I was thinking about the CU program and the evolution of things.
Looking back at when MacIntyre first got here, young players were getting tons of game action because it was a complete rebuild. Many of those young players weren't actually ready to play but were thrown in. For example, Olugbode and Gilbert would almost certainly redshirt if they were recruited to CU today.
From there, the program got to the point where it had a veteran roster and was competitive again between 2015-2017 with a special 2016 sandwiched in there.
We've seen a recruiting uptick the last few classes. Going by Rivals, CU signed the #70 class in 2015 and the #65 class in 2016. But then the #32 class in 2017 and the 2018 class is currently ranked #43 despite Kanan Ray not having been reclassified yet by Rivals to this year and put into the current year's ranking.
With good evaluations by the coaching staff like CU has had in recruiting under MacIntyre, that uptick doesn't really mean that the athletes are that much better. What it mostly means is less projection to what those athletes will develop into over 3-5 years. The top recruiting programs are pretty much bringing in guys who look like college players when they are juniors in high school. That's the main difference.
What it results in on Saturdays is that a higher percentage of those rosters are ready to play and win D1 football games. That leads to better depth and more competitive practices. It's a huge competitive advantage. Further, there's less risk/uncertainty with recruiting as a program gets higher into the ratings because there is less projection when a guy is physically ready on his high school film.
In the national championship game, we saw how that works. Veterans for Alabama and Georgia either got hurt at some point in the season or they weren't making game changing plays to help the team win. Those veterans were players who would start just about anywhere in the country and every program would love to have on their rosters. But the freshmen were physically ready, they were hungry, and there was no reason not to put them in the game to see if they could light a spark.
What I'm getting at is that CU is starting that kind of transition. The program isn't recruiting where Alabama, Georgia, USC, Ohio State, etc. are recruiting. But the program is starting to bring in freshmen who are a lot more ready to play immediately. If they're on the field, it's not because there are roster holes or the veterans are bad -- it's because they are good.
As fans, we need to wrap our heads around this new reality and expect the coaches to embrace it. It should now be an expectation that there will be playmakers for the upcoming season who either weren't on the roster last year or played sparingly/redshirted last year.
In short, we're turning a corner and shouldn't be afraid of youth any more. Talent needs to play no matter what class the player is in or what dues he has paid within the program. This is what results from better recruiting and we should celebrate this as we see new names winning opportunities.
Looking back at when MacIntyre first got here, young players were getting tons of game action because it was a complete rebuild. Many of those young players weren't actually ready to play but were thrown in. For example, Olugbode and Gilbert would almost certainly redshirt if they were recruited to CU today.
From there, the program got to the point where it had a veteran roster and was competitive again between 2015-2017 with a special 2016 sandwiched in there.
We've seen a recruiting uptick the last few classes. Going by Rivals, CU signed the #70 class in 2015 and the #65 class in 2016. But then the #32 class in 2017 and the 2018 class is currently ranked #43 despite Kanan Ray not having been reclassified yet by Rivals to this year and put into the current year's ranking.
With good evaluations by the coaching staff like CU has had in recruiting under MacIntyre, that uptick doesn't really mean that the athletes are that much better. What it mostly means is less projection to what those athletes will develop into over 3-5 years. The top recruiting programs are pretty much bringing in guys who look like college players when they are juniors in high school. That's the main difference.
What it results in on Saturdays is that a higher percentage of those rosters are ready to play and win D1 football games. That leads to better depth and more competitive practices. It's a huge competitive advantage. Further, there's less risk/uncertainty with recruiting as a program gets higher into the ratings because there is less projection when a guy is physically ready on his high school film.
In the national championship game, we saw how that works. Veterans for Alabama and Georgia either got hurt at some point in the season or they weren't making game changing plays to help the team win. Those veterans were players who would start just about anywhere in the country and every program would love to have on their rosters. But the freshmen were physically ready, they were hungry, and there was no reason not to put them in the game to see if they could light a spark.
What I'm getting at is that CU is starting that kind of transition. The program isn't recruiting where Alabama, Georgia, USC, Ohio State, etc. are recruiting. But the program is starting to bring in freshmen who are a lot more ready to play immediately. If they're on the field, it's not because there are roster holes or the veterans are bad -- it's because they are good.
As fans, we need to wrap our heads around this new reality and expect the coaches to embrace it. It should now be an expectation that there will be playmakers for the upcoming season who either weren't on the roster last year or played sparingly/redshirted last year.
In short, we're turning a corner and shouldn't be afraid of youth any more. Talent needs to play no matter what class the player is in or what dues he has paid within the program. This is what results from better recruiting and we should celebrate this as we see new names winning opportunities.
Last edited:
