Give Dan a huge pat on the back....

[DowntownDawg]

....after getting schooled two years in a row, he has figured out how to recruit and he has kept his staff together this year. This class is exactly what our program needs, and we have finally taken advantage of Ole Miss's problems and have now beaten them three times in a row and will sign a top 20 class while they struggle to sign a top 60 class. Recruiting has been Dan's achilles heel, and at least for this year, he's figured out how to solve that problem. If he can put together top 20-30 classes consistently, watch out.

This class is exactly what the dr. ordered.

 

[Coach34]

.

 

[maroonmania]

best defensive class ever signed in the history of the school IMO.

 

[Incognegro]

His first 2 classes were moderate at best, but this class has shown he's been capable of producing decent classes. It's just a matter of time that things will eventually fall in.

 

[maroonmania]

but he held the staff together this year and its pretty obvious that Wilson and Collins are excellent recruiters.

 

[coach66]

Dan and the coaches have done great.

 

[therightway]

We have gotten most of what we wanted. If they are committed to us before they start their senior year they will never get the attention like they would if they would have committed to Bama.

 

[Goat Grindin]

Continuity.

 

[EAVdog]

Just go look at Auburn right now. They're hemmoraging commits. If Diaz had stayed CJ would have stayed. Our class most likely would have been around #25 and nobody would have freaked out. Losing Diaz and Hudspeth killed our class. It had very little to do with Mullen at all. Recruiting is a job that the entire staff has to shoulder.
Wilson, Collins, and Mirando have done a great job and are Mullen's guys. Melvin has also done a great job in Lousisianna but we all know he's a great recruiter. Mullen has to get credit for the guys he brought in and the job they are doing. His job as HC is just to seal the deal.

Also last year's class was not bereft of talent. A number of Freshman got experience this past year and a few of the Redshirts like Morrow will be future stars.

 

[Goat Grindin]

We got good players in both classes. Now obviously UM got the rankings and the hype, but so far our guys looked better. The battles we lost to them were due mainly to the continuity of their staff coupled with our assistants leaving, at least last year. Don't see how anyone can say we got schooled in 2010, most recruitniks actually say we won the instate battle.

 

[RonnyAtmosphere]

..who knows what the hell these HS players will do once they are confronted with signing a scholarship with MSU on signing day.

I suspect 95% will remain loyal to their commitment, but there are always a few free spirits who will, without warning, fly the coop.


So I'll pat the back only after the FAX machines have finished buzzing.

 

[msudogsrule01]

Dan did not get 'schooled' the last two years. He had to rebuild MSU's image in the recruiting world, had to create relationships with the HS coaches and he didn't care about stars, only if they can play football. I think, all things considered, he has done just fine. Those classes that he got 'schooled' with just won two bowl games in a row. I will take it.

 

[RonnyAtmosphere]

..in recruiting, that's the general consensus here at least.


& the same guy who now wants to pat Mullen on the back was a major contributor to said myth.


So if you expect to come here & do some successful myth-busting on that front, then I've 2 words for you: Good luck.

 

[missouridawg]

If he (and/or his staff)went around and helped install some spread type offenses in a lot of the high schools in Mississippi.

MS just doesn't produce enough top notch QB's and we're consistently going to have to look outside of the state. If we helped install, teach, and develop some of these high schools (and even middle schools) in running a spread type package, it would better prepare kids for a college offense. I think it could go a long way into getting players who are further developed mentally for college football.

Just a thought.

 

[Incognegro]

That's usually what having a good surrounding cast of assistants should yield which is what you're alluding to. There was also a lot of things that just could not be helped the past few classes, but considering the talent we did get and a lot of the talent we went after, I honestly can't get mad with the products we've had.

 

[Flatland Dawg]

This is a really great idea, missouridawg. Having a traveling program (or a clinic in Starkville) where Dan and the offensive staff teach basic principles of our offense to high school coaches would help the coaches, help us, and help the athletes. It would also be a great way for our staff to build relationships with those coaches. It would also probably be some sort of death penalty worthy NCAA violation, because we are M STATE.

 

[digdawg]

I agree, this class is good for MSU and great defensively. It mainly starts from the fact that the state had an unusually high number of players that are good prospect this year, more than average. We still haven't gone out of state and grab a premier recruit - Croom failed at this also and missed an a few program changing prospects, most notably we were in on Suh and on Oregon's RB, as crazy as that seems . . .
We didn't go to a bowl game and win two bowls games in a row on Mullen's recruiting class. Almost none of guys are on the field yet. If this class yields as many NFL players as the 2010 and 2011 teams, then we will be estatic.
Rebuild our image in the recruting world? Croom left Mullen with by far his best class - so I don't see how we had to rebuild our image in the recruiting world when it was the best MSU class in a very long time. Croom wiped Ole Miss in recruiting his final 3 years at MSU. It was obvious then, and even more obvious with what has been on the field since then. We were dominating the state of Mississippi in recruiting those final 3 years and it has turned out even better on the field than in the recruiring rankings. It is no surprise to me what has happened on the field between the teams, because it was obvious to a realistic observer that we were killing Ole Miss in recruiting those final three years with Croom. (His last two classesand the one that Mullen inherited).
The big miss this year -and it was a big miss - is at QB. I'm with Coach 34 on this one- Dan Mullen needs a running QB to run his spread option offense. I can't believe that the 6'4" 190lb kid is the answer for that, and I think Mullen agrees. We just had to get another QB on the roster. We have one QBthat works for Mullen's style offense right now, and that is Prescott. I have never thought that Russell was the answer for Dan's offense. He was a great fit for the WCO, but not for the spread option. I think that showed on the field this year. We didn't win with Russell.

 

[gravedigger]

paper, but if this class can go from the 'on paper' moniker to the 'on the field' one, they will have to do something more than just have great talent.

 

[RocketDawg]

Rules about visitation to recruits, etc.

 

[DowntownDawg]

..who just had a terrible season and who you throttled on their home field and 11th in the league last year.

23 spots behind them and 10th in the league the year before.

I'd say that's pretty well getting throttled.

Note that the term "recruiting" implies "on paper" and I realize many of those players are gone, etc, etc. But Mullen got his tail kicked the last two years. And he turned it around in a big way this year, which was much needed.

Congrats to Dan and the staff on a job well done.

Knew I could count on you to be the contrarian and flame away at the most pedestrian of comments.