Thunder Collins

[Cy the Cyclone]

id sure take a 4 star player out of california, texas, or florida before id take a 4 star player out of another state.

the competition is far better in those states than others

Until there's a playoff between the best teams of all 50 states to back it up, I say that's crap. When someone can prove to me that the state championship team of California is better than the state championship team of, say, North Dakota or Minnesota, I'll stick with 3-star recruits from the Midwest over 4 or 5 star kids from California or Florida any day...better attitudes and work ethics. Just because the "press" doesn't get to Bismark...or the people there aren't as inclined to flood the net with press releases and hype, doesn't mean the players there aren't as good as the players on the east or west coast...just not as promoted, probably due to the fact that the people from the midwest are not as pretentious as those coastal clowns.

 

[junior4949]

I remember when Collins came to Nebraska, his grades weren't that great, so he ended up having to take classes out at Souteast Community College. My sister was taking a couple of courses out there and she wasn't that impressed with him...even wondered how he ever qualified for college on a ACT or SAT test.

He came under the guise of being a good athlete, but sure seems like it never panned out. I think they ended up spending more time on dealing with his personal problems and behavior than he ever spent playing.

This is just another example of why transfers are a huge gamble, and seems like more than not they don't pan out. I would rather see someone come in that qualifies academically and starts at Nebraska because this is where they want to be from the start. Seems like they just naturally are more focused on being successful on and off the field.

I really didn't want to open that can of "worms", but it seems like you already did. Collins was as sharp as a marble. A friend of mine in the athletic department sent me a link one time. Apparently, Collins was in a website building class. The link was the website he had created. Not only was every other word misspelled, the grammar was horrible. It didn't take a rocket scientist to see why he had to go to a JuCo.

With the build he had, he just wasn't going to ever cut it as a RB in our system then. I'm pretty sure if a DL sneezed real hard it would have knocked him over. He probably would have been better if he'd have been used to his strength which was speed. In Clownahan's offense as long as he didn't have to stay in and block, he might have shown glimpses of greatness as a receiving back.

When he came in, there was a lot of hype. I also remember Joe Dailey getting quite a bit of hype but probably not as much. Sometimes I think the media hypes up a person before ever laying eyes on them. Thunder Collins at his size and stature never had the build to be great. Joe Dailey was lucky to reach 5'9. I bought into the hype over Deangelo Evans, and well we know how that turned out.

 

[teamster]

I remember Thunder coming in. The thoughts of a option pitch from 'Lord' to 'Thunder' was dancing in our minds. More and more over the years, we the fans (fanatics) embellish the potential great contribution of each new recruit. Because----we're a large and connected audience and we communicate about it 24-7. It's because we want to believe that we are going to be better the next year. That's part of what makes us who we are.

Too often these days, we think the next hot recruit is going to play and contribute immeditely. We talk of them leapfrogging the past year's recruits of which just 12 months earlier we spoke of leapfrogging the previous year's recruits. When Jamal Lord wasn't making us happy, we wanted Joe Dailey to play immediately. Seldom works that way. I don't blame the media. I blame myself and us for this unrealistic appraisal. But, I am maturing and getting a reality check after 50 years.

Remembering TO's O-line makeup. Occassionally a freakly talented redshirt-freshman or sophomore in the starting lineup, but mostly juniors through 5th year seniors being at the top of their game. That's the reality. In recent years we've been overly optimistic that a new prep or juco recruit can come in and contribute immediately. Historically top teams aren't made up like this on an annual basis. Teams with the development pipeline are.

 

[junior4949]

id sure take a 4 star player out of california, texas, or florida before id take a 4 star player out of another state.

the competition is far better in those states than others

Until there's a playoff between the best teams of all 50 states to back it up, I say that's crap. When someone can prove to me that the state championship team of California is better than the state championship team of, say, North Dakota or Minnesota, I'll stick with 3-star recruits from the Midwest over 4 or 5 star kids from California or Florida any day...better attitudes and work ethics. Just because the "press" doesn't get to Bismark...or the people there aren't as inclined to flood the net with press releases and hype, doesn't mean the players there aren't as good as the players on the east or west coast...just not as promoted, probably due to the fact that the people from the midwest are not as pretentious as those coastal clowns.

You might be right, but I remember times when Nebraska has crowned a state champion that had losses on their record to Kansas and Iowa teams while being undefeated in Nebraska. Players from warm weather states may not be any better in terms of athletics, but for the most part they are further along in terms of fundamentals and development because they play football pretty much 12 months of the year. It's like comparing an athlete in a class A school in Omaha to an athlete in class C out in Western Nebraska. Athletically, they might be similar. However, the class A player more than likely only concentrates on football while the class C player plays other sports. When they hit the field their freshman year, the class A player will be further advanced.

 

[NUpolo8]

id sure take a 4 star player out of california, texas, or florida before id take a 4 star player out of another state.

the competition is far better in those states than others

Until there's a playoff between the best teams of all 50 states to back it up, I say that's crap. When someone can prove to me that the state championship team of California is better than the state championship team of, say, North Dakota or Minnesota, I'll stick with 3-star recruits from the Midwest over 4 or 5 star kids from California or Florida any day...better attitudes and work ethics. Just because the "press" doesn't get to Bismark...or the people there aren't as inclined to flood the net with press releases and hype, doesn't mean the players there aren't as good as the players on the east or west coast...just not as promoted, probably due to the fact that the people from the midwest are not as pretentious as those coastal clowns.

--Let me start by saying, worst opinion ever.

Bet against CA teams against midwestern teams and you will lose a lot. Are you going to sit there and honestly tell me you would rather take the NoDak high school football team over De La Salle High in Concord CA that did not lose for 6 years? Or Helix High in San Diego when Reggie Bush was RB and Alex Smith was QB? Its well accepted that one of the reasons of USC's dominance is that Carroll was able to reopen the recruiting pipline in his own backyard that other schools were taking from USC.

By the way, nothing against the midwestern boys. Certainly there are many many great athletes there. But, numbers and stats do not lie. California has a bigger pool to draw from, creating better competition. If all it took was better attitudes to win over talent, then Illinois could have rallied to victory in the Rose Bowl after that clown did a flip into the end zone.

 

[Cy the Cyclone]

id sure take a 4 star player out of california, texas, or florida before id take a 4 star player out of another state.

the competition is far better in those states than others

Until there's a playoff between the best teams of all 50 states to back it up, I say that's crap. When someone can prove to me that the state championship team of California is better than the state championship team of, say, North Dakota or Minnesota, I'll stick with 3-star recruits from the Midwest over 4 or 5 star kids from California or Florida any day...better attitudes and work ethics. Just because the "press" doesn't get to Bismark...or the people there aren't as inclined to flood the net with press releases and hype, doesn't mean the players there aren't as good as the players on the east or west coast...just not as promoted, probably due to the fact that the people from the midwest are not as pretentious as those coastal clowns.

--Let me start by saying, worst opinion ever.

Bet against CA teams against midwestern teams and you will lose a lot. Are you going to sit there and honestly tell me you would rather take the NoDak high school football team over De La Salle High in Concord CA that did not lose for 6 years? Or Helix High in San Diego when Reggie Bush was RB and Alex Smith was QB? Its well accepted that one of the reasons of USC's dominance is that Carroll was able to reopen the recruiting pipline in his own backyard that other schools were taking from USC.

By the way, nothing against the midwestern boys. Certainly there are many many great athletes there. But, numbers and stats do not lie. California has a bigger pool to draw from, creating better competition. If all it took was better attitudes to win over talent, then Illinois could have rallied to victory in the Rose Bowl after that clown did a flip into the end zone.

Yep...gonna sit right here and say that exact thing...especially if the two teams go by North Dakota High School academic standards and eligibility rules...which would leave most of De LaSalle and Helix's teams sitting at home watching the game on TV. You can argue your point all day if you want but until there is an actual National High School Championship game, there's no way you can honestly say that California schools produce better football talent than midwestern schools.

 

[NUpolo8]

id sure take a 4 star player out of california, texas, or florida before id take a 4 star player out of another state.

the competition is far better in those states than others

Until there's a playoff between the best teams of all 50 states to back it up, I say that's crap. When someone can prove to me that the state championship team of California is better than the state championship team of, say, North Dakota or Minnesota, I'll stick with 3-star recruits from the Midwest over 4 or 5 star kids from California or Florida any day...better attitudes and work ethics. Just because the "press" doesn't get to Bismark...or the people there aren't as inclined to flood the net with press releases and hype, doesn't mean the players there aren't as good as the players on the east or west coast...just not as promoted, probably due to the fact that the people from the midwest are not as pretentious as those coastal clowns.

--Let me start by saying, worst opinion ever.

Bet against CA teams against midwestern teams and you will lose a lot. Are you going to sit there and honestly tell me you would rather take the NoDak high school football team over De La Salle High in Concord CA that did not lose for 6 years? Or Helix High in San Diego when Reggie Bush was RB and Alex Smith was QB? Its well accepted that one of the reasons of USC's dominance is that Carroll was able to reopen the recruiting pipline in his own backyard that other schools were taking from USC.

By the way, nothing against the midwestern boys. Certainly there are many many great athletes there. But, numbers and stats do not lie. California has a bigger pool to draw from, creating better competition. If all it took was better attitudes to win over talent, then Illinois could have rallied to victory in the Rose Bowl after that clown did a flip into the end zone.

Yep...gonna sit right here and say that exact thing...especially if the two teams go by North Dakota High School academic standards and eligibility rules...which would leave most of De LaSalle and Helix's teams sitting at home watching the game on TV. You can argue your point all day if you want but until there is an actual National High School Championship game, there's no way you can honestly say that California schools produce better football talent than midwestern schools.

OK.

Whatever. :hmmph

I would just like to see your all star team full of NoDak athletes and I can pick my all-star CA athletes.

And by your argument, there's no way you can say that midwestern schools produce better talent. But, results can, and that leans towards the west coast.

 

[admo]

Sad to hear former players having to spend time in the pen. As for the hype of recruits - it's way ridiculous. I have no earthly way to understand why fans hype the recuit with hall of fame talent & ability before the player even takes a snap on the field.

Bobby Newcombe

Curt Dukes

Joe Dailey

Harrison Beck

Josh Freeman

Blaine Gabbert

on and on and on...