Posted by Harry on the Mean Green board.
Coaching top draw for recruits
By John Miller
Star-Telegram Staff Writer
Time for another list. Everyone likes lists, don't they?
Quick, name the No. 1 reason football recruits pick the schools they do.
What's that you say? Early playing time? Nope, that's all the way down at No. 7.
You didn't just say uniform colors, did you? I won't even dignify that with a response.
No, it's not academics. These guys are football players, not bookworms. But it's actually higher than you might think.
Finally, someone who knows what they're talking about.
Coaching staffs are the only constant connection between a recruit and the schools recruiting them, and for many recruits, it is the top reason in making their decision, according to a survey conducted by the Star-Telegram.
"It's without a doubt the top reason I committed to Missouri," Carroll High School quarterback Chase Daniel said. "They were talking to me from the beginning. And it wasn't just about football. We'd talk about all sorts of stuff. I have to give a lot of credit to the coaches that recruited me. They had a lot of trust in me."
The 40 recruits surveyed were given 10 factors, ranging from coaching staff to academics to uniform colors, that might have affected their decision. They were asked to rank each from 1 to 10, with 10 being the most important reason for choosing a school.
When asked about the coaching staff, 22 recruits answered with a 10. Nobody gave it lower than a 7. The coaching staff category received 371 points out of a total of 400.
Ironically, it's the category the NCAA wants recruits to consider the least, because coaches can leave at any time. The NCAA will not release recruits from a signed letter of intent if there is a coaching change.
"I think it is unrealistic," Daniel said. "If you look at most surveys done on this, the coaches always are the most important reason."
Academics and fitting in with the players finished a close second. Both scored 357 points.
Twenty-four recruits gave academics a 10 in the poll, the most of any category.
"Even if you make it to NFL, after the NFL you have to have something to fall back on," said Killeen wide receiver Juaquin Iglesias, who has committed to Oklahoma. "With an education, you can fall back on what you majored in and what you have a degree in."
Not all recruits put a high emphasis on education. One recruit, who wished to remain anonymous, rated education a 1. And he feels more would have, if they were honest.
"Recruits don't really pick schools on education," the recruit said.
Evidently, recruits also don't pick schools based on uniform colors. It scored the lowest of the 10 categories with an average score of 3.37. Seventeen of those surveyed gave it a 1.
But it is important to some players. Lamar defensive back Emerson Settle, who has committed to SMU, gave color of uniforms a 9.
"I'm weird like that," Settle said. "I love the red jerseys that they wear."
Settle's teammate, running back LaMark Carter, does not care about uniforms and laughed when he heard Settle valued it so much.
"Ah, he's kind of a pretty boy," Carter said with a chuckle.
High priorities
According to a Star-Telegram survey of 40 recruits, these are the top ranking factors in choosing a school:
1. Coaching staff: That's why college coaches make the big bucks.
2. Academics: After all, recruits are student-athletes.
3. Players: Good players want to fit in with good players.
4. Official visit: This one's pretty obvious.
5. Style of play: Aggressive schemes lead to highlight plays.
IN THE KNOW
Survey says
The Star-Telegram asked 40 recruits to rank from 1 to 10 the factors in choosing a school, with 10 being the most important. The results:
Category Total points Avg. score No. of 10s Low score(No.)
Coaching staff 371 9.27 22 7 (3)
Academics 357 8.92 24 1 (1)
Fitting in with the players 35
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