Signing Day Surprise

[SMU2007]

I hate UCLA and hope they lose every game.

[SMUer]

I just messaged Carl Hulick that he should mail the SMU hat he was sporting on Facebook and Twitter to Kelan Lawson and offered to send him the address.

He wrote me back and wanted the address...nice guy, wish him well.

[SMUer]

I'm going to try a little glass-half-full

SMU has more DWF Top 100 athletes than TCU, 5 to 4 respectively...surprised?

[Rebel10]

Coach Mason was by our place the other day finally and was asking about juniors. He said they were trying to do a better job here in the metroplex.

Good. I hope they go after high caliber local players and not local players that are less talented but easy to get.

[Boston Pony]

As you complain about SMU's losses - think about Cal. Their top recruiter went to UW and the Bears lost a ton of top players. A couple of things occur in recruiting - new coaches tend to do well at a school - there's a lot of excitement and the coach is undefeated - reality sets in during year two depending on team's success. Remember Coach Bennett's early classes then reality set in, same at UCLA - personally I'm not sold on Mora as a top college hc

[Stallion]

There is a big difference between the 3-4 Ace Recruiters hired by UCLA and Bennett's Go to SMU Camp Get an Offer Policy. Somehow I don't see these UCLA recruiters backing down. Did Klemm back down after a few years or did he take it to another level arguably getting or assisting in about 20 commitments. He just flat overworks the competition.

[HB Pony Dad]

There is a big difference between the 3-4 Ace Recruiters hired by UCLA and Bennett's Go to SMU Camp Get an Offer Policy. Somehow I don't see these UCLA recruiters backing down. Did Klemm back down after a few years or did he take it to another level arguably getting or assisting in about 20 commitments. He just flat overworks the competition.

You realize you are speaking to the unbelievers with scales on their eyes.

Just because SMU got to three mid-level bowls the win-starved SMU fans think that is an acceptable performance.

SMU has mouthed the words of reaching for the top but I'm not convinced they are truly committed to the costs involved.

I do not blame JJ for his attempt to better himself by going to the PAC-12, but I believe the fallout has profoundly affected him; I truly doubt he has the passion to bring SMU any higher.
This is manifesting itself in the coaching shakeout, the recruiting, and even in JJ's lack of passion as shown at his Press Conference today.

UCLA knew it had an opportunity to steal a march on USC today, and for the next two years as well. They saw the opportunity, the vulnerability and struck. They used all their recruiters to sell the vision and it appears to have paid well.

USC fighting with limited resources knew that they had to make do with quality, and they did as well.

Both LA teams showed fire and passion which is sadly lacking at SMU

[SoCal_Pony]

Great Post HP Dad.

[GiddyUp]

Coach Mason was by our place the other day finally and was asking about juniors. He said they were trying to do a better job here in the metroplex.

yay

[ontheedgeofmyseat]

Stallion....love you like a brother, but jeeezz..need to read your post 2 - 3 x to comp...HA! I KNOW you were NOT an english major at SMU

[Dwan]

I dont agree about UCLA showing a passion.

To credit the success of how they recruited as something that has anything to do with a grand vision by their AD or by the admin or even their alumni is revisionist history. Their AD botched the firing of Neuhiesel, had no plan other than to try to get Chris Peterson and was then left with a choice of June Jones, Mike Martz, Jay Gruden, or Jim Mora. Jim Mora was turned down for the DC job with the Denver Broncos. The reason a school like UCLA could not attract a better name is because of a lack of commitment from the school to pay for a coach, invest in facilities, and ease academic standards for athletes, among other things. UCLA even grossly underpays their Basketball Coach Ben Howland. Reason being, they feel they are an Ivy league school or Stanford and they dont want to get down and dirty and compete with the likes of Texas, USC, or Florida.

Mora got hired and put together the best recruiting staff in the Pac-12 if not the nation. That staff did an amazing job.

I think SMU is in deep trouble with June Jones and with the commitment from the school as well, but I certainly dont want the UCLA model at SMU.

[PonyKai]

I hate UCLA and hope they lose every game.

You should hate Mike Leach. He simply looked at June's recruits, picked the best ones for his offensive system, offered them, and beat out SMU for their LOI. He also took six. Half a starting offense worth.

Pirate: 6
June: 0

I think it would be fair to say that Klemm does an outstanding job of selling himself, as opposed to perhaps the university that employs him. Thus, when Klemm leaves a particular place, like, say, SMU, there isn't that strong commitment to the school they were sold on- more the guy who sold it. Maybe that's the norm, not sure.

[PonyKai]

There is literally nothing that isn't factually correct in my statement. In December, all six of those commitments were to SMU. In February, all six of those commitments were to Wazzu. The coaching staff didn't suddenly roll out of bed and say, gee, you know what? Don't want em. Mike Leach, guaranteed, saw what players June had recruited, in his neck of the woods, and went after them. They run similar systems, Pirate wants his players. I'm not spinning some fairy tale here. By the way, I will hold Lewis up. He was the first commitment, and actually stuck around for 11 months.

It simply is what it is, and what's done is done.

[PonyKai]

I did miscount completely though, that's my bad. Four, 5 if you included Mitchell which would be wrong as he never even got in to school here.

[Otto]

I was told that some of our coaches already have been visiting schools to see juniors.