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Thoughts on Final Two Hires

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What do you guys think?

I woke to rumors we might land Simonton, Jackson, or Bernard as a RB coach. Those wouldn’t be great hires because they’d be more alums/incest, so on that front it’s good we expanded the gene pool. But instead we got Pitre, who doesn’t even have a page chronicling his career arc. Smith claims Pitre is a great, up and coming coach who is a great West Coast recruiter. Really? We’ll see. Gut reaction is disappointment. Mainly because (a) who knows anything about this guy? and (b) can he really out recruit established position coaches given he was at Montana State?

Greg Burns comes off as passive and a “Riley Guy” ala Rod Perry in this interview. Gut reaction is (a) looks low energy/intensity like a Riley guy…wouldn’t be surprised if Riley suggested him to Smith (b) comes off as extremely passive and even clueless at times (c) didn’t have a job last year after being fired by Cal. How good can he be?

Neither appears to be the ace recruiter we desperately need. It’s like having a bullpen full of setup men. Meanwhile, we let go of Hall, who by all accounts was an excellent recruiter and brought much needed energy.

I’ll try to give these guys a fair chance, but these are my gut reactions. Open to hearing how/why these guys are the best we could do.

General Thread part II

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Previous thread approaching 450 comments, lets refresh here while Angry shovels mud or practices his guitar licks.

FB: past time for 10th coach to start and JS has yet to formally name #9 and 10. Nicebeaver continues to follow recruiting, great input throughout the year.

BASKETBALL: games on PAC12 everyday from Thursday through Sunday with the guys Thur and Sat, gals Fri and Sunday. The Realtor returns to Gill on Friday at 6.

BASEBALL: Just over 5 weeks till the season begins for the team ranked #2 in the Nation by both Perfect Game and Collegiate Baseball.

GO BEAVS !!

General Thread

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This can cover hoops this week and any other topics.

The last thread wasn’t popular, huh? That’s fine. In the future I won’t share information I get via email. What’s funny is when I don’t, people ask what’s in any emails that I reference. When they don’t like what’s in it, they shoot the messenger. I feel really good about the current sources. They’re the best ever, to be honest. But yeah, I’m not going to listen to whining over the work I put in here, so I’ll just keep it to myself or create a private section for that information. Any suggestions on how to handle it are welcome.

Go Beavs.

Riley’s Recruiting Shtick

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Tonight I received word that Riley brings up religion on recruiting visits.

Someone close to the situation would describe the moments between the big time recruits and Riley…when Riley really started talking about God and his other BS you could literally see the soul of the young recruit leave his body, the parents get really uncomfortable, and they were never heard from again. Said he saw this happen over and over and over again. It was put to me this way: these young studs can sniff out winners and pretenders. Could you imagine a big time recruit meeting all the great coaches around the country, and then meeting Mike and hearing his bullshit? Talking about God, etc? It was an issue with BIG recruits for sure.

This guy lives in Corvallis, and I consider him my best source. We’ve heard from the mainstream media that he tells recruits to sleep on it, etc, so this fits that paradigm.

Early Recruiting Rankings

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As always, these are ranked in order, so the highest 3 star on my list is the one I think is the best in that grouping. When the full class signs I will add those players in where I see fit.

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Deshon Wilson — Aggressive and instinctual player. Seems to know where the play is going before it happens. No fear: aggressively goes into difficult tackling situations and makes the play. Back pedal and ball skills look good. Grades might be a concern, because he is legit, yet has a poor offer sheet. If he qualifies, he’ll be a good one. Anyone know if grades are an issue? My gut says yes after seeing his legit skills with the poor offer sheet.

Isaiah Smalls — Receiver first TE, but looks like a surprisingly good run blocker. A few pancakes on his film. Soft hands, great hand-eye coordination with the ability to make catches in traffic or off a bobble. Lacks speed. Offered by half the Pac-12. He could come in and start in two TE sets right away. Has a future in broadcasting or coaching/recruiting.

Craig Francois — Very similar to Wilson, even though he is projected at LB. The thing that stands out is a non-stop motor, sheds blocks, and finishes plays. Looks like a fast, thin wrecking ball. Watching his film, I can see his skills projecting well at the next level. Probably needs a RS season to bulk up. He looks a bit thin for a LB, unless he’s been brought in to be a speed LB in the mold of Bright. Washington State was the only other Pac school to offer him. Again, why so few offers? Grades are always a concern when I see this.

Isaac Hodgins — Fast for his size. Only has 3 offers, but one is from Yale, so it’s not a grade issue. He simply must have shut down his recruiting once he committed to OSU. Strong family pedigree. Chases plays from behind, implying a strong motor and mettle. Looks better suited for a 4-3 than a 3-4 given his frame. Only negative is that he plays with poor leverage. Much too high on his tackling, and he wrestles and swings opponents to the ground rather than proper form tackling. This can be fixed with technique and weight training. Because of that, he might need a RS year, but he might have to play early out of necessity.

Kase Rodgers — I think the recruiting services got this one wrong. At least Rivals, which is what I use, having him at a 2-star. I think he is a legit three star. Nice speed and just a good all around skill set. Nothing outstanding, yet no clear weaknesses.

Jesiah Irish — Again, I disagree with Rivals on this one. 3-star prospect. Breakaway speed, good agility, what appears to be good hands (granted, they aren’t going to show him dropping balls on a highlight film).

Isaiah Tufaga — Nice looking athlete. I’m not sure where the Beavs hope to play him, but to me he projects best as a safety. Good instincts/quick to react and finish plays.

Jake Dukart — Looks like a nice mix of a run/pass QB, even though he is listed as a pro style QB. Good wheels. Arm strength is average to good. Accuracy appears good on film, but I had a hard time finding completion percentage statistics. Very nice 27:5 TD/INT ratio. This implies a good decision maker who takes what the D gives him and doesn’t leave plays on the field. Throws well on the run, which is a nice perk. He looks a bit frail, and he could use a year or two to build muscle and arm strength. Could be a starter by his 2nd or 3rd year in the system, and definitely will need a red shirt year unlike the other two QBs we were in on. Fringe three star who could thrive in the right system and with a year or two on the bench.

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Jake Levengood — For an all world wrestler, I’d expect to see more pancakes on film. He plays with high leverage and seems raw. He’s going to need a lot of coaching and body development to become a football player instead of a wrestler who happens to play football. I can see the upside and why some see him as a 3 star (eventually maybe, yes, but not today), but this guy is a project. We’ll know how good these coaches are based on how good Levengood becomes.

Keishon Dawkins — A bit stiff and lanky. Almost no ability to run after the catch. Otherwise, a decent prospect. I see him a backup TE who can make a play here and there.

Bradley Bickler — I completely disagree with the rating services on this one. Three star? No way. He out-athletes on film and doesn’t show great hustle. When a play comes to him, he makes it, but he doesn’t seek out playmaking opportunities.