I agree, there's too much there to say it's a lost cause or they are gone. I'll say Im not as confident as before but there are some facts that should give us some confidence. I have a rather long post that I'm not currently able to post but I think there is se really bad info out there that is causing some to believe this is over.
I don't know what bad information you're referring to, so I'll defer to you on that.
Kelly's closing history is unfortunately not stellar. Even when he signs a highly rated recruit in January or later, the results aren't pretty.
(Numbers per Rivals)
2010
Luke Massa verbal 1/31/10 3-star
Derek Roback verbal 1/31/10 3-star
Danny Spond verbal 2/1/10 4-star
Bruce Heggie verbal 2/3/10 2-star
Matt James verbal 2/3/10 4-star (RIP – his story still makes me sad)
Kona Schwenke verbal 2/3/10 3-star
2011
Nick Martin verbal 1/11/11 3-star
Ishaq Williams verbal 1/14/11 5-star
Chase Hounshell verbal 1/17/11 3-star
Aaron Lynch verbal 1/18/11 4-star
Stephon Tuitt verbal 1/19/11 5-star
Troy Niklas verbal 2/2/11 4-star
2012
Elijah Shumate verbal 1/9/12 4-star
Gunner Kiel verbal/enrolled 1/17/12 5-star
Davonte Neal verbal 2/21/12 4-star
2013
Tarean Folston verbal 1/2/13 4-star
Max Redfield verbal 1/4/13 5-star
Durham Smythe verbal 1/27/13 3-star
Eddie Vanderdoes verbal 2/4/13 5-star
2014
Nyles Morgan verbal 1/4/14 4-star
Pete Mokwuah verbal 1/24/14 3-star
Daniel Cage verbal 2/5/14 3-star
After January total # of verbal/signings/enrollees - 22
2 or 3-stars = 9/22
4 star = 6/22
5 star = 5/22
Looks pretty good right? 11/22 are rated 4 or 5 star. More on that later.
You can write off 2010 since he only had so much time to put together a “finish” to that class, but it is his class. Probably not fair to include 2014 since they only have 1 season of playing time to judge them by. But I’ll include both so no one thinks I’m skewing the numbers.
January signees for the 2010-2014 classes
6/21 transferred
2/21 that played out their eligibility had great careers
3/21 that stayed on the team never played meaningful minutes or at all
2/21 had a good career but left early for the NFL
1/21 got kicked out
7/21 who are still on the team could have good careers
(I wasn't sure how to include Matt James, so I left him out of these numbers. It was tragic, not anyone's fault.)
Of the 11 4 or 5 star players Kelly has signed in January, 9 of them ranked as one of the top 5 members of that ND class:
2010 – 1/6 was in the top 5 for that class (Matt James)
2011 – 3/6 … (Williams, Lynch, Tuitt)
2012 – 2/3 … (Kiel, Neal)
2013 – 2/4 … (Folston, Vanderdoes)
2014 – 1/3 … (Morgan)
When Kelly signed players in January (9) that ended up being one of the top 5 members of that class:
1/8 had a great career (Tuitt)
4/8 transferred (Kiel, Neal, Lynch, Vanderdoes)
1/8 got kicked out (Williams)
2/8 have a chance to have a good career (Redfield, Morgan)
(again, didn't include Matt)
If past precedent means anything (maybe it doesn't), it is possible but unlikely that Kelly will sign
more than 2 players who would be ranked in the top 5 of the class. It is 50/50 that he could sign 2. Both Alize and Ronald would be in the top 5 of the 2015 class. Even if they both do sign, it is slightly less 50/50 that both of them turn out to have great careers. (Equ StBrown would rank as #6 (per 24/7))
High ranked January signees don’t choose Kelly, transfer, or they don’t live up to their high ranking.