I'm not saying that your DL will face UT, UGa, or CU DL. I am saying that it's a a lot to ask of your DL recruits. You expect them to significantly improve your defense, yet they are no better than or perhaps not as good as the DL recruits that your closest competitors brought in. Multiple posters on this board openly question where we are going to get our players from to replace the defensive starters from last year. Our 2 deep depth chart for 2015 does not list a single incoming recruit despite having recruited a 5 star DT and three 4 star 5.9 rivals players as well.
Our football team could be bad for a long time
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1st, you can take your tater bragging anywhere else from here. This thread has nothing to do with tater recruiting or anything else tater so zip it.
2nd, if you want to discuss the performance and potential of our DL recruits then you need not mention other teams DL recruits because it is irrelevant. They don't go head-to-head with other teams DL, they face their OL. Now if you want to talk about how poorly our DL was last year vs opponents with strong OL and how those teams OL as expected to perform this season that would make sense. But I'm afraid I'm wasting my breathe because that's where you seem to be lacking.
3rd, are biggest problem last season was our DE's and their inability to generate pressure off the corners. Our second biggest problem was our DC that couldn't find a way to help the players. Spurrier realized this and addressed it very well by hiring Hoke and recruiting players that are ready to play NOW. So most of us feel the defense will be improved. The question is how much.
4th, keep star gazing and remember Mike Bellamy.
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I don't know for sure but I suspect this is because they are freshman. SCar had to explore juco ranks to fill the gaps. Apples to oranges (no pun intended
).
The ones that scream the loudest about Spurrier are taters that want him gone....the ones who complain and want Spurrier more involved are fans that want a coach fired after every loss and wants to give him a raise after every win....the real fans have concerns but have been there before and know anything can happen in a given season....the ones that see no problems are taters pretending to be Gamecocks or Gamecocks that are slightly kin to the tater fan base themselves....
If you believe that the how potential of your DL or OL or any group recruits stacks up against your opponents is irrelevant, then I really don't know what to say. However, if you go out and have the worst OL recruiting in the SEC for several years in a row, I don't think your team will be very good. Same for DL,etc. The original question was, why do you think a group of DL recruits who have never played a down of college football can turn a poor defense into a good defense in one year? The reference to other schools was simply to point out that these are not elite recruits like Trenton Thompson at UGa. BTW, the star gazing works more often than not. 5 star Deshaun Watson says hello.
IMO there isn't enough evidence to suggest any downward recruiting trend. Using both Rivals and 247sports' rankings/ratings of team classes going back to 2008, USC's classes have actually been trending UPWARD - if not by class rankings, then definitely by average ratings per prospect per class. Which means that each class brought in over the past 3-5 have had better-rated prospects throughout the class, or at least throughout that recruiting service's system of ratings.
Two big things have impacted USC's recruiting, and they hit us bang-bang on top of each other: 1) our 7-6 season which was the result of horrendous defense, and Spurrier's "2-3 more years" remark he made through frustration. That impacted our 2015 class, which lost commitments from Key, Fields, and Arnette, all 4*-rated prospects. We also lost some key OL commitments such as Austin Clark, Paris Palmer, and Josie Milton. Those were personal reasons that had little to do with the above 2 events, and most likely would have happened even had USC had another 11-2 season. They were reasons that were totally unexpected by the coaching staff.
With those commitments USC was well in position to bring in it's highest-rated class under Spurrier. Even after the de-commitments, our 2015 class was still at a comparative level with the average class USC has brought in under Spurrier.
So not sure if there's enough to warrant calling anything a downward trend. USC was in position to have another 10+ win season last season, but the defense let it down time and time again. But it was a defense that had too many inexperienced players and guys who probably are career reserve players starting for it in leadership positions. Put that blame on the coaches for putting such a ill-prepared unit on the field for us last season. Next season at least the talent depth (on paper) is substantially improved, and so will the experience of the returning players.
The thing I'm most disappointed in is that we seem to be missing out on the "return of investment" from having multiple 11-win seasons and top-10 final rankings. One would think a quality recruiting staff would be able to turn that into at least one top-10 recruiting class. The fact that we're in one of the smallest states with one of the smallest populations that houses a major college football program (our state houses TWO of them), and yet we're also regularly LAST in the SEC for recruiting expenses (traveling expenses, hotel room fees, etc.) tells me that our staff doesn't compete very hard with the rest of the major colleges in our conference at going out of state after elite prospects. Unfortunately that will not change as long as Steve Spurrier is our head coach....
"If you believe that the how potential of your DL or OL or any group recruits stacks up against your opponents is irrelevant, then I really don't know what to say."
Well then don't say anything. Not only did you prove my point about not having the sense to realize comparing groups that don't face each other is less relevant, you also proved an earlier point that it's easy to spot a tiger fan on a message board...see above.
You also seem ignorant about JUCO players.
You seem to be one of those tiger fans that love to brag about recruiting rankings...as you all did every year during the 5 loss streak...and you obviously will continue to do when the new streak starts this year.
You also seem to have trouble staying on topic.
You also prove that you don't know squat about our OL or recruiting the position, and the position in general. Then again, I have no reason to involve myself with the fan of a team that has had a mediocre OL for years in the ACC.
Which makes me wonder, why in the world am I wasting time with a fan of a team that is the tallest midget in their conference to begin with?
maybe he sees it on the field. Spurrier has gone from slinging his visor and clip board and chewing behind to pretty much just shaking his head. I'm not saying he's packing it in.......but he sure ain't got the fire anymore.
I find it really sad that you base your opinion of his work ethic, job performance, enthusiasm, and legacy on his sideline demeanor.
Says a lot about you.
No, why would I? He was accomplishing what he is paid to to. I'm in sales, my boss says he doesn't care if I work one day a year as long as I turn in my numbers. We had to win a bowl game to get to 7 last year. Is that worth $4,000,000.00 to you?
Steve Spurrier is worth every damn dime we pay him. Period.
No, it doesn't. Why would you make it personal? 1SGgamecock is entitled to his opinion. Can't you just leave it that? I happen to agree with him.
You are correct that I am not smart enough to follow your logic. By your logic, SC could have the 14th best OL recruiting in the SEC for 4 straight years, but the the quality of your OL in in 5th year would be unaffected because they don't line up against the other teams OL. I'll keep thinking on that one.
Maybe you have some misunderstandings about JUCOs. The difference between them and high school kids is significant. The JUCO kids take about half a season to a full season to adjust to D-1 football while most high schoolers need a full year. Then you get 1 productive year from the JUCO kid, while the high school kid gives you 3-4 good years. These projections are based on a good evaluation. That's why most big time programs do not try to build on JUCOs, rather they use that route to pick up a player here or there when injuries, early departures,etc have put them in a situation where they need relatively quick help. JUCOs will help sooner than high schoolers, but it still takes time. You need help in the first half of your schedule, and there certainly is no guarantee that Lewis or any other recruit will be ready. UNC, UK, UCF are all games you must win if you are going to have a decent year, and you are counting on players winning those games who have never played a down of college football.
Recruiting rankings are very subjective, but they do have some value. If you look at the team's in last years playoff, you will find that they recruited well the previous 3-4 years. OSU, Bama, FSU are always in the top 5 or so classes, so it must mean something.
Also, I said nothing about your OL recruiting except in the hypothetical just as I did in this post.
Out recruiting is below average and will continue tomb until spurrier leaves.
I disagree. I saw Steve recently and he's as he has been showing regularly at the 6am workouts and trying to push the team on S&C. He is competitive today as the day I met him as the OC at Duke. He hates losing more than anyone I have ever met. He has always said when that competitive spirit dies, he will quit the next day. He sounds like he plans on sticking around.
You are correct that I am not smart enough to follow your logic.
I've already pointed this out so why are you still responding? The only reason I see is because you're just like 99% of the tater fans that come here to try and persuade USC fans how much better your recruiting is than ours which has been the case for several years now but hasn't produced the desired results on the field. I don't need your opinion on JUCO players and we are not building a team on JUCO's, we went out and found a few that can provide immediate help due to a few errors in recruiting and players not qualifying...just like "big time" schools like Bama, Auburn, UF and Texas do, just to name a few (yes, even Saban with their great national recruitng base will and does take JUCO's if he knows they are talented enough and will qualify, just one example that your statement about "big time" programs is false). And if you will go back and read your replies you DID bring up our OL recruiting in an attempt to take a swipe at it...in classic tater form.
The bottom line is you can believe what you want about JUCO recruits and our group that we recruited, but I'd bet money you don't have a clue about those players, their talent or how many years they have to play. Which I don't need to discuss with a tater fan because all USC fans that follow the team knows SOS and crew did an excellent job landed some highly talented players. How that works out in terms of wins and losses no one knows until we see them on the field.
Now go back to your field of rainbows, fairy-tales and unicorns and keep dancing and singing with your fellow taters over how sCUm won another Febuary recruiting title.
Likely so, he built upon the foundation that Lou Holtz gave him. The culture at South Carolina is much different and it is because of Spurrier. South Carolina has more exposure than ever because of Steve Spurrier. Williams-Brice went from being just another home destination to one of the most featured home environments in college football. To get there, you have to win and get the fanbase to buy in... Spurrier did that.
An SEC East Championship, 5 straight wins over Clemson, 4 out of 5 wins over UGA (makes me want to vomit saying that), a #1 draft pick and becoming a popular college destination for out-of-state students are Spurrier's stamp on the university.
The competitive atmosphere was grooved for South Carolina to take advantage. Tennessee's turmoil, UNC sanctions, NC State being down, Georgia's struggles in 2009 and 2010, Clemson's poor recruiting on defense. We are going to see how Spurrier and his staff can react to a much more competitive recruiting and on-field environment.
Sorry to hear that Spurrier attends off-season workouts. That's a major NCAA rules violation.
We don't need any more major violations under Spurrier.
Maybe you need to be there at 6 in the morning so you can tell him that's a no-no.
I mean, you read it on the internet so it has to be true...right?
Basses speaks of things he knows nothing about as if he is some sort of insider. Post a negative, and he's all over it chiming in with the same. The Spurriers will be in Columbia for a very very long time. May never leave except to go to their house in St. Augustine for vacations. But you go ahead with your constant bashing and speculation. (And by the way, I heard my info straight from one of the Spurriers).
I've often wondered if Basses and Andy are brothers.
I hear SOS attends morning workouts to supply the team with steroids and cheat sheets for school while wearing spandex. That zany character.
Let's see how the new DC does this year before we throw in the towel... Three 11-2 seasons in a row are hard to beat prior to this season. I think Spurrier realizes he made a mistake promoting Ward. Let's see what happens this fall.
Say what you want, but no way will he be here in 4-5 years. His comment after the season told the real story, only to back up and say 4 -5 years. The same thing happened with Holtz. he was ready to retire and talked out of it, then his heart wasn't in it and he left the program in the gutter, player wise. The HBC rescued and took some of the sting out.
No. He actually said this himself in an interview. This way you don't need to be an insider.
Let's see a quote or a source for this information. I heard him say he thought about it for a minute, but nothing about Tanner or Jerri talking him into staying.
No he didn't. He said he'd stay as long as he felt good and still enjoyed it.
Well it's true. if you don't think Tanner spoke to him about the 1-2 year comment for recruiting purposes, then you're really drinking the punch.
Yep...Our 3 star QB commit just won MVP @ the open over 5 star players on the same field, @ the same camp, and doing the same drills...Don't polish your recruiting trophy so fast or bank any victories over Carolina....
I agree. McIlwain just gave a stronger rebuttal to the OP than any of us on this board. I guarantee you he strongly disagrees with the notion we will have a bad football team in 2016.
We need more threads telling us that Spurrier is on the golf course, recruiting is down, and our team will suck for years to come. I know it is a slow news day in college sports, but do we need thread after thread about the same topic?
Go Gamecocks!
SC 95
Go Gamecocks!
SC 95
Daisy...you must be talking about Dabo and Clemson. Surely you see the impact of his decision to play his injured QB in practice with a sprained knee forcing an unnecessary surgery has caused his program. Dabo's Spring practice consisted of teaching 2 high school QBS the Clemson playbook. I'm sure that helped the many new defensive players he will be using improve greatly. LOL.....
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