Danimal

I know we have to be realistic but lets not go to extremes here. Hell Minnesota is recruiting well. Zook has recruited well at Illinois. Sorryass Wanny has recruited well at Pitt. I can go-on. Non national-powers can be recruited-to well. When was the last time PSU did that much? Hell we were getting a fair amount of name guys pretty recently. No we aren't the late-90's 'skers but we are still a name team. We are recruiting right-now like an Iowa State, Vandy, or Duke. Don't tell me we have to settle THAT much. We could've waited to get these lesser-known guys in summer-camp and get a really good look before offering. Then if we like the goods we offer. Guys who don't have nice offers you can slow-play a bit, guys with offers rolling-in you have to be more aggressive. Of course if we really like the kid we should offer no matter what Rivals thinks, but I think on some kids we could make really sure first. I'm sure Bo thinks these guys are players but it seems we are lacking some in the strategy department. The coaches obviously know more about the guys they're offering than me and we do gotta trust they are players. But I have a little trouble believing we are THAT much better at evaluating than others and we'll have a class full of sleepers. What happens if we have a surprisingly good season and start getting more love from the more highly-regarded recruits? What if we miss-out on a couple nice guys late because we filled-up too much early?

I agree and disagree. Ya we are going after undervalued guys with intangibles the coaches like. Ya we need a fair amount of those guys. Are we in great position to go toe-toe with the top-tier recruiting powers? No. But I think we are dangrously close to just settling. We are still freaking Nebraska. Unless we are just that damn good at evaluating and just beating other to the punch in recognizing players I'd say we could afford to be waiting on these guys. Sorry, ya these guys will play hard but dammit we need difference makers too. We aren't opening a legit Texas pipeline by taking a bunch of 2* from there. We could always get them, hell almost any BCS-team could. Plus you have to look at the tone we are setting for the class. We have zero recruiting-momentum thus far. THUS FAR WE HAVEN'T BEATEN ANYONE NOTEWORTHY FOR A RECRUIT, that sets the tone for a scrappy team that just wins for than it loses, not a team that takes back the north and plays on New Years. I see your point and realize we aren't going to be a recruiting juggernaut and have a history of success with overachievers. Ya we have recruited guys that will bleed husker-red. But history has also shown us the importance of difference-makers, we need several flat-out studs per class.

I would have to agree with you. I was a little worried that we would be losing at least 10 players due to the new coaching staff (i.e., those players who agreed to play for the original staff), but so far we only have had two leave? Wow, I must say that's pretty shocking. Hopefully that's all the transfers there will be. I was a little surprised we lost as many recruits as we did..I mean, it's probably natural to want to follow a coach you have a relationship with, but in the past, we also seemed to recruit guys that just wanted to play for NEBRASKA. Not sure why someone like Gabbert wouldn't feel comfortable with Pelini/Watson, unless he believed Callihan gave him the best shot at the NFL, and maybe Pinkel could too. I'd say the guys that have been here saw through the old staff, especially BC. They are into a guy that tells it to them straight and can motivate. The recruits didn't know any better, they totally bought-in to BC being a superbowl coach and turning them into a pro-player. So they bolted.

Some guys would rather ride pine at UNL, some would rather play at UNO, hope things work-out for them.

My guess is they want to get him into camp to see how his leg is progressing and by then his grades will be in and they'll have a better idea where he is headed academically. But business could pick-up on him very quickly, I'm sure they are trying to stay abreast of his situation.

Good speed for his size, and seems to have the frame to carry more weight. He already has several offers. He'll likely get one at huskercamp but it wouldn't surprise me if we make a move on him earlier.

I think they look OK

So is he going to be a FB and Bodtmann a Will? That would be my guess. One must be a fullback and the other a LB, but which one?

Hopefully we stay in the mix as the offers roll-in. It'd be nice to make some inroads into Ohio.

Looks like he has already committed. Film looks solid. On the surface seems like kind of a stretch and not a guy to get psyched-about. But there is no point in making a stretch-offer in Spring and he is only the second local to get an offer so it isn't like they are being willy-nilly in offering Nebraskans. Coaches must see something there and think he is a player.

According to Tom he wanted to fix what was broken during the BC-era. Bo does do that. The D is going to be improved. We'll be more motivated. We'll be more physical. And husker traditions including the walk-on program will be embraced. Out of the "outsiders" mentioned I think Paul Johnson would probably be the most conducive guy to Dr Tom's vision. I can see a guy who won with a grounded attack at a service-academy(granted he wanted to pass more but lacked personnel to do so) doing well at Neb and bleeding husker-red. Still think a Paul Johnson/Jon Tenuta combo would have been interesting.

yeah, but i'd think if beck does a great job coaching the running backs this year we might get a better shot. because honestly i don't see why we are in his top unless the kool aid is amazing. Judging from why he took USC off his list it appears he doesn't want to get lost in the shuffle. Here he'd certainly be the top back for this class and he'd be in good position to takeover when Castille and Helu are done. Plus we are looking to be a physical team and Watson has a history of pounding the rock. I'd say we have a fair amount to offer a rb. But we have MAJOR competition for this kid, a lot of very big dogs, it'll be an uphill battle to get him.

That is shade short but he could always grow an inch or two still. He was kicking serious ass before he got hurt last season and appears to have enough running-ability to mix-in some spread-option. He'd be a solid get. From what I understand he has had quite a bit of contact with Wiscy but I think we have a fair shot at him.

I think Cotton will do a fine job now that he only has the line to worry about. I don't care what he says, being OC and O-line coach is too much. Both are big jobs by themselves, together you can't put enough attention into one capacity without shorting the other. OC/qb-coach is a natural since you gotta spend a lot of time with the qb anyway. I'd expect things to cool-off a bit on the walk-on front but if we can keep getting a fair amount of guys that had schollie offers for elsewhere it wll be a real boon to the program. You know those guys will battle for us. Having a first-rate walk-on program again will make recruiting a little easier. A few guys per year proving themselves and earning schollies means you don't need quite as big a recruit-class and may make fewer stretches to fill the class. I certainly hope that Marlowe is a player for us(I'm guessing he'll mainly be a returns/ST's guy), but whether he will be or not he was definitely a stretch when we signed him.

Does anyone remember Gabbert and the kids that followed him here? Its the same thing you are talking about here, I think getting a GOOD QB should be a high priority for the team and KEEPING HIM! The Gabbbert deal couldn't really be avoided, we were ousting our HC/recruiting-honcho. Decommits were going to happen. This year we won't have that instability. We may still get a decommit or two but it won't be the issue it was this last class. If we have a good season that keeps enthusiasm and confidence high it wouldn't surprise me if we can go decommit-free.

Half the reason OSU made it to the title-game was a meh sched. Their noncon was weak and Mich was down. Let's see what the buckeyes do with USC coming-up.

I don't know about the booster-part or not but I'm inclined to believe that folks saw this coming. Ya not everything from that email came true but they were spot-on on Bo coming and Tom wanting Watson kept. We don't know what may have went on behind closed-doors to get BC to "step down" early. I wonder if Bo was kinda distracted in a couple of those late-season games where LSU's D wasn't up to standard. I think he was still working but I think he saw a change coming and his head wasn't totally in the game. Once the search was officially over LSU's D was back to their playmaking selves. I was leaning towards an experienced HC as-well. I like Kelly's track-record a lot. I don't know if Bronco Mendenhall would leave BYU but he'd have been a hell of a candidate-strong HC that seriously knows D. Only time will tell how Bo and his buddies will work-out. But ya gotta like what we are hearing out of camp. We should be a motivated, fundamentally sound, aggressive team again that actually has coaching on the defensive side of the ball.

Dang, but we still could have a shot at him. Mike Stoops can't afford anymore meh seasons, he'll start '08 on the hotseat and has to win. If they don't win he is done. As we know teams in transition are ripe for decommits.

I'm not optimistic. I'd say we have a meh shot with the current competition for him. Gotta find a way to get him to visiti. If OSU or Mich jumps-in we are likely hosed.

I'd look for Neb to start throwing more offers out. If BC did anything right it was upping the aggressiveness of our recruiting-getting into more guys and staying on the gas when it comes to keeping-up on the kids. Going over some positions on scout.com I was amazed at how few offers we have out and/or are in the running for in some spots(ya I know that somewhat reflects lesser needs, but we still have to get on the radar of more recruits). After camp I'd bet we see several guys new guys offered, including a few more locals. Plus we'll see some during the season as kids show what they can do. But we can't afford to be too slow on kids, establishing an early relationship and being one of the first to offer can get help get you the inside track. Hard to say who'll we haul-in at qb. It would be nice to pull in a big-dog like Scheelhasse or Mossakowski that would not only help at qb but could set a new tone for the class and help bring other kids in.

Yup, OU(or maybe Texas if they develop a mutual interest) could definitely change the outlook on getting this kid. But that goes for a lot of kids in the lonestar state. We'll get maybe one or two from that area that could've went to one of those guys. Hopefully in the future we are in a position to go toe-to-toe with the big dogs for a few more of the top recruits. Now most of our fights are for the guys the local powers pass-on. A big season would help considerably in the recruiting dept. Our new coaches aren't much for snake-oil. They'll do better with real results to point to.

Losing their DC and their top two defensive players hurts. But they have the other nine starters back and that will help the new guy a lot. Their D will still be good. Getting the JUCO uberstud rb and Reesing being another year wiser will make-up for the losses at rb and wr. The O will roll. They will be plenty good. Their sched is WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY more difficult so their record won't be the same, but this will still be a team to look out for. I think they will play spoiler to either Mizzou, OU, or Texas.

KU is going to be tough. They have plenty back and the players really buy-in now. But the game is in Lincoln this year and we'll actually be fielding a defense. I think this one goes down to the wire.

The kid is only a junior, he can still grow a little. I'll trust Bo and Co on their offers, I think he has a good grasp of guys that can come-in and play husker-football. But I still want to see us start winning recruiting-battles. We haven't yet. None of our three commits had another good offer(at the time, could definitely have happened later). We gotta be able to go head-to-head with solid BCS programs and pull commits. Then I'll feel good about our recruiting.

IMO Bo would look like a hypocrite if we take him. Plus he knows LSU's O and they don't want him. hey'll trot-out a guy whose never taken a snap first. Why would it be worth it to bring him here and try to teach a cocky miscreant the WCO?