'13 FL CB MacKensie Alexander (Clemson Verbal)

[yankeeND]

Still just as likely ND goes 8-4 or 9-3. We're not out of the woods, just starting to enter it.

Yeah we have a long ways to go for sure. It's been a great start but things can spiral out of control quickly. We will see what Kelly has up his sleeve and if we are for real or not. Plenty of tests on this schedule!

 

[Irish#1]

Here is what I don't understand about these kids...

Don't they connect the dots that if they commit to a school it helps their school get better players, which helps them as prospects down the road?

They're 17 & 18 year old kids.

 

[irishff1014]

Some of these recruits are good young men but are just scared to be to far away from home. Its really not a negative thing at all.

 

[jason_h537]

Here is what I don't understand about these kids...

Don't they connect the dots that if they commit to a school it helps their school get better players, which helps them as prospects down the road?

Exactly they should just commit to schools before they are sure. What bad has come from decommitting?

 

[NDRulez]

The institution gets jerked around & can be left short handed at the end of the day....remember when ND lost 2 committs on LOI day, & it also shows poor charachter on the athletes part IMO. This is one of the biggest decisions of their life....take time & figure it out 100%, make your decision & stick with it.

 

[HereComeTheIrish]

The institution gets jerked around & can be left short handed at the end of the day....remember when ND lost 2 committs on LOI day, & it also shows poor charachter on the athletes part IMO. This is one of the biggest decisions of their life....take time & figure it out 100%, make your decision & stick with it.

I'm not a criminal profiler or someone trained to read between the lines, but I think he meant that in a sarcastic manner. Call me crazy...

 

[jason_h537]

I'm not a criminal profiler or someone trained to read between the lines, but I think he meant that in a sarcastic manner. Call me crazy...

In fairness. It was his first post.

 

[HereComeTheIrish]

In fairness. It was his first post.

I had a first post once.

 

[GBdomer]

I had a first post once.

Lots of tension on the board tonight.

 

[woolybug25]

I had a first post once.

I think we would all like to forget about that day...

 

[jason_h537]

I had a first post once.

HCTI when he first posted

HCTI Today

IE is a hell of a drug

 

[irishog77]

I think we would all like to forget about that day...

Ahhh, remember when....

-HCTI's mullett was just a rat tail
-Old Man Mike was just, "Mike"
-Philly, that arrow dude, and that St Louis kid were being weened off the teet
-dshans could still get it up without a pill

Those were the days, Wooly. Those were the days.

 

[HereComeTheIrish]

HCTI when he first posted

HCTI Today

IE is a hell of a drug

I was young.....and I needed the money.

 

[Grahambo]

This thread:

 

[stlnd01]

Some of these recruits are good young men but are just scared to be to far away from home. Its really not a negative thing at all.

And it goes both ways. We've got Jaylon Smith because he wants to stay close to home.

 

[greyhammer90]

And it goes both ways. We've got Jaylon Smith because he wants to stay close to home.

 

[anarin]

This thread:

haha! get on it!

 

[Domina Nostra]

I feel like there is pretty much no way we get him because of the amount of spots we have available. We have other high quality CBs on the board, and we would be remiss to pass them up on the roll of a dice at a position of such need.

I know there are good arguments on the other side, but this is where the whole "I'm going through my process no matter what" shtick just seems silly to me. What do you do if you get to the end of your process and the spot got taken? If that is a chance you just have to take, well then why not take a chance and commit early? Do you really think you get a realistic view of a team from the wining and dining of an official visit? You can't simulate how long-distance sporadic relationships are going to develop over the course of 4 years, during a few fall visits.

I'm firmly in the Elmer camp. On the other hand, I guess some other schools are a little less scrupulous thatn we are about finding a spot, so maybe this is just not an issue if you are looking to play in the SEC.

 

[DomeLover3]

Uh, Elmer is so unique.

He knew from the beginning where he wanted to go to college. Not a lot of young high school people know that early in the process.

Mackenzie is such an elite talent that he can wait until NSD and almost any program would make room for him/hold room for him in their class.

It benefits elite players in no way to commit early. People who know what school they want or like a school and are afraid the coaches like other prospects better commit early to hold their spot.

Its almost always preferable to wait until closer to NSD for these kids

 

[Domina Nostra]

Uh, Elmer is so unique.

He knew from the beginning where he wanted to go to college. Not a lot of young high school people know that early in the process.

Mackenzie is such an elite talent that he can wait until NSD and almost any program would make room for him/hold room for him in their class.

It benefits elite players in no way to commit early. People who know what school they want or like a school and are afraid the coaches like other prospects better commit early to hold their spot.

Its almost always preferable to wait until closer to NSD for these kids

1) Elmer is becoming less of an exception, and more kids are comitting before their senior year- we had, what, 18? Its true that a lot of kids don't know where they want to go at this point- that's my point: they need to start and end "the process" earlier. Its a numbers game and a process is only good insofar as it achieves the best result.
2) This year, USC, Michigan, and ND will likely have to turn kids away. Those are 3 pretty attractive schools. I am not sure if the process is so great if it closes those doors even if the FSUs, and Alabama's of the world can always squeeze you in. Frankly, the fact that those schools will have a spot for you no matter what should send up a red flag about those schools.
3) It benefits the kid, obviously, by assuring him a spot. But it also makes the class more attractive to other recruits (as I said above). Michigan sure proved that this off-season. Better recruits helps achieve better results which gets you better exposure. You don't think Michigan's QB recruit this year benefitted himself by energizing that recruiting class?
4) Why is it almost always preferable? What do they get? More exposure from the 1% of us fans who care about this stuff? Meanwhile, if they are good no one will care if they were a 5 star who signed on signing day or not. Not to mention that many of them become big time primadonnas in the process and pay for that over the next few years.

 

[Buster Bluth]

It benefits elite players in no way to commit early. People who know what school they want or like a school and are afraid the coaches like other prospects better commit early to hold their spot.

Its almost always preferable to wait until closer to NSD for these kids

Not so true, committing early allows momentum to build and when they recruit it makes their class--and team--better. Surely, an incentive, no?

 

[PANDFAN]

Not so true, committing early allows momentum to build and when they recruit it makes their class--and team--better. Surely, an incentive, no?

exactly! look at the top schools thus far...michigan/usc/ND etc...once that ship started getting filled up they were jumping on board...its how texas has always done it...of course there will always be some of the top guys who don't commit until the end because of loving the attention but this is the best way to get the elite guys to jump on board early

 

[NewBrunswickIrish]

Why not go through with the process though? He's only visited two schools and wants to make sure he's going where he fits best. Do we want all the kids to commit early to the schools they like at the beginning of the process? If that were the case than a player like Mahone would be at Penn State because he didn't want to take visits to ND and play out the process. It seems hypocritical that people don't want players to play out the process when ND is on top and the opposite when they aren't. Maybe the kid doesn't care about what other kids are going to the school and just wants to find a place that they are sure they can and will enjoy for 3-5 years. Surprisingly not all kids have winning or being a good team as the number 1 priority. We all applaud Nix for saying he would choose his degree over football so why not applaud these kids for taking their time and figuring out where they can best succeed?

I would rather never have the kid than have him decommit at the end of the process or transfer a year or two in because they committed early and didn't find where they fit best.

 

[ndfi78]

You are suprised when fans are irrational about their team?

 

[Domina Nostra]

We all applaud Nix for saying he would choose his degree over football so why not applaud these kids for taking their time and figuring out where they can best succeed?

I guess I don't think that there is any particular virtue in taking one's time for the sake of taking one's time. It's a balancing act. You need enough information to make an informed decision, but you also have to embrace the fact that a ton of things could change overnight (think Harbaugh leaving Stanford, Petrino being fired, etc.) and that certain options may not be available at a later date.

There is also something to be said for getting talked out of the obvious by smooth salesman. Everyone knows Kiffin is shady, but if you sit down and talk with him and Haden a few times, you might suddenly think that they are just misunderstood. Everyone seems great when they are on their best behavior and trying to sell you something.

But I never said Alexander had to end up at ND. I just said I am not a fan of the "process," when it means taking the maximum amount of time available (all 5 visits, then making the decision on NSD). It seems arbitrary and unnecessary to me.

I am not getting on anyone for doing it, either. I just think that the "take your time and let the process play itself out" advice sounds better than it really is. If that is what a kid wants to do, that's his business. It's just not what I would do.

 

[Jebediah Springfield]

Didn't Manti make his decision the morning of NSD?

 

[General Colon Bowel]

He can choose whenever he wants, as long as he picks ND

 

[aubeirish]

Didn't Manti make his decision the morning of NSD?

He sure did. Though it is not that long ago, recruiting has changed a lot since.

 

[PraetorianND]

He sure did. Though it is not that long ago, recruiting has changed a lot since.

Good thing he waited otherwise he would have been a Trojan....

 

[Emcee77]

I think it's in everyone's best interest to commit as soon as you are sure. The trouble is that there are two kinds of kids who don't:
1) kids who are never sure, and will wait till the absolute last moment to decide because they can't make up their minds. I empathize with these kids. It's a huge decision, one of the biggest you'll make in your entire life, and I totally get why you might agonize over it.
2) kids who like the attention and want to prolong the process rather than get back to normal life. Kids in this category are frustrating, but what can you do. I guess you can try to recruit around them, but its tough when you have elite talents who you really need who fit into that category.

I don't know whether Mackenzie is a category 1 kid or a category 2 kid. The stuff Sapp and Wiltfong say about him makes me think he is in category 1 (wants to attend ND but can't quite get used to the idea of being so far from home), but the stuff Mackenzie himself says make me wonder if he isn't in category 2 (he seems to take pleasure in playing things close to the vest and being a mysterious recruit).