dylan

So the last 5-6 years he produced results on the field that correlate very closely to his recruiting rankings. That hardly indicates elite talent evaluation. Hopefully though, we'll see results more like the earlier part of his tenure, when he did outperform his recruiting rankings for a few years.

I'd be more inclined to buy that reputation if his previous results on the field better reflected it. Osborne was an ace talent evaluator. Bill Snyder is an ace talent evaluator. Riley? Let's just say he's got a great opportunity to prove it.

That's what I meant by saying there's hope there. If we snagged them while they were "under the radar" and they turn out to be great players, then the coaches have obviously done well. That can be hoped about most recruits that aren't four stars, but the Elite 11 camp and Oregon story do help give reason for hope in this case.

I'll be more impressed with their effort and methods when they actually start getting results that are at least on par with the previous staff. There is some hope that the QBs they've got were "under the radar", but so far the most impressive recruiting accomplishment I've seen by this staff was holding onto most of Pelini's recruits.

I agree that wins are the bottom line, but you've gotta be pretty dang good everywhere else to win without good QB play. And I also agree that numbers don't tell the whole story, but it's hard to ignore previous results when setting expectations for the future. Tommy is still young and has the arm, the confidence and the work ethic to continue improving. Let's hope the new staff can help make that happen.

I think the numbers illustrate a couple of things. One is that Taylor's struggles as a passer were overblown. He certainly wasn't Joe Montana (and at times not even Joe Mantegna), but he generally put up acceptable passing numbers, particularly when he was healthy enough to provide a running threat as well. The other thing the numbers show is that expectations of drastically improved QB play under the new staff are largely based upon hope and not on the staff's previous results. As I brought up above, there is reason to hope that having the prestige to land more talented recruits (and to surround them with more talent) will allow greater results. But it is just that, hope. The fact that true sophomore Tommy put up better pass efficiency numbers than Riley's senior QB last year is concerning, because while Tommy did have some good passing performances, he often struggled badly.

Years of actual, on-field results can't exactly be dismissed or disagreed with. They happened. Everything else is window dressing. The simple fact is that OSU's QBs have generally not outperformed the QBs here that everyone has loved to harp on. The only question is whether we'll see better results from this staff, given better circumstances. And to finish the sentence above, Tim Beck is...now coaching at the top ranked program in the nation. It will be interesting to see how his career progresses.

And yet, in four out of the last five seasons, Taylor and Tommy put up equal or better passing efficiency numbers than OSU's NFL QB factory. I am hopeful that access to better talents at NU, like this kid hopefully (and especially in supporting cast), will allow Riley and company to improve their QB results. I just find the bashing of the old staff unnecessary and strange given the clear track records.

I would take a look at the passing efficiency statistics for the two staffs over recent years before slamming the old staff for their QB coaching. That said, I am excited to see what the new guys can do with the talent we have on hand. I am especially happy to see that they appear to be putting some value on having a quarterback with some athleticism. This kid looks like a good prospect for a pass first QB that can still hurt you with his feet.

Our TEs were definitely underutilized under the last staff. If Carter can stay healthy, I think he'll show people pretty quickly what a good TE can do in the new system.

Oh cool, grumblings. Wonder if these were the same grumblers that claimed Martinez wasn't really injured or that Tressel was lined up to coach here. People grumble all kinds of ridiculous rumors.

Yes, I'm sure he personally contacted all the recruits and encouraged them to leave and then they all just kept it to themselves. Because if there's one thing you can count on a large group of teenagers for, it's keeping something quiet on social media and in interviews. And I would hardly characterize his comments to the team as "doing his damnedest" to sabotage anything, except maybe their nonexistent relationship with Eichorst. I give Riley full credit for both holding together the Pelini recruits and keeping the roster intact. It is a seriously impressive accomplishment. But I hardly think that would have been possible if Bo had truly tried to sabotage things with either group. There are enough legitimate reasons to criticize Bo without making up conspiracy theories to pin on him.

Yeah, that's some pretty tortured logic. It's somehow the fault of the coach that he originally committed to that he's now looking around under a new coach. Hilarious.

If you think we'd be better off taking recruits to a game against a nobody school to ensure a win, rather than a nationally televised matchup with a name school that we might lose, then I'm glad you're not in charge of recruiting. Also, we beat them last year in East Lansing, and they've lost six games already this year, so it's not like they're unbeatable.

Check the star rankings of the two Super Bowl teams.

It's part of why the team rankings, as well as the correlations people make between recruiting rankings and actual rankings, are skewed. Any time a kid gets recruited by better schools, he's suddenly a better prospect. Thus, higher ranked teams automatically have higher recruiting rankings. That said, offers are about the only way I trust the recruiting geeks to get their rankings anywhere close to accurate, because I sure don't think their scouting and talent projection can be taken that seriously.

Both Bussey and Neal seem to think that the term "100% committed" is not the same thing as having made a final decision on what school you're attending. "You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means." - Inigo Montoya

Then why are we third on his list right now? Because "committed" apparently means different things to different people.

He apparently still has a spot here, regardless of injury, according to Eichorst's statement yesterday about honoring our current commitments. It is a shame, for him and the other recruits, that the coaches they built relationships with may be leaving, but I am sure we'll have the staff settled in plenty of time for the kids to make an informed decision. The best we can hope for is that they wait and give the new staff a fair shot.

So...you're telling me that a kid that's been visiting other schools for months now is NOT 100% committed to us?!? I may have to sit down for a bit to get over my complete and utter shock at this development.

Unless he's a junior college student (or needs to go to junior college first out of high school), there's no way we offered him a two year scholarship.

OK, let's just pretend he's not looking at other schools and that there's nothing to see here. I am totally pumped that this kid will be sharing time next year at DONU. Cross will get his carries, but it will be interesting to see who emerges from Newby, Taylor and KB. The rookie will definitely have a shot at picking up Ameer's slack. GBR

My definition of "not wavering one bit" must be different from yours, but I really don't have any interest in rehashing this conversation. Just pointing out the flaws in the girlfriend analogy posted above. (And by the way, the flaw in your own is that you shouldn't commit to someone, and allow them to commit to you, if you haven't finished checking out your options.)

Was his girlfriend going on dates with other guys to see what else was out there? I hope we see this kid in red next year and I think he'd do well in our offense, but I don't think there's any problem with being skeptical when words and actions don't add up.

What a giant pile of horsesh#t.Yeah, keep telling yourself that. Saban and the like could coach at Alaska and kids would flock there to play.Didn't happen when he was Michigan State.Because he wasn't established yet. And how did he get established? By moving south. You are terrible at logic and not worth arguing with. Ding ding ding. Also, the "location argument" has very little to do with what Lincoln has to offer. It has everything to do with the fact that the physical location of a recruit is typically the most important factor in where they go to school. Most of it is due to the distance they and their family have to travel, but part of it is the football teams in their area that they grew up hearing about. I'm not sure why this needs to even be discussed it's so obvious.