13.Mar.2011 Interview: Keith McGill
My belief is that there's little to learn from interviewing recruits who have signed with Oregon State. The leap in knowledge will come from understanding why our coaching staff has been unable to land the big name prospects who have visited Corvallis. Keith McGill is a perfect example of such a player. McGill, a 4-star safety who narrowed his list to Oregon State and Utah before selecting the latter, was kind enough to shed some light on his recruitment. The transcript follows.
Keith,
First off, thanks for agreeing to share your firsthand, objective perspective with Beaver fans. Sometimes we go crazy wondering why we can't land elite, 4-star talent, so your interview might help answer that question.
From what I remember of your recruitment, playing time and depth chart were serious considerations. Being a Juco, this makes perfect sense. Was the depth chart at Utah more favorable than Oregon State's? Was that the #1 factor in choosing Utah, or were there other reasons?
No, playing time wasn't a factor anywhere. And Utah was more of a gamble if anything. I committed to Utah for family reasons. I was in a bad spot with either school. I was just as ready to be a Beaver just as much as a Ute…
Besides family atmosphere, what did you enjoy most about Oregon State? More specifically, was there anything you loved about the school that the coaches undersold?
I loved the school's history. They didn't understand how much I was willing to put on the line for that. Even though I had a great relationship with the coaches, it seemed to put of they were still trying to sell me on committing when I just wanted to be a part of them.
The Oregon media portrays Riley in a certain way, as a guy who tells recruits to "sleep on it" and never pressures for a signature. As fans, we get frustrated by this because we read every other Pac-10/12 program is out there selling their program aggressively. Did Riley's approach to recruiting come off to you as him not caring? Was the coach's laid back temperament at all a factor in your decision?
Not to me. I loved coach Riley and wish him the best of luck. I called him this season, and we've had several conversions, but I think from point of view from my dad's eyes he was a little laid back compared to other coaches, but that's what I liked about him.
Regarding Corvallis, how much of a factor were weather, co-eds, academic reputation, and the lack of city life? Was there anything OSU could have done to win your signature?
Well I loved the school and mm, maybe, but I don't think so because of the reasons I committed.
You visited on January 14th, which was one of the biggest recruiting weekends in school history. On your visit, did you get the sense that the other high profile recruits (Byron Moore, Todd Peat Jr) were enjoying their trips? Was there a chief complaint among the recruits? (You can be brutally honest–if they didn't like the rain, girls, etc, it would be great to say that so we know).
No I don't think so other than the rain. Lol.
Keith also added this thought in a separate note:
You should know I loved OS and saw very few flaws. Just like Utah it wasn't the coaches that failed. Salt Lake City is just more of a family environment coming from where I lived in California…
Overall, this was a pleasant first interview. Keith seemed honest and gave some good insight. The most interesting bit, in my opinion, is that Riley's demeanor didn't sit well with Keith's father. I imagine this is a common occurrence with "Type-A"/aggressive parents. It's also interesting that McGill loved the school's history. Seems like the coaches were not intuitive enough to pick up on that, and it cost them.
Anyway, I hope to do more of these interviews in the future and have a handful of inquiries out right now. If you guys have specific questions you'd like asked let me know.
angry 
OS_Beaver 