to get in where they fit in. Deal with the right 7-on-7 coaches, recruit the players you can actually sign and steal high-end athletes the in-state powers have to turn away because of roster restrictions. This is going to be great for Snyder’s program, which once did incredibly well recruiting the state.
Welcome back to Florida, Cats. You can pick up your bath salts, flood insurance and novelty tank top at the kiosk to your left. Please see the nearest shady handler for further instruction.
Probably Simon Dellinger. The 6-foot-5 tight end showed in Orlando up from Fort Wayne, Ind. He didn’t have an invite to the event and earned his way into the event through the previous day’s combine. Once he arrived at camp, he took home MVP honors at a skill position in a state known for producing elite athletes.
I certainly had no idea who he was before he arrived in Florida and I’m not sure many of our Midwest guys did, either.
Whatever scrap I can get my hands on. Because if I ever find myself coaching a football team, something has gone horribly wrong on a global level and we’re in some sort of creepy post-apocalyptic society that features very few adults.
Nobody wants me coaching their football team. And, to be honest, I would rather light myself on fire than be a coach.
You bet I did. These questions don’t solicit themselves. Mind your business, Nick. Also, that lame cigar in your Twitter photo looks photoshopped.
People play with the definition of “national recruiting.”
Is any team going to win anything with 100 percent of the roster from their state? No. Florida-based schools and Texas-based schools might be able to do so with prospects from a three-state radius, but the flimsy definition of “national recruiting base” makes this difficult to pin down.
The second part of this question is way more interesting, so let’s dive into that. I’ve limited this to active coaches.
Nick Saban as Arn Anderson
I know. I know. Hear me out, though. I get that the obvious (and lazy) comparison would be Ric Flair. Both are transcendent figures with multiple titles and will be remembered forever, but let’s do the work and go beyond the easy answer. Anderson, like Saban, is known for his in-ring/sideline work. Maybe Anderson doesn’t bring the flash or mic skills of Flair, but he’s a much more skilled and technical wrestler. Bonus points because Anderson struggled to find traction during his WWF run the way Saban struggled to find it in the NFL.
Jim Harbaugh as Ric Flair
Flair has always been better on the microphone than in the ring. Likewise, Harbaugh is a master of the promo but doubts about his ability to back it up remain. His bluster is certainly bigger than his track record as things stand now. Both put flash over substance, but each remains unforgettable because of it. Flair was never going to be Bret Hart in the ring and Harbaugh is never going to be Bear Bryant on the sideline. That doesn’t preclude either from being great.
Bill Snyder as Ole Anderson
Anderson is an underrated worker, and people sometimes forget he exists. Ask somebody to name the original four Horsemen, they’ll almost certainly draw a blank on Anderson. Once reminded, they’ll respond with “Oh yeah, he was incredible” and go on to list the reasons why. Conversations about Snyder go the exact same way.
Frank Solich as Barry Windham
Solich, like Windham, had a short but hot run on a grand stage. He won a few prestigious titles in his youth before making the jump to a different promotion. Windham was solidly successful after leaving behind his Horsemen fame for the WWF, but he quickly faded from the public consciousness despite sustaining some semblance of success. Windham and Solich had bright starts to promising careers and experienced incredible longevity. That said, few will remember either in 15 years.