There is an interesting article on SI.com as pointed out on this Penn State Football blog post that looks back at the performance of 2007 recruiting classes based on their on-field performance. While this is still subjective, there's no doubt is much more solid of an evaluation than the Rivals and Scout rankings that come out immediately after signing classes are inked.
For recruiting geeks who like to follow star ratings and rankings, its probably some cold water in the face. Players don't always pan out. But most Hokie fans know this by now, and this article supports the theory that most of us have believe for a long time that either A) Frank Beamer and company do more with less or B) Rivals and Scout don't particularly rank VT classes accurately.
Personally, I think its the Hokie coaching staff knowing what they need and the type of players fit their system better than others. Other staffs that turnover more often have to rely on 'getting the best players', whereas I believe the Hokies can focus more on 'getting the right players'.
What say you?
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{ 1 comment… read it below or add one }
I think there’s three things that contribute to this.
1st) Comparing 5 star recruits to 3 star recruits isn’t a fair evaluation coming out of high school. Most 5 star kids are immediately college ready as far as their physical stature goes. Most 3 star kids are those who need a few years to develop. The problem with this ranking system is that it doesn’t predict anything, it just states who’s better right now. Sure that 5 star kid is going to be good, but who is going to be better in four years? Most of the time, it’s not going to be the 5 star kid.
2nd) You hit it with Frank Beamer taking the kids that fit their system. In the past, VT normally took talented kids but ones who had to develop and were normally passed over by the elite schools. That’s changed recently and will be interesting to see how these VT teams matchup with the one’s from the late 90′s to early 00′s.
3rd) This area is massively underrated as far as the talent it produces. This also ties into number 1 as a lot of the kids who come out of VA aren’t immediately college ready but they are every bit as talented as any other players in the nation.