Saban is hurting so bad. The limited teams qualifying for the CFP was his best recruiter!.Bama, OSU and Clemson got hot at point in time that advantageous due to only 4 teams being in the CFP. It wasn't Saban as much as the CFP that was the best recruiter for a small handful of schools. This may be unpopular but I truly believe it to be the case.
Isn't it well documented that Bama has a wall of signing bonus amounts for players drafted? They sell earning potential. The better chances of playing in the CFP brings better players. Better players equal more draftees. More draftees equals more checks on the wall. With the checks coming before the draft now, well, kids think short-term.
"Do you want to play in a national championship game?" That is the recruiting speech these top recruits heard. Why could the coaches say that? Because the 4 team playoff limited competition. A four team playoff limited a players options to 4-6 schools. Every expansion pushes the recruits options to a bigger base of options. It will take a couple of recruiting cycles to push top talent to other teams but it will happen.
Like to hear AP and BH's take
Isn't it well documented that Bama has a wall of signing bonus amounts for players drafted? They sell earning potential. The better chances of playing in the CFP brings better players. Better players equal more draftees. More draftees equals more checks on the wall. With the checks coming before the draft now, well, kids think short-term.
"Do you want to play in a national championship game?" That is the recruiting speech these top recruits heard. Why could the coaches say that? Because the 4 team playoff limited competition. A four team playoff limited a players options to 4-6 schools. Every expansion pushes the recruits options to a bigger base of options. It will take a couple of recruiting cycles to push top talent to other teams but it will happen.
Like to hear AP and BH's take
