Detoit News top 60 players shows us with -1- friggin recruit. One of these days after Cubits long gone, a new coach will need to culivate our Michigan high school coaches.... Ignoring our home state is beginning to bother me more every year.... Ya, and I know all about Florida, yada, yada yada.

We were pretty fortunate when we found a few players in FL that fell through the cracks (Biggers and Delmas just to name 2). I'm guessing it's a lot more likely that we find those types of players in FL, than in MI. Unfortunately our state isn't known for our high school football products. Not to mention, we are built on speed (the whole MAC too) and there aren't a lot of speed guys in our state.

Why does it bother you so much? IMO, once they sign the LOI to WMU, they are all Broncos. I don't care where they are from. All I want is for WMU to beat CMU and win football games.

Wmu hockey players from California and football players from Florida make perfect sense. Doesn't it?

we have recruited alot of great players from the state of florida, cubit and ryan do a great job down there. players recently Simon, Drake and Celiscar are the reason we need to continue to recruit the great state of florida. this recruiting class will only have about 5 kids from florida, we usually get 10 every year from florida.

We've got 6 from Florida, 4 from California and 3 from Illinois. Those three states had 676 players signed last year by FBS schools. We should clearly ignore those states for Michigan's 59. Michigan players, after all, are why Central's won recent MAC titles on the back of Michigan-born Dan LeFevour and Antonio Brown.

Oh. Wait. They're from Illinois and Florida.

Funny thing about that, Nick. You just about re-created the conversation I had with a cranky oldster WMU alum at the Pizza Bowl.

When he pulled out the CMU canard, I just laughed and pulled out the facts you related.

There's so much speed in Florida that even our hockey team has one and even a handful of Californians, to boot. At top schools, the recruiting is national. Do it or wither on the vine in useless actual mediocrity, at best.

The "sky-is-falling-crowd" because we don't sign enough MI kids reminds me of the small thinking that was well known for years for us at WMU. Don't dare to be great because, you know, we are just a "teachers college" kind of thinking. I understand that we will never be a B1G school or even on their level, regarding resources. But that doesn't mean we can't strive to get better and win our conference. That won't happen recruiting mostly from Michigan, unless we can borrow a certain coach from UDM to teach us how to poach Michigan's recruits.

I have my fingers crossed that the particular mindset is finally at long last, slowly dying out, thanks to our hockey team. Just one more reason to love and support our hockey program.

(01-20-2012 04:19 PM)bronconick Wrote:  We've got 6 from Florida, 4 from California and 3 from Illinois. Those three states had 676 players signed last year by FBS schools. We should clearly ignore those states for Michigan's 59. Michigan players, after all, are why Central's won recent MAC titles on the back of Michigan-born Dan LeFevour and Antonio Brown.

Oh. Wait. They're from Illinois and Florida.

This.

Of that Top 60, 26 committed to BCS schools, that leaves 34. One was Kelby Latta, who we didn't want, that leaves 33. Another is almost a 100% certain non-qualifier, that leaves 32. Of that list of 32, Enos took 15 of them. That would be Dan Enos of 6-18 fame, Akron squeaker, who has decided to abandon FL. Oh God no, Enos is wining Michigan!!!!! (wink wink, nudge nudge).

After you subtract those 15 CMU players you're down to 17 players. 10 of those 17 were taken by programs who finished below us in the standings, i.e. Kent, UB, BSU, and EMU. That leaves 7 players, 2 of whom committed to us, leaving 5 players, 1 of which we are still interested in. Would you feel good battling the likes of Kent and Transfer U over MI high school recruits? I assure you, any kid we want who visits a game at any of those 4 schools and then takes a visit to Waldo, will ALWAYS pick Western...................IF he gets the offer.

Of that entire list the only non-BCS player that we really made a run at was Jabari Dean.

It's easier to say "we don't recruit Michigan".

Exactly! It's easier for people to criticize than to take a hard look at reality.

I feel like those who squeal about this subject usually have a bone to pick. This might not always be the case, but why else would it matter to someone?