This is meant to be relative to what YOUR realistic expectations were given your favorite ACC school's UNIQUE circumstances THIS year.

For example, you might think that most of the ACC has a better recruiting class than SU in the abstract, but SU is coming off a 4-8 season with a coaching change, so you could still give SU a high rating, despite a class ranked in the 50's.

Conversely, given UNC's name, resources, and past season, you might give the Tar Heels a poor rating, despite an objectively decent class.

I figured VT would struggle after a major coaching change - and it did.

I said Narduzzi hauled in a very good class. He's close to recruiting rockstar, though, I think. What's holding me back is I just think he's going to do better in the future and also that we've had good recruiting classes at Pitt in the recent past (Wannstedt years). I think he can and will do better but my goodness he's night and day from the previous few years. Job well done.

I'm pleased with Pitt's class. It's probably the best class since the Wanny years. I think there's some kids that's going to be solid players that will build a solid foundation. They got a bloodline kid in Gilbert (DE), who's a bit undersized at 6'0 240 but I think he'll be solid. Camp was a USC commit a few weeks ago. Picked up 4* DB from Pittsburgh Central Catholic, who should be a solid player. I'm unsure if he'll be as great as Whitehead, but the upgrades in the secondary are already becoming evident. Really filled a need at DT with Watts, Camp, and Wheeler (another PCC kid). George Hill (Ohio State decommit) should also fit in well in the secondary or at RB.

Granted, all of these kids could end up being busts and Pitt ends up playing horrible football. But at the moment, I think Narduzzi got us headed in the right direction.

I voted that the class was very good mainly based upon the circumstances involved. Babers and his recruiting staff turned the class over in a very short period of time and showed a willingness to go head to head with programs that clearly had the edge on us.

We didn't win a lot of those, but we won enough for me to be encouraged that next year's class should be the best we have had in a long, long time by far.

Cheers,
Neil

(02-04-2016 06:43 PM)nzmorange Wrote:  This is meant to be relative to what YOUR realistic expectations were given your favorite ACC school's UNIQUE circumstances THIS year.

For example, you might think that most of the ACC has a better recruiting class than SU in the abstract, but SU is coming off a 4-8 season with a coaching change, so you could still give SU a high rating, despite a class ranked in the 50's.

Conversely, given UNC's name, resources, and past season, you might give the Tar Heels a poor rating, despite an objectively decent class.

The 2016 class is too late to really feel the effects of 2015 season especially for us. Over half of our class was committed before the season even started.

Regardless, I think our class was better than decent.

I put very good simply because of Gary going to Michigan. Still a great class but I would have said rockstar if he would have committed.

(02-06-2016 08:16 AM)nole Wrote:  

Is that good?

I rated our class pretty good but I think the future is bright. Coach Babers will resonate well with most parents and many recruits. He shed about a dozen of Shafer's recruits and exceeded in raising the average star rating.

The telling stat is all of Shafer's recruits ended up at mid-majors and 1AAs with only one exception (to LSU). The LSU flip stung...Babers was able to flip kids from several peer schools (B1G/ACC) and several MAC schools.

I think his class will be Top 35 in 2017 (avg star rating)...maybe higher (just depends on how well we do in '16 and if they ever officially announce the stadium plan).