We have uncertainty with the NCAA investigation. Rival coaches going head to head on players against us especially the best players in our own state are filling their heads with scare tactics so they can cherry-pick from us.
Had Danny White hired a coach who didn't have a flashy offense, what would that coach have sold to recruits?
Heupel featured a very explosive offense at Missouri with a 4-star quarterback and a ton of 3-star rated receivers, offensive linemen, and running backs. We may only win half the games on our schedule until this black cloud passes, but recruits from around the country will see his explosive offense in action. Once the sanctions are over, opposing coaches won't have anything to hold over his head.
Unlike Nick Saban at Alabama or Urban Meyer at Ohio State, Derek Dooley, Butch Jones, and Jeremy Pruitt for the most part didn't have a proven track record at previous stops that wowed recruits. They had to hire good recruiters on their staff and sell themselves. Many times, what they sold did not come to fruition, and the player simply didn't develop and many times ended up transferring out. Lots of 4 and even 5-star players who should've been stars in the NFL didn't sniff it. Over time, recruits see this and won't fall for it.
The one thing we've been missing since Lane Kiffin's lone year here and since David Cutcliffe was on Phil Fulmer's staff is quarterback development. Just as the lack of good point guard play will wreck a basketball team, the same is true about the lack of good quarterback play. It's hard to believe, but Sam Bradford was only rated a 3 star out of high school according to Rivals. Look at how he developed under Heupel. Landry Jones was developed under Heupel as well and had an amazing career at Oklahoma also. The only quarterbacks who never panned out under Heupel were Blake Bell and Trevor Knight at Oklahoma. Bell ended up being moved to tight end which strongly indicates it had much more to do about his ability than it did coaching. Knight ended up transferring to Texas A&M. If you want to see an impressive coaching job, look at Missouri's Drew Lock the year before Heupel was hired as their OC and what he developed him into the following 2 years he coached with the Tigers.
Heupel lost McKenzie Milton 10 games into an undefeated season at UCF. He suddenly had to plug in a backup quarterback with a much different skill set early in the second quarter for Milton who had a devastating injury and still beat South Florida 38-10. From there, he went on to beat Memphis in the conference title game and played LSU in the Fiesta Bowl. That 2018 LSU team had a strong defense, but Heupel's Golden Knights still put up 32 points in the 40-32 loss that ended up being their lone loss that season. 32 points against an SEC defense littered with 4 and 5-star talent using a backup quarterback is nothing to sneeze at.
The chances are very, very high that our quarterbacks are going to be transformed. Harrison Bailey showed flashes and has the tools. Salter can be a star. Hendon Hooker did well as Virginia Tech's quarterback. These men and Brian Maurer are all in good hands.
Our receivers are going to perform much better compared to last season. They have a very good coach in Kodi Burns too.
Our o-line is just begging to be developed. Our new o-line coach proved at UCF and Missouri that he can get it done. The players at those stops were rated lower than the guys we have returning.
Instead of using words to persuade a recruit to sign, Heupel and his staff are going to use on-the-field performance to sell their product.
With our NCAA situation, there was no way we were going to hire Matt Campbell or James Franklin. I'm also glad we didn't hire a coach that has a more bland offense. Not having the flashy results we're going to see with Heupel coupled with the looming sanctions would have made it near impossible to recruit.
It's why I believe Danny White made the perfect hire.
Had Danny White hired a coach who didn't have a flashy offense, what would that coach have sold to recruits?
Heupel featured a very explosive offense at Missouri with a 4-star quarterback and a ton of 3-star rated receivers, offensive linemen, and running backs. We may only win half the games on our schedule until this black cloud passes, but recruits from around the country will see his explosive offense in action. Once the sanctions are over, opposing coaches won't have anything to hold over his head.
Unlike Nick Saban at Alabama or Urban Meyer at Ohio State, Derek Dooley, Butch Jones, and Jeremy Pruitt for the most part didn't have a proven track record at previous stops that wowed recruits. They had to hire good recruiters on their staff and sell themselves. Many times, what they sold did not come to fruition, and the player simply didn't develop and many times ended up transferring out. Lots of 4 and even 5-star players who should've been stars in the NFL didn't sniff it. Over time, recruits see this and won't fall for it.
The one thing we've been missing since Lane Kiffin's lone year here and since David Cutcliffe was on Phil Fulmer's staff is quarterback development. Just as the lack of good point guard play will wreck a basketball team, the same is true about the lack of good quarterback play. It's hard to believe, but Sam Bradford was only rated a 3 star out of high school according to Rivals. Look at how he developed under Heupel. Landry Jones was developed under Heupel as well and had an amazing career at Oklahoma also. The only quarterbacks who never panned out under Heupel were Blake Bell and Trevor Knight at Oklahoma. Bell ended up being moved to tight end which strongly indicates it had much more to do about his ability than it did coaching. Knight ended up transferring to Texas A&M. If you want to see an impressive coaching job, look at Missouri's Drew Lock the year before Heupel was hired as their OC and what he developed him into the following 2 years he coached with the Tigers.
Heupel lost McKenzie Milton 10 games into an undefeated season at UCF. He suddenly had to plug in a backup quarterback with a much different skill set early in the second quarter for Milton who had a devastating injury and still beat South Florida 38-10. From there, he went on to beat Memphis in the conference title game and played LSU in the Fiesta Bowl. That 2018 LSU team had a strong defense, but Heupel's Golden Knights still put up 32 points in the 40-32 loss that ended up being their lone loss that season. 32 points against an SEC defense littered with 4 and 5-star talent using a backup quarterback is nothing to sneeze at.
The chances are very, very high that our quarterbacks are going to be transformed. Harrison Bailey showed flashes and has the tools. Salter can be a star. Hendon Hooker did well as Virginia Tech's quarterback. These men and Brian Maurer are all in good hands.
Our receivers are going to perform much better compared to last season. They have a very good coach in Kodi Burns too.
Our o-line is just begging to be developed. Our new o-line coach proved at UCF and Missouri that he can get it done. The players at those stops were rated lower than the guys we have returning.
Instead of using words to persuade a recruit to sign, Heupel and his staff are going to use on-the-field performance to sell their product.
With our NCAA situation, there was no way we were going to hire Matt Campbell or James Franklin. I'm also glad we didn't hire a coach that has a more bland offense. Not having the flashy results we're going to see with Heupel coupled with the looming sanctions would have made it near impossible to recruit.
It's why I believe Danny White made the perfect hire.
