📡 NSD recaps: Harbaugh a big loser, Orgeron defends lowest ranked class since '02

[18Champs]

Not only is the honeymoon over at Michigan for Jim Harbaugh, the marriage could be veering toward “we should meet with a counselor” territory.

Harbaugh’s tenure at his alma mater has not been as successful as most pundits predicted and fans expected. What’s worse, it is starting to look eerily familiar.

That familiarity got worse Wednesday, when several other college programs closed the 2018 recruiting cycle stronger than the Wolverines, and Michigan dropped to No. 21 in the 247sports composite rankings on national signing day. Harbaugh’s four recruiting classes have now been ranked 37th, eighth, fifth and 21st by the 247sports composite.

His predecessor, Brady Hoke, followed the exact same pattern: a sluggish start after the coaching change (30th in 2011), followed by two big years (sixth and fourth), followed by a big fade (20th in 2014). The Wolverines also faded on the field, dropping to 5-7 in Hoke’s fourth year. He did not get a fifth.

Harbaugh’s on-field results also have been similar to Hoke’s. The Wolverines slipped from back-to-back 10-3 seasons to 8-5 in 2017. Harbaugh has won two more games than Hoke did through three seasons, but Hoke also finished higher than third in his division — twice, in fact.

Nothing causes consternation in a college football fan base like losing to rivals and poor recruiting rankings. Harbaugh is 0-3 on the field against Ohio State (and 1-2 against Michigan State), and Urban Meyer continues to rule the recruiting trail.

The Buckeyes have a higher-ranked class than the Wolverines for the eighth straight cycle, and the gap might be getting wider. Ohio State has finished seventh, fourth, second and second in the 247composite rankings during Harbaugh’s four seasons. The Buckeyes are clearly in the nation’s top recruiting tier, a place reserved only for them, Alabama, Georgia and maybe Clemson. The Wolverines have been a second-tier program the previous two seasons, but fell a couple of notches below that for 2018.

What’s worse — Penn State might be passing Michigan as Ohio State’s biggest threat. The Nittany Lions have won the Big Ten and won a New Year’s Six bowl game in the past two seasons. Now, they just landed the No. 4-ranked class in the nation, just behind the Buckeyes in the battle for Big Ten supremacy.

James Franklin’s club has an average finish of 13.25 in the past four recruiting cycles. Michigan’s average in that span is 17.75, and it’s still 13.0 if Harbaugh gets a break for the first year, when he had limited time to cobble together a class. Michigan fans do not expect to see Penn State on equal footing, let alone clearly having more momentum moving forward.

The 2018 season was always going to be big for Harbaugh. After having one of the youngest teams in the nation in 2017, this was supposed to be the year he delivers in Ann Arbor.

The ride to this point has gotten bumpier than expected, though. Harbaugh has climbed trees and held sleepovers and taken his team all over the globe, but if he doesn’t win more games, beat some rivals and recruit better players, his time as coach might not last longer than Hoke’s.

https://nypost.com/2018/02/07/jim-harbaugh-is-a-big-loser-on-national-signing-day/

 

[18Champs]

Ed Orgeron defends lowest-ranked LSU recruiting class since 2002

BATON ROUGE, La. — The numbers say that LSU football is in its worst place on National Signing Day in nearly a generation.

According to 247 Sports’ composite rankings, LSU’s Class of 2018 is ranked 15th in the country — the lowest the Tigers have fallen since they ranked 21st in 2002. LSU had been ranked in the top 10 every year since 2013.

Unsurprisingly, LSU coach Ed Orgeron does not agree with where his class is ranked. Though he conceded missing on major talents such as Patrick Surtain Jr. and Mario Goodrich, Orgeron thinks the bulk of this class is better than it is getting credit for.

“Let’s see what happens with this class,” Orgeron said. “We have some defensive linemen and offensive linemen that are very good. I trust my rankings. I chose this class. So I trust my ability to evaluate and develop better than anybody else. I’m not going to trust anyone else’s evaluation.”

LSU probably isn’t helped in the rankings by the positions it recruited heavily in this cycle. Eleven of the Tigers’ 23 signees are offensive or defensive linemen, and those positions can be tougher for recruiting services to assess than skill positions.

“I don’t know that [for sure],” Orgeron said of the difficulty in rating linemen. “But I’ve coached two Hall of Famers that were 2-stars.”

Orgeron knows that the perception of LSU having the 15th-best class in the country won’t play well. But he seems convinced that this group will leave LSU in a higher position than it came in. It is worth noting that the aforementioned 2002 signing class was part of a national championship just one year later. Granted, that group was coached by Nick Saban, but the fact remains.

“Now, we could have had a higher class. I understand that. We missed on some so-called guys,” Orgeron said. “But we have two of the best receivers in the country [Terrace Marshall and Ja’Marr Chase]. We have five defensive tackles. We signed eight of the top 10 players in Louisiana, and we’re proud of them.”

Ed Orgeron defends lowest-ranked LSU recruiting class since 2002

 

[50+yeartidefan]

Amazing that coaches even give a shit about rankings, stars, perspective, etc....
Evaluate, recruit, sign, develop.....
lookat washouts....and those that grow into men....
Shocking to me...

 

[TUSKtimes]

And don't forget how Jeremy Pruitt's day went.

 

[50+yeartidefan]

And don't forget how Jeremy Pruitt's day went.

Thats funny stuff...and the kinda orange shirt makes it better

 

[alagator]

 

[TUSKtimes]

And Michigan lost their highest recruit to Georgia on the 11th hour. He is as squirrely as they come. He's the kind of personality that had better win and win quickly. Even then it seems people grow weary.

 

[50+yeartidefan]

And Michigan lost their highest recruit to Georgia on the 11th hour. He is as squirrely as they come. He's the kind of personality that had better win and win quickly. Even then it seems people grow weary.

But he hasnt.....and making GUS money...ooops...sorry slip of tongue