ESPN released their top 25 list regarding this year’s recruiting haul and Miami fell smack dab in the middle at #13. The rest looked like this:
1. Florida… 2. Texas… 3. Alabama… 4. Auburn… 5. Oklahoma… 6. Florida State… 7. Southern Cal… 8. LSU… 9. Tennessee… 10. UCLA… 11. Penn State… 12. Georgia… 13. Miami… 14. Michigan… 15. California… 16. Ohio State… 17. Texas A&M… 18. Stanford… 19. Clemson… 20. Washington… 21. Notre Dame… 22. Oregon… 23. South Carolina… 24. North Carolina… 25. Mississippi
On paper and according to some online ‘gurus’, twelve teams finished ahead of the Canes… yet Miami fans remain up in arms over this most recent class. Forget the fact that 28 new kids pledged their allegiance to “The U”, par for the course the focus remains on those that got away, as opposed to those who are on board.
Florida snagged the top spot, a program with two titles in four years. Texas rolled in second, just like they did in last year’s title game. National Champion Alabama was third. Perennial BCS staples Oklahoma and Southern Cal were number five and seven, respectively. LSU – a two time champ this decade – was eighth. Traditional powers Penn State and Georgia rolled in eleventh and twelfth. Auburn, Florida State, Tennessee and UCLA were also ahead of Miami. Not exactly bad company.
But what about those behind the Canes? Funny how few focus on that.
Big Ten and Rose Bowl winner Ohio State came in at #16. Feel good story Stanford and superstar coach Jim Harbaugh came it at #18. Dabo Sweeney and Clemson #19. Notre Dame and new coach Brian Kelly came it #21. Chip Kelly and Oregon at #22. The ‘amazing’ Butch Davis pulled in the #24 class.
And what about the flavor of the week-month-year type teams? Boise State, TCU, Utah, Cincinnati and BYU were unranked. So was Bobby Petrino’s Arkansas bunch. So was Dave Wannstache’s Pitt program. Same for Greg Schiano and Rutgers. Same for Mike Leach/Tommy Tuberville’s Texas Tech squad.
Mark Stoops at Arizona or Dennis Erickson at Arizona State? Unranked and nothing to write home about. BCS winner Kirk Ferentz, nada at Iowa. In state rival South Florida, nowhere to be found.
Time for some perspective, Hurricane nation. Miami pulled in a top class in 2008 and followed up with a top ten class in 2009. Gone are the days of promising immediate playing time. The Canes are loaded at some positions and are depth challenged at others.
Offensive line is not a ‘sexy’ pick with recruiting sites. (Seriously, there’s a reason these guys are referred to as the ‘big uglies’.) UM took five o-linemen in this class and filled other voids at tight end and linebacker. Miami got some quality four-star players and some three-star kids that should pan out over time. They also rolled the dice on a few two-star guys and took a ton of premature grief for doing so.
This class should be judged at the end of the 2011 season – not days after the ink dried on the LOI.
Give these kids time to make a name for themselves… and pay attention to your surroundings. The 13th rated class in the nation is nothing to sneeze at. Especially in the wake of 9-4, 7-6 and 5-7. Miami is still rebuilding and this is part of the process. Relax.