What's in a star?

B

beej76

Walk-on
Long, long time reader - first time poster.

I love the recruiting threads. For me, so much of sports is about hope - the dream of a better day - so following these athletes and thinking about what the future may hold for my beloved Huskers is an exciting thing.

But more and more, I agree with Bo and the statement of making your own stars. While the recruiting services have gotten pretty good at projecting greatness, the fact remains that they are judging kids who are still young and growing, and many of them who they haven't ever seen. Add to the fact that kids get more stars based on offers - so teams like USC just has to make an offer, and the stars will follow (I mean, when was the last time that USC was the only team to offer a kid).

Anyways, I think there are far too few looks back - so just for fun, I went to a projected top 10 list of draft picks in the NFL draft (from my favorite draft site NFL countdown).

1. Matthew Stafford – GA - QB – 5 star – 2nd best in country

2. Andre Smith – ALA – OT – 5 star – 1st in country

3. Aaron Curry – WF – OLB – 2 stars, limited offers

4. Chris Wells – OSU – RB – 5 star – 1st in country

5. Michael Crabtree – TT - WR – 2 star

6. Eugene Monroe – VA – OT – 5 star – 1st in country

7. Jason Smith – BAY – OT – 2 star

8. Malcom Jenkins – OSU – CB – 3 star

9. Sam Bradford – OK – QB – 4 star

10. Brian Orakpo – TX – DE – 3 star

Unbelievably small sample size - but the final tally (based on Scout rankings):

5 star players - 4

4 star players - 1

3 star players - 2

2 star players - 3

Give me a hardworking kid with a good attitude any day. And sure, the 5 star guys are nice - but don't forget the Adam Carriker's amongst all the stars.

 
I think the stars rank ability, size, and strength. If a kid is in his senior year in H.S. and you know that he could go to the D-1 level and contribute right away, then he probably will get higher star rankings. But it does not project how the kid will end up by the time he's a senior in college.

 
Stars judge things that can be ranked on a static level. Intangibles, room for growth, coachability and character are not included in this, and are most often the dealbreakers.

 
Landlord of Memorial Stadium said:
Stars judge things that can be ranked on a static level. Intangibles, room for growth, coachability and character are not included in this, and are most often the dealbreakers.
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Stars do try to include such intangibles and also include likelihood of qualifying (sometimes). It really can also depend on the quality of information the services get.

 
redout22 said:
I like the draft order but do you really think that Bradford will fall to 9
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Surprisingly, yes:

Korey in Midland, Texas, writes: Tim, how would Sam Bradford, or any other potential first pick, avoid getting drafted by the Detroit Lions? I know John Elway and Eli Manning have done it.
Tim Griffin: I think the secret is to hire a pushy agent who would be willing to make himself or his client look bad by demanding where they want to play. If you remember correctly, both Elway and Manning were perceived as bratty when they demanded they wouldn't play with the Baltimore Colts or San Diego Chargers -- the teams that originally drafted him.

Both of their early career decisions have been forgotten by fans after they became entrenched and successful for their new teams. But it isn't easy when a career starts off and you end up playing at a place where you don't want to play.

The scouts I'm talking to don't think that Bradford would necessarily picked that highly. Most tell me he likely will be a mid-first round draft pick if he should come out. So that likely means that he would end up on a team that would be a .500 or better squad.
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Of course that means he should not come out. Though getting drafted by the Bears or Eagles at that position might be better than getting thrown to wolves in Detroit.

 
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