Per ESPN: Michigan 9th easiest sell for recruiting
December 9th, 2015 at 4:02 PM ^
and I disagree 100% with Georgia being the top choice.
December 9th, 2015 at 4:11 PM ^
Its really tough to top Georgia in categories they used: talent base, athletic budget, facilities, NFL pipeline, and just in general intangibles -- tradition, gameday experience, academics.
I mean, hell, this is half the reason Richt is out of a job. With everything UGA has going for it, you really should be doing better than 10 win seasons with 3-4 trips to the SEC Champ game a decade.
December 9th, 2015 at 4:14 PM ^
Ohio State should easily be #1
December 9th, 2015 at 4:20 PM ^
Not sure if you're sarcastic here or not, but I'll bite...how exactly is Ohio State better than Georgia? Florida and Georgia produce far more FBS signees than any other state. Roughly 1 out of every 120 kids that play HSFB in those states sign with an FBS school. In Ohio, its 1 out of 300 or so.
And unlinke Florida where you have multiple high level in-state schools, Georgia just has Georgia Tech -- which doesn't really count. So they have all that talent to themselves.
December 9th, 2015 at 4:24 PM ^
I'm curious.
December 9th, 2015 at 5:07 PM ^
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December 9th, 2015 at 4:27 PM ^
is a much better football presence than any other college in Ohio offers, by far. I would put Georgia in my top 5, but I must sadly agree OSU is number 1. Out of talent rich football states, I believe only them and LSU are the only ones with no other P5 colleges in-state.
December 9th, 2015 at 5:05 PM ^
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December 9th, 2015 at 9:57 PM ^
I'd put USC first. Tons of talent there. Lots of tradition. I don't fawn over boring-ass LA weather, but a lot of people love it. Hot girls.
UCLA is a basketball school that apparently has bad facilities for football from what people here say. But then what's the next best program in the 3rd biggest state in the country? Traditionally there's a massive dropoff (and even a pretty big dropoff from USC to UCLA). Stanford is up there now, but they're often not competing in the same way with USC for recruits I'd imagine because of academics. Yes, some states like Ohio have less competition, but the amount of talent in CA is so much higher overall.
TX, FL, and CA are the big three but TX and FL certainly have more solid programs to compete with.
December 9th, 2015 at 4:29 PM ^
talent base - not sure why this is included.
athletic budget - OSU's is Uge
facilities - who wouldn't want to play in a toilet bowl?
NFL pipeline - not sure
tradition - script Ohio, spelling O-H-I-O, hang on sloopy
gameday experience - pooping in coolers
academics - optional
December 10th, 2015 at 6:44 AM ^
December 9th, 2015 at 5:50 PM ^
True, but the SEC and ACC overlay the same footprint. Georgia kids grow up aware of Auburn, Alabama, Tennesee, etc.. In fact, for many border towns in west Georgia, students could get in-state tuition at Auburn (think this has recently changed- but the point remains.) Who does OSU have to battle for Ohio recruits? Michigan?
December 9th, 2015 at 6:50 PM ^
Michigan State. All of their best players come from Ohio.
December 9th, 2015 at 8:20 PM ^
December 10th, 2015 at 3:03 AM ^
If they were in the south they would be.
December 9th, 2015 at 4:26 PM ^
Why does Georgia Tech pose only "minimal in-state competition" for Georgia? Are their academic standards for athletes that much higher?
December 9th, 2015 at 4:31 PM ^
December 9th, 2015 at 5:51 PM ^
GT has a decent program, but you're misguided if you think they're anywhere near the same class as a school like Georgia, unless in your mind "often enough" is twice in the last 14 years. The last time GT had more than a 3 game win streak against UGA was in the 1950s.
They're a consistent 7 win team which spikes every now and then. GT is like a slightly better Northwestern or slightly worse Iowa.
They do have some stricter academic standards, but they also have a much smaller school and stadium, a unique offensive philosophy which makes top WR, QB, TE, OL look elsewhere (remember, Megatron was from the Chan Gailey days), and live in UGA's shadow.
December 9th, 2015 at 6:05 PM ^
I don't think they're in the same class as Georgia. But I also think they're clearly a tier above schools like Kent State and Ohio U as OSU's competition, and Louisiana Tech as LSU's competition. An Iowa-equivilent is more than "minimal in-state competition." Sure, Georgia Tech isn't Florida State, but they're also not Bowling Green.
December 9th, 2015 at 8:04 PM ^
December 9th, 2015 at 9:56 PM ^
But does that lack of competition outweigh the talent gap between GA and OH? I don't think it's a huge gap, but it's still significant IIRC.
December 9th, 2015 at 5:55 PM ^
When you think Tech you think Paul Johnson, engineers, triple option football, and boredom
UGA is the groves, big state school, women, etc.
December 10th, 2015 at 10:55 AM ^
is at Ole Miss, not UGA. Athens though is a pretty nice town.
I lived in Atlanta for four years. Women are everywhere in the SEC, not just UGA, and they all end up in Atlanta after school.
Tech is a very good school, and the ATL is a fun town, but it isn't a college town.
December 9th, 2015 at 4:44 PM ^
I am pretty sure every athlete needs to pass Calc 2 to graduate (don't quote me). I think that is quite the challenge to get a whole football team to pass a class like that.
December 9th, 2015 at 4:49 PM ^
If true...damn. I can't picture a lot of athletes passing UofM's calc 2.
December 9th, 2015 at 4:53 PM ^
December 9th, 2015 at 6:00 PM ^
First, they all have to pass Calc 1. Second, GT doesn't have English majors. Seriously. It does not exist at GT. You can major in "Literature, Media, and Communications" but not in English. And Lit at GT means stuff like Media, Interactions, Social Justice, etc. All with a technical bent. You don't sit around reading Bronte, John Irving, and Herman Melville all day.
December 9th, 2015 at 6:26 PM ^
Not sure if things have changed, but I went to Michigan undergrad, graduated in 2006 without ever taking calc 1 for university credit. I want to say i took EECS183 and it checked the same quant box.
Oops, might have misread what you wrote... I wasnt an english major either...
December 9th, 2015 at 7:16 PM ^
lol no
I took pre-calc pass/fail, that was the only math class my major required
December 9th, 2015 at 5:14 PM ^
So are they a serious threat to Georgia? Hell no. Georgia rarely loses a recruit to GaTech. It would be like if Northwestern was in the same state as Michigan, but in the MAC.
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December 9th, 2015 at 5:41 PM ^
We get a lot of interest because of good academics, and obviously ND and Stanford do as well. That criteria is not at all an absolute negative.
December 9th, 2015 at 9:59 PM ^
True, but it depends how strict things are. I think Michigan is in a good spot. Academics are a highlight but not the burden that they are at a place like Stanford. Michigan is strict enough to stand out but not so strict that they're cutting off lots of talent.
December 9th, 2015 at 5:32 PM ^
dreaming of playing football for GT. It's kind of like Pennsylvania. There are a few that prefer Pitt, but PSU has a huge advantage in getting the in-state talent.
December 9th, 2015 at 6:17 PM ^
I found the article linked below some years ago...2008. There may be something newer, but I haven't seen it.
http://www.usnews.com/education/blogs/paper-trail/2008/12/30/athletes-s…
Georgia Tech had the highest average SAT scores, and Michigan was third, but the difference between these averages and the academic SAT average is literally hundreds of points.
I would also think that several very successful seasons in a row would have a huge impact upon recruiting, including participation in confernce championships and the NC games.
December 9th, 2015 at 4:34 PM ^
You forgot to mention the ladies!!!!!!! Georgia is top notch in that category.
December 9th, 2015 at 5:01 PM ^
The girls at Georgia, are ahead of University of Florida and are a significant draw for recruits + UGA academics are typically easier + weather + Athens is a great college town + college football in the South is a way of life (I'm just calling it like I sees it - grew up in Michigan). Lots of things to like about Georgia.
December 9th, 2015 at 5:29 PM ^
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December 9th, 2015 at 5:56 PM ^
Which their competition Georgia Tech seriously lacks
December 9th, 2015 at 6:18 PM ^
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December 10th, 2015 at 11:52 AM ^
Athens is about 5 hours from the closest beach. That's like saying State College is near the beaches. Same distance to Ocean City, MD. And as for the North Georgia mountains, they are OK, but more like high hills than mountains.
Gainesville and Tallahassee are 2 hrs from good beaches. USC and UCLA are 20 mins.
The attractions for Georgia football are tradition, the SEC, pretty women, a good school, and Athens.
December 9th, 2015 at 4:09 PM ^
Outside of Texas, Florida, and California, it's the highest talent producing state in the country, there are no in-state programs of consequence to worry about and it's right next door to Florida and Alabama, with a fan culture thats football crazy, great facilities, and support.
Realistically, who's in a better situation in terms of location, support, and access?
December 9th, 2015 at 4:18 PM ^
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December 9th, 2015 at 5:57 PM ^
apparently no one realizes how crappy Mississippi is because no one leaves
December 9th, 2015 at 4:52 PM ^
December 9th, 2015 at 5:16 PM ^
+1
But I think the location might be a negative since college football is not the biggest thing in "town".
December 9th, 2015 at 5:27 PM ^
I can see your point with USC, they also have the advantage for out of state recruiting talent because they can tell some kid to come to LA, which is an attractive place to go to and may want to check it out if you aren't from around there over some place like Athens, GA... Which, what exactly is enticing about living there, other than the University that is there? I've never been there myself, but if I lived in someplace say like Kansas and had only one official visit to go on, I'd prolly want to check out LA rather than Athens or some other college town for that matter.
December 9th, 2015 at 5:36 PM ^
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December 9th, 2015 at 6:43 PM ^
December 9th, 2015 at 5:49 PM ^
deserve a top four spot, and it's easy to make an arguement for any of the top four, but UCLA competes well when they have a good coach and for recruits east of the Mississippi (i.e. a huge number of them), I'm sure the distance is a big deterrent since family can't attend games, etc. Then again, it's Los Angeles. Maybe you're right.
Is your LA avatar Louisiana or Los Angeles? I'm in Los Angeles.
December 9th, 2015 at 6:44 PM ^