Recruiting Thoughts

[Cobie]

I would say you are right. A good thing, though, is that we have Clayton White as DC. He has produced Top 50 defenses here and elsewhere. And he has been nominated for the Broyles Award two or three times. So, there is hope there. I'm still not sold on our offensive line. So, it could be a long season. Beamer and his staff will need to do some great coaching to produce the kind of season we need. And that will always be the case because at South Carolina we are never going to have the talent that matches up with many teams on our schedule, no matter what. That has always been the case here. We did not have the talent that matched up with Oklahoma, Texas A&M, Clemson, LSU and Alabama last season. But, we had "good enough" talent to compete with them. Having "good enough" talent is the best we can hope for.. It has always been hard to recruit in football at South Carolina for the reasons I have stated in the past. The more things (seasons) change, the more they stay the same. As Spurrier would say, "It is what it is".

You must also have unique personalities for each character on each forum.

Stock BOT spent the entire 2023 season lobbying that we should fire Beamer for Jeremy Chadwell.

He spent the first half of the 2024 season telling us we needed a coach like Lane Kiffin. This included an alledged road trip to Oxford which was reported on in great detail.

 

[bayrooster]

They had NIL before NIL.

Rich Uncle contracts.

 

[gamecock stock]

With Duckworth coming on board, we are currently ranked 17th in the nation. That's good. I have forever said that being a Top 20 program in football @South Carolina is something we can achieve. I know some will say, "If we were NIL affluent, we'd be ranked higher". Well, who KNOWS that for sure? Who knows that if we suddenly got a NIL windfall through wealthy fans, that others would not put in more? It's kind of like an arms race where if you spend more on defense, that puts pressure on your enemies to spend more. Or if you put in an attractive bid for a stock you badly want, someone else may put in a higher bid? That's life.

The bottom-line is that right now, we are ranked about where Hall of Famers Holtz and Spurrier usually had us ranked and where Muschamp had us ranked. Holtz and Spurrier were Head Coach material. Muschamp was not. He was over his head as HC.

I don't know where we eventually end up being ranked in recruiting. But I believe that Beamer's recruiting efforts are giving us a CHANCE, to become @South Carolina, nationally relevant like we were under Spurrier for a stretch in his time here. Shane, in his brief time here, is showing that he potentially can be like Frank. I wish I was a lot younger to look forward to the "possibilities" of Gamecock football. But, alas, there's no "fountain of youth". So, I will take what I can get.

 

[Gamecock Vet]

Yeah, I suspect we'll be about where always have been for recruiting. Was it last year or the year before we started out early with something like a top 5 class, then we settled to our usual range.

I’m going to respectfully disagree. We are and have been in the mix for top talent this year that years past we weren’t even on their lists. We still have a lot of recruits that haven’t made a decision yet. After Duckworth we went down to 17 and will go down more as the remaining recruits fall out way. We won’t get everybody we won’t because we don’t have enough money but we will crack the top 15 and have a respectable class. Beamer has put together a great coaching staff that really knows how to recruit. Go Cocks!!

 

[Cackmandu]

I’m going to respectfully disagree. We are and have been in the mix for top talent this year that years past we weren’t even on their lists. We still have a lot of recruits that haven’t made a decision yet. After Duckworth we went down to 17 and will go down more as the remaining recruits fall out way. We won’t get everybody we won’t because we don’t have enough money but we will crack the top 15 and have a respectable class. Beamer has put together a great coaching staff that really knows how to recruit. Go Cocks!!

Yeah, I think top 15 is our lot in recruiting rankings, you hope our staff can coach them up and you can fill in the blanks with some quality starters out of the portal like the last few years! I think Shane has really excelled with the portal!

 

[Slim Chickens Gamecock]

WE need Defensive Tackle talent and running back talent. WR should be stronger and getting stronger with maturity granted we keep them all.

 

[Piscis]

I’m going to respectfully disagree. We are and have been in the mix for top talent this year that years past we weren’t even on their lists. We still have a lot of recruits that haven’t made a decision yet. After Duckworth we went down to 17 and will go down more as the remaining recruits fall out way. We won’t get everybody we won’t because we don’t have enough money but we will crack the top 15 and have a respectable class. Beamer has put together a great coaching staff that really knows how to recruit. Go Cocks!!

15 to 20 is about where we end up every year and that puts us about 10th or so in the SEC. I'd say "respectable" and "competitive" are the two terms gamecock football should strive for. Until now, "mediocre" is the adjective that best describes gamecock football historically.

Also, I have to LOL when I see people say "we need to "coach up" the guys we get". Do those people think the other programs who recruit far better than we do don't "coach up" their players? Do they think all those 4 and 5 star players go to Tuscaloosa, Columbus, Austin, Athens and Clemson and get put on the field with no development at all and the players who come to Columbia are getting some sort of secret training that makes them world beaters?

 

[Wildbunch2]

Since 2011, Clemson has won at least 10 games every season except 2023, when they won 9. They are 11-7 in post season play during that time period with 9 ACC championships and 2 national championships. They have been in the CFP 5 times since it began. I dislike Clemson as much as anyone but to say they are living off of the past is silly.

I'm no fan of Dabo, I think he's a clown, but he recruits well and keeps the players he signs, which I admire. The fact he is able to keep players around actually means he doesn't have to develop players quickly, he can let them grow over time and he is also able to build depth because his recruits don't leave. The teams that have shown the most success have been ones that recruit and develop talent, not teams that have a fruit basket turnover of rosters every season. No team has won big by taking players from the portal to build their roster. Dabo sees this and he has been successful.

FL St did it one year. Had their QB not gotten hurt, they had a shot.

 

[will110]

This. Clemsons recruiting has dropped off significantly. I think the NIL landscape has hurt them the same it has us, and will eventually bring us both to the same level.

Clemson's 2026 class is currently ranked 12th. USC is at 17.

 

[will110]

FL St did it one year. Had their QB not gotten hurt, they had a shot.

FSU is exhibit A on the dangers of program building through the portal. It paid off in impressive fashion in 2023. It was a disaster in 2024.

 

[Lurker123]

Clemson's 2026 class is currently ranked 12th. USC is at 17.

Anecdotal, but my friends of that persuasion were saying the same thing happened last year. That players committed to them, then a bunch left before signing day for bigger paydays.

Again, anecdotal.