Older article, but most relevant with relation to ETSU football's recruiting strategy:


http://hamptonroads.com/2009/11/odu-winn...ll-history

"If we'd played with an all-freshman team, be it redshirt freshmen or true freshmen, we would have been around .500 or below," Wilder said. "Going the junior college route allowed us to age-up the team."

hmmm. how we did we not know this??

Serious question: as a talented Juco or FBS/FCS transfer do you really want to take your one-two years of eligibility to a fledgling program playing in a high school stadium in the mountains of East Tennessee, a place you may not have heard of before?

(10-05-2015 10:54 AM)shampoo Wrote:  Serious question: as a talented Juco or FBS/FCS transfer do you really want to take your one-two years of eligibility to a fledgling program playing in a high school stadium in the mountains of East Tennessee, a place you may not have heard of before?

So what you are saying is that we need to "recruit" them to come here? That is what the coaches get paid to do. They go to these players and lay out a plan they have for them and how they fit into that. Not every school or coaching philosophy is tailored for a player.

The high school stadium probably hurts us a little right now but that stadium is still better than Charleston Southern and they have good players. Most of the juco's and transfers should have 3 years to play 2 so if you have them redshirt next year they could play their 2 years in the new stadium.

No one said this was going to be easy. Being a program that dropped football then brought it back is probably a tougher sell to a recruit than a school that has never had it. The school is dealing with an area (and quite frankly a sports media) that doesn't understand the dynamics and parity of FCS football. The schedule was probably a little too ambitious but I still think we have a couple of winnable games. As long as I see a shovel in the ground in the next month or so I think things are moving along nicely.

What am I asking, to be explicit, is can ETSU at present actually recruit solid transfers? Did Torbush fail to recruit these players, or did he fail during recruiting them?

(10-05-2015 11:46 AM)shampoo Wrote:  What am I asking, to be explicit, is can ETSU at present actually recruit solid transfers? Did Torbush fail to recruit these players, or did he fail during recruiting them?

I have no knowledge of the situation whatsoever but like another poster said I think it has probably been pretty tough to recruit so far, especially with transfers and jucos. I think it will be easier to recruit now that the incoming players know that they can redshirt for a year and get to play in the new stadium the rest of their time. Also will be huge for recruits knowing they will get a chance to play in Neyland in 2018.

If we could somehow win our last 2 home games and the stadium get started I believe things will be looking good.

(10-05-2015 11:57 AM)brock20 Wrote:  

(10-05-2015 11:46 AM)shampoo Wrote:  What am I asking, to be explicit, is can ETSU at present actually recruit solid transfers? Did Torbush fail to recruit these players, or did he fail during recruiting them?

I have no knowledge of the situation whatsoever but like another poster said I think it has probably been pretty tough to recruit so far, especially with transfers and jucos. I think it will be easier to recruit now that the incoming players know that they can redshirt for a year and get to play in the new stadium the rest of their time. Also will be huge for recruits knowing they will get a chance to play in Neyland in 2018.

If we could somehow win our last 2 home games and the stadium get started I believe things will be looking good.

Ok, I'd agree with you.

ODU had dropped football at the start of WW 2. Over the decades there had been a few times it almost was brought back but it did not happen until 2007 with a 2 year lead in for the first season in 2009. Wilder turned out to be a great hire and spent the first year studying other recent start ups and what they had done as well as speaking everywhere to promote the program. He stated in a few news articles that he learned you had to bring in some upper-classmen (jucos-FBS transfers) to give you strength, experience, depth and some upperclassman leadership. He also learned from Coastal Carolina not to weigh yourself down with these upperclassmen or it hurt recruiting younger guys and when they (the transfers) all graduated you were left short on manpower. He must have gotten it right for the most part. The first season ODU played 2 Div. 2 teams and 9 FCS teams and had a record of 9-2 (no Div. 3 ever). In 2010 all FCS opponents and a record of 8-3. In both 2011 (10-3) and 2012 (11-2) ODU made the FCS playoffs (the 1st 2 years they were eligible). Then came the call to FBS in Conference USA so ODU is on the move again. ODU did have a stadium on campus although it was/is 70 years old and was built during the Great Depression. Still with a pretty solid winning record and 14,000 season tickets sold each year and so far 44 home game sell-outs things have gone pretty well. As a former ETSU Buc I thought a few times about suggesting to ETSU Admins they talk with Wilder and the ODU AD but I figured they knew what they were doing and would probably ignore me anyway. Still hoping the Bucs can win a few this year.

ETSU did consult with ODU.

(10-07-2015 11:16 PM)buc73 Wrote:  ETSU did consult with ODU.

Ah, good to know. I hope what was shared was/will be helpful. The NCAA says ODU is the best start-up so far so they got a lot right. Next step for ODU will be a new stadium. I do hope the Bucs can manage a few wins this year to help keep momentum going.

(10-08-2015 06:27 PM)ETSUDB8-79 Wrote:  

(10-07-2015 11:16 PM)buc73 Wrote:  ETSU did consult with ODU.

Ah, good to know. I hope what was shared was/will be helpful. The NCAA says ODU is the best start-up so far so they got a lot right. Next step for ODU will be a new stadium. I do hope the Bucs can manage a few wins this year to help keep momentum going.

It would still be good for Coach Torbush to completely put his plan on the table for fans to see.