MOD EDIT - Moved to diary section. - LSA

[UPDATE: Yes, I understand the snark regarding length.  I apologize that this diary length entry is not in the diary section; however, I was unable to post on the diary.  Read or do not, I understand the mistake in location for post.  Sorry in advance for length!]

A Brief Essay About Harbaugh, Recruiting In The Modern Age

At the risk of revisiting a topic that my fellow Wolverines have already buried in their proverbial backyards, I will attempt to provide my own sentiment on the recent “blemishes” on the record of Michigan Recruiting. I present to you a two-fold argument for accepting, and even appreciating, the current state of affairs.  First, I submit that I have no problem with any actions on the part of our coaching staff and recruiting department given the current trends in modern football recruiting and my own goals for the Michigan Football program.  Secondly, I support the notion that if one does share my desires for the University of Michigan to win a National Championship, then that person must also accept that there is no other way for our coaching staff to operate when it comes to recruiting.

On The Actions Of Harbaugh and The Knights Of The Prolate Spheroid-Shaped Table –

In today’s world, there seems to be a “lose-lose” scenario when it comes to recruiting high school-aged student athletes.  On the one hand, you can show interest in a young man, tell him that you are avidly recruiting him to come to your university and offer him a spot in the class early on in the process.  Doing so shows a sign of good faith and builds a positive rapport with said young man.  On the other hand, you wait until the recruit has proven he will develop mentally and physically to become an asset to your football program on the field, in the classroom and in the community. 

By being the first coach to show interest in a specific football player, you impress on this student athlete his importance to you, your coaching staff and the university which you represent.  However, as the head coach, you are taking a major risk by accepting a commitment from this person. Should this young man commit and then rest on his laurels or not develop as expected, then a pivotal place in the recruiting class could be wasted on a non-contributor that has shown a lack of drive.  By waiting, you risk having other coaches swoop in, thus handicapping your chances of securing that individual as a scholarship athlete.  The head coach must balance this risk and do his best to evaluate which sixteen and seventeen-year-old boys he will offer a two-way commitment to for a spot in a very, very finite group.

Once the offers have been handed out, the “lose-lose” scenarios continue.  As the recruiting class fills up, head coaches of elite programs need to make tough decisions about young men that they had previously show interest in.  To shed some light on this, let’s examine recent events.

There are two outcomes when a student athlete is told that his spot in a recruiting class is in jeopardy.  That student can either bank on getting into the class and cease taking official visits or they can continue to visit other schools until National Signing Day.  Basically, you can either be Erik Swenson or you can be Nate Johnson.  Either the student athlete looks flaky and takes heat from national media and fans for “committing, but…” The alternative is that athlete makes the school look bad when he is finally confronted by the coaching staff and asked not to come on his upcoming official visit.  That student can make comments about how he is “shocked,” that “this came out of nowhere” and that “the coaching staff never mentioned anything” about his position being in jeopardy.

I understand that if a student athlete can be told that there will not be space for him in November it would be more convenient for him than if he is told in January. But I, personally, do not care.  I do not think our coaches are employed to pander to, nor coddle young men. I do not think that reserving a spot in a recruiting class for an inferior athlete is healthy for our program or that individual, regardless of when that determination is made.  For that matter, I do not think it is a bad thing to disappoint hopeful recruit!  Harbaugh said himself, “It’s a meritocracy.  Only the best players will be here.”  He is not hiding from his recruiting tactics.  In fact, he is proud of them. I am too.  It should be an honor to be included in a recruiting class at Michigan and these athletes should have to fight the whole way, from the beginning of the recruiting process through graduation, to prove they belong.

Even if you believe some horrible wrongdoing took place in the example of Erik Swenson, think about the case of Eric Fisher.  Fisher was either an undersized offensive lineman, or a slow tight-end.  He had few offers and eventually landed at Central Michigan. There he developed into a STUD.  He was the first overall pick in the NFL draft and was awarded a contract worth $22.1 Million with a $14 Million signing bonus.  How about JJ Watt?  Would he have ever developed into the man he is unless he was told “no” by all the top programs when he was eighteen-years-old?  Possibly, but we will never know for sure.  Some young men use the rejection and disappointment of the recruiting process to fuel their desire for greatness.  Greatness is a thing only achieved with an enthusiasm unknown to mankind.  Often times the athletes that possess the “obsession for greatness” gene cite rejection and doubt as the primary stimulus for their drive.

I understand the inherent difference between never receiving an offer from Michigan and having one pulled three weeks before National Signing Day.  I do suggest that if Erik Swenson is a great football player, there will be a program with room.  He is already taking visits to Wisconsin and Oklahoma.  If he is not a great player, then he does not have business going to Michigan.  He would never see the field and he would ultimately transfer.  In either case he benefits.  I am not apologetic for his circumstances.  I expect that things like this will happen as Jim Harbaugh does his job of weeding out the pretenders and stacking up the contenders.  Ultimately, in life, sometimes you get notified in November and sometimes you get notified in January.  Sometimes you get hired into a new promising position and the company goes out of business two weeks later.  Sometimes you take all your vacation time for a golf trip to Florida and it rains the whole time.  Sometimes your flight gets cancelled and you miss out on a once in a lifetime opportunity.  When it comes to recruiting, some will be offended.  Haters gon’ hate.

I guess the opinion I have formed is that what happened to Erik Swenson might be the best thing to ever happen to him, rather than the worst.  Instead of being a backup-transfer type, maybe he finds a program where he can see the field and develop as an athlete.  Maybe he uses the missed opportunity to fuel an inner fire to prove his doubters wrong. Maybe he learns that nothing in life is granted and that in future decisions, he creates backup plans rather than expectations.  If you see the positive in this scenario, and you see the positive for Michigan replacing him with someone we expect to be a viable contributor, then you understand my point of view.  I wish Erik Swenson the best.  I am sorry he had to choose between being taunted by uninformed fans or making Michigan look bad.  I am happy for him because he has been given an opportunity to learn important life lessons, he has been given fuel to fire his drive for success and he had been given an opportunity to take a spot in a class where he is wanted, needed and will have a better chance to develop and grow.  I hope that one day he looks back and thanks Jim Harbaugh for doubting him as he collects his $15 million signing bonus.

On Competing For A National Championship In The Context Of The Modern World Of Recruiting -

As fans, we will likely never completely understand the conversations between recruiter and the recruited.  We will never know who is told to keep their options open, who is told his offer is no longer committable nor, for that matter, when during the process a recruit is told such information.  Therefore, we must understand one key piece of the puzzle: that each spot, in every recruiting class, must be reserved for a potentially elite student athlete that will likely contribute to the team’s quest for a National Championship.  Some people may disagree with this sentiment.  Some people may believe that Michigan should be able to win without operating like all of the other national contenders.  In my opinion, those people are incorrect. 

Michigan cannot compete for a National Championship without playing the game as it is played today.  The way it is played today is that teams like Alabama, LSU, Ohio State, Auburn and Clemson are going to fill classes with future NFL athletes from top to bottom.  They are not going to reserve a spot for a “locker room guy” or grant a scholarship to a legitimate two-star athlete.  In my opinion, the stratification of recruiting classes today is remarkable.  The top three are in rarified air.  Usually, the top five are elite and will produce a class that can add to the efforts of competing for a playoff spot.  The next five classes in the top ten will not be the cornerstones of championship runs.  They will be the supporting casts and they might have several future contributors.  Teams have competed for National Championships with recruiting classes ranking between ten and twenty.  Clemson is one of them.  However, Clemson did not win and they had many players in those classes that were far underrated, including Deshaun Watson.    Anything outside the top twenty will not help a football team reach for the coveted Promised Land.  Top 25 recruiting classes might allow for a run at a B1G championship or a shot at a New Year’s Day Bowl Game. 

Take Michigan State for example.  Their recruiting classes over the past 5 years have roughly ranked 33, 35, 25, 22 and now they are poised to finish near 15^th overall. With talent outside the top ten recruiting classes, Michigan State worked tirelessly to develop its players and compete for several B1G titles.  Upon reaching the playoffs, they met Alabama.  Alabama’s recruiting classes over the last five years have roughly ranked 1^st ,1^st ,1^st and well… you see where I am going with this.  Please, do not think that I am trying to diminish the importance of player development.  In fact, given my assertions above, it is clearly my opinion that Mark Dantonio and his staff got his players to reach as high as they possibly could with the materials they had to mold.  Alabama was simply able to Reach Higher^TM.  When you are working with better Legos, you get better final product.  It is fairly straight-forward. 

I, like many Michigan fans, want my alma mater to win.  I want them to produce fine young men, I want them to espouse the virtues of the Michigan Man.  But first and foremost, I want them to compete and win.  If we want that, we must play the recruiting game.  We must not take a single position in any recruiting class for granted.  In some ways, the lack of an exact science in the recruiting process leads to the necessity for a shotgun-method-like approach to bringing in the right raw materials to mold into a football team.  With that in mind, it seems illogical to bring in a player that you feel will not add to the run for a championship.  It does not matter when you finally come to that decision.  As I stated before, it might even help a young man develop further if he is turned away.  It does not matter when it happens.  It does not matter how it happens.  It is not our coaches job to appease high school kids and their parents.  Our coaches are paid to develop a National Championship-bound football team that bulldozes opponents, supports the community and dominates in the classroom.  Anything short of that is a disservice to the University and the fans.  I support everything our staff has done in this recruiting cycle and will continue to do in future recruiting cycles.  Furthermore, I expect and hope that it will continue and I am proud to say that my team is hungry for the spotlight of the College Football Playoffs.

Supporters of Maryland, Minnesota, Oregon State, Eastern Carolina, Houston, Colorado State, Boston College, BYU and even schools the likes of Michigan State in all likelihood, will NEVER understand this dilemma.  They will probably not have to tell four-star football recruits to continue to take visits because there might be a better option for them and for us. Because those programs cannot fit in our shoes, they will always attack how we wear them.  It is a burden that all of the elite football programs in the country face.  I welcome it with open arms.   Just remember, haters don't really hate you, they hate themselves; you are a reflection of what they want to be.