GeorgiaOwl said

no decent player is willing to sit a year OR TWO behind a freakin walk-on!

No decent player at FAU will sit behind a freakin walk-on either.

The problem is that the players that people have "read" are good, think that is the final word.

That is complete garbage.

If they are stuck behind walk-ons they ended up not being that good…and every single program in the country has those types every single year.

Stop reading recruiting reports and form an opinion based on actual performance.

AMEN fauowl!  Do your homework guys before you comment!  And don't rely on info from many of those assinine recruiting sites.

owlmart said

I'd like to see Kooi start next yr but Wilbert seems to fit the pro style better…Also I still really wish we had Jean for one more yr but he made contributions in 07 so I cant fault coach for not RS him

I'd like to see Stephen Curtis. He'd be a RS Freshman so we would have 4 years from him, IMO we won't be a very good team next season either so why not get a QB in there who can learn as he goes. It's not like we would be 7-10 game winner if we had another QB so why not put him in and see what he can do. Why recruit QBs that early if he's going to sit behind 2 other QBs possibly even 3. They could've recruited a QB this recruiting class, have him RS then Kooi/Wilbert graduate and then it's the other QBs time to shine

I for one don't depend on any recruiting service, I don't subscribe to them either.

But noboby can tell me that our annual crop of zero to 2 star recruits can compare to any other FBS program in the state in terms of ANYTHING! Those services do their ratings on tangible thing too - height, weight, speed, hs performance, level of play, etc… and our players do not measure up to anyone anymore - not even FIU. Yes we beat them this year but that is their only conference loss and they played well in their four OOC game too. They are the conference champions and they are going a bowl this year not us!

And we are not on the same planet in recruiting with any of the others - UF, FSU, UM, USF or UCF! The stars only seem not to matter to us, not to the big time programs in the state. They matter A LOT to them, so why do we seem to think they are not important. And why do we only have one (1) commitment so far, check out the other programs both in and out of state and check out the verbals elsewhere, as of now I frankly don't know what is left to recruit from. More diamonds in the rough I guess (we pray).

And I know verbals can change but I would venture that 80% stick with that commitment, even in coaching change situations such as UM. If we get any of their commitments to come to FAU next year I will be totally shocked, happilly so but still shocked!

Please stop the love affair with FIU.  I will not even debate it. It is laughable. Scoreboard.  Enough said.  Stop comparing us to "big programs" like UF FSU and UM.  We are not them.  If you compare our recruits to theirs, yes, we will not measure up.  get over it.

Here's an idea:

Let's build a program.  Let's get people on board to donate money.  let's get people to go to games. Let's build a program and not expect us to do in 10 years what others took 85 years to do.  Let's be realistic.

Let's build a program.  How cool would that be?

We have an opportunity that many people do not have.  Make a difference.  Let's build a program.

Go Owls!!

I'll tell you what. I will GLADLY lose to FIU 9 out of the next 10 years if it means winning the conference and going to a bowl game like they are. FIU has always out recruited us and will continue to do so. They get guys like TY Hilton who are game changers and can run a kick off back for a TD. We get a guy like Tavious Polo who's never seen a kick off he didn't like.

So we beat them AGAIN… Look where they are and look where we are. We started out hot and now we're slowly fading. Next year we'll have maybe 3 wins all season while they may very well repeat as conference champions.

Just like Georgia Owl said.. we have 1 recruit so far. Most teams are probably about done with their recruiting since they've been doing it all season

No argument with anything you have said.

But sadly we had built a program and have let it/watched it slip over the past three years.

And no love affair with FIU, I hate that program and school with a passion. But the truth is they have passed us in many areas, primarily in recruiting, what they have 14 verbals to our 1???? It has to make one wonder why and how and to me, primarily, what are our coaches doing?

This thread is about looking to 2011 so…things ain't looking to good right now. Maybe we get shocked and many recruits change their verbals when the stadium starts reaching skyward but based on the present recruiting outlook and the past three years results, both in recruiting and our slide on the field…

But I will say this, we have LOTS of room for talented players on both sides of the ball!

Jab979 said

So we beat them AGAIN… Look where they are and look where we are.

Seriously, we should be more worried about why Troy is better than us every year except 1, instead of why FIU is better than us 1 year out of 9.

Realistically, FIU should be better than us 5 years out of 10.  We started the same time, recruit similar players, and are in the same geographic area.  We have dominated them.

Why do we care?  Let's figure out what it takes to beat Troy for goodness sake.

Jab979 said

I'll tell you what. I will GLADLY lose to FIU 9 out of the next 10 years if it means winning the conference and going to a bowl game like they are. FIU has always out recruited us and will continue to do so. They get guys like TY Hilton who are game changers and can run a kick off back for a TD. We get a guy like Tavious Polo who's never seen a kick off he didn't like.

So we beat them AGAIN… Look where they are and look where we are. We started out hot and now we're slowly fading. Next year we'll have maybe 3 wins all season while they may very well repeat as conference champions.

Just like Georgia Owl said.. we have 1 recruit so far. Most teams are probably about done with their recruiting since they've been doing it all season

I know you're upset about this season and so am I…but lose to FIU the next 9 of 10 years  :-\  I'd rather make "Who let the Owls out" my wedding song.

I dont know exactly how the recruiting works with our program but I know we have 2 or 3 legitamate NFL players as seniors and more NFL scouts than ever at our practices.

FIU has passed us in NOTHING, they are just reaping the benefits of an on campus stadium….which we should have had 3-5 years ago.  But that is in the past.

Ty Hilton is a rare case of staying home to be with family in Miami and some other personal issues.  If not for that, he wouldn't have gone to FIU.

Personally, I discount recruiting and the stars because of Boise State and TCU on one side and Michigan and Notre Dame on the other.  You realize Miami has had top 10 recruiting classes the last 3 years right?  Those recruiting sites dont know jack.  You also realize they are rating the kids as high school players?  Its a coaching staffs job to recruit a) the right players for the system b) coachable players that they can develop and c) players with character.  I dont thik scout.com takes any of that into account.

If you dont think the right player matters look at UF's QB Brantley…2007 National Gatorade Player Of The Year, he is in the wrong system at UF and they are 7-5 with 3 games that are guaranteeed wins…so really 4-5.

FAU needs to continue to build the program and keep our identity…the players will come.

BCS programs with long history of success have a hard time staying on top for any period of time…it's even harder for those school to be dominate for more then a 2-3 year cycle.  Remember that those schools also have 2-3 easy games on their schedule every year (and YES FAU fall into the category of easy wins when we play those establishments).

Recruiting is not an exact science, its hard to gauge how a kids potential will produce at the college level.  The fact is you take a chance on the kids with the hope they develop. They are young men away from home for the first time with many distractions….this is when the character of a player does matter….what are his work ethics?  Can't tell that from a video tapes.

There is plenty of talent on the roster, some need time to develop & next year should be interesting.  IMO, we should be in a better position then this season.  Young in certain spots, but certain spots tend to be suited more for younger talent to step in and contribute right away.

Not every kid that plays college football move on to play at the next level (numbers are small) and the same goes with the number of kids recruited by any school….few get to see the playing field as starters.