Maryland Recruiting Results

[gRUntWork]

I didn't really see anything posted on this, and it is a slow news day, and I was interested to see how Maryland did with their recruiting. There are obviously lots of parallels between Rutgers and Maryland: new coaches where were defensive coordinators at B1G programs, both teams new to the B1G, and both had similar records this past season, both hired coaches late in the recruiting season.

Maryland picked up 23 commits, and their class was ranked:

• 247sports.com: No. 42
• Rivals.com: No. 40
• Scout.com: No. 54
• ESPN: No. 43
• 7th in the Big 10 (according to 247)

Breakdown:
Quarterback: 2
Running back: 3
Wide receiver: 2
Tight end: 1
Offensive line: 4
Defensive line: 2
Linebacker: 2
Defensive back: 6
Punter: 1
Total offense: 12
Total defense: 10
Total special teams: 1
Total: 23
(sources: http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/...cc-sp-terps-recruiting-numbers-0204-story.htm, http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/...national-signing-day-0204-20160203-story.html )

They lost their share of recruits, most notably Haskins and 4 star WR Trevon Diggs, little brother to Stefon, but they do a better job of keeping in-state talent and signed 4 4-star recruits. (Perhaps Maryland is not as self-hating as New Jersey.)

I'm not saying Durkin is better than Ash at recruiting (it's more like Edsall was better than Flood at recruiting), it's just that Durkin was able to hold on to his class better. I think Ash is pushing the culture change more than Durkin, which scared some commits off...

Thoughts?

 

[rulaw87]

Culture change and I think Ash was seriously hampered by the fact that our program was a dumpster fire all of last season which probably scared off alot of kids and their parents. Maryland did not have anything comparable going on in their program. Hell, I don't know if any other program had the toxic cocktail of circumstances we did last year.

 

[RULoyal]

Culture change and I think Ash was seriously hampered by the fact that our program was a dumpster fire all of last season which probably scared off alot of kids and their parents. Maryland did not have anything comparable going on in their program. Hell, I don't know if any other program had the toxic cocktail of circumstances we did last year.

Throw the parallels out.

 

[AreYouNUTS]

He did do a good job, no doubt, but (again) let's take into account:

- The Terps class was once ranked in the upper 20's when Durkin was hired. IIRC 29th.

- while both teams stunk it up on the field, we lost to them, and we also dealt with a myriad of off-the-field issues so, IMHO, no "parallel" here

- agree, the "culture change" and the drastic change on O, no doubt, scared some kids away; word is a couple of offers may have been "pulled" during the last recruiting weekend as well, due to discipline/character issues of some sort or another

- Flood did a lot more damage, especially in the NJ recruiting circles, than some here want to admit. Ash has a lot of "mending" to do, HOWEVER, all signs are pointing upward at this time.

- by "average star rating" our class comes in 62nd on Rivals (15 classes are above us, with lower averages, but have bigger classes) and Lemming has us at 59th

Not making excuses - this class is what it is - just not judging Ash on this class nor would I judge Durkin on The Terps class. 2017 is where both get judged but, of course, some will disagree.

 

[NickyNewark51]

Culture change and I think Ash was seriously hampered by the fact that our program was a dumpster fire all of last season which probably scared off alot of kids and their parents. Maryland did not have anything comparable going on in their program. Hell, I don't know if any other program had the toxic cocktail of circumstances we did last year.

Damn UMd FB was in revolt almost when RE lost some players refused to play with/for him...until he was forced to take Locksley on staff by the AD...saved his job temporarily..

 

[NewJerseyHawk]

I think our "style" change from Pro style to spread had more of an impact on recruiting than the staff changes at MD or RU.....

 

[studed]

I didn't really see anything posted on this, and it is a slow news day, and I was interested to see how Maryland did with their recruiting. There are obviously lots of parallels between Rutgers and Maryland: new coaches where were defensive coordinators at B1G programs, both teams new to the B1G, and both had similar records this past season, both hired coaches late in the recruiting season.

Maryland picked up 23 commits, and their class was ranked:

• 247sports.com: No. 42
• Rivals.com: No. 40
• Scout.com: No. 54
• ESPN: No. 43
• 7th in the Big 10 (according to 247)

Breakdown:
Quarterback: 2
Running back: 3
Wide receiver: 2
Tight end: 1
Offensive line: 4
Defensive line: 2
Linebacker: 2
Defensive back: 6
Punter: 1
Total offense: 12
Total defense: 10
Total special teams: 1
Total: 23
(sources: http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/...cc-sp-terps-recruiting-numbers-0204-story.htm, http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/...national-signing-day-0204-20160203-story.html )

They lost their share of recruits, most notably Haskins and 4 star WR Trevon Diggs, little brother to Stefon, but they do a better job of keeping in-state talent and signed 4 4-star recruits. (Perhaps Maryland is not as self-hating as New Jersey.)

I'm not saying Durkin is better than Ash at recruiting (it's more like Edsall was better than Flood at recruiting), it's just that Durkin was able to hold on to his class better. I think Ash is pushing the culture change more than Durkin, which scared some commits off...

Thoughts?

the huge difference was as soon as durkin got the job he left for maryland. ash stayed at osu and coached the bowl game. that really put ash in a bad spot with recruiting.

 

[RULoyal]

the huge difference was as soon as durkin got the job he left for maryland. ash stayed at osu and coached the bowl game. that really put ash in a bad spot with recruiting.

A difference...yes....huge.....no

 

[RUInsanity]

the huge difference was as soon as durkin got the job he left for maryland. ash stayed at osu and coached the bowl game. that really put ash in a bad spot with recruiting.

The board must be losing it's edge. It took an entire 6 replies in this thread to mention Ash staying at OSU for the bowl game. Comparisons to Terry Shea are sure to follow.

 

[BlockR]

this Maryland and DJ Durkin point brings up a a valid question and curious to review the results and ask what Durkin did to have a clearly better recruiting class then Ash and Company? . First,Durkin started on the job after being hired and was in Fla recruiting on Dec 9th,Ash and company didnt start full time together as a staff till after OSU bowl game. Maryland did lose some name recruits but still managed to hold onto and gain four stars and three star recruits. Ash had 9 decomitts after he signed on as Coach. and Rutgers had 14 total decommits.The only Ash recruit that he got a verbal and left was Idirizi.
The big question after reviewing the Maryland recruiting results and overall star ranking average vrs RU was did the added time Durkin spent himself recruiting early in December and then having a staff together sooner allow Maryland to sign new solid recruits and retain higher ranked recruits due to Durkin starting when he was hired? And was the Ash extra time at OSU a mistake for recruiting and staff logistics in hind sight due to the 'dumpster fire' status the RU football program was left? ..

 

[jellyman]

this Maryland and DJ Durkin point brings up a a valid question and curious to review the results and ask what Durkin did to have a clearly better recruiting class then Ash and Company? . First,Durkin started on the job after being hired and was in Fla recruiting on Dec 9th,Ash and company didnt start full time together as a staff till after OSU bowl game. Maryland did lose some name recruits but still managed to hold onto and gain four stars and three star recruits. Ash had 9 decomitts after he signed on as Coach. and Rutgers had 14 total decommits.The only Ash recruit that he got a verbal and left was Idirizi.
The big question after reviewing the Maryland recruiting results and overall star ranking average vrs RU was did the added time Durkin spent himself recruiting early in December and then having a staff together sooner allow Maryland to sign new solid recruits and retain higher ranked recruits due to Durkin starting when he was hired? And was the Ash extra time at OSU a mistake for recruiting and staff logistics in hind sight due to the 'dumpster fire' status the RU football program was left? ..

Not correct in a lot of details and inferences/conclusions.

First, and foremost, Ash was only officially hired just 6 days prior to the dead period starting. He literally only had a few days to actually visit players. Durkin was hired 1 week earlier, so had more time to actually visit players - both current commits and new possible recruits. And Ash DID visit players, with a focus on seeing the potential early entrance recruits 1st, to make sure they actually entered RU: Pollock, Sneed and Manning. And he hired Okruch in time for Okruch to visit Barbir before the dead period. I believe Okruch was also able to visit Russo prior to the dead period. So your inference that Ash's delay in starting full time at RU put him at a disadvantage relative to what Durkin was able to do in terms of seeing players in person is basically false.

Second, I do not believe RU had 14 total decommits. Not even if you count Pridgeon (who was committed for less than 12 hours). I suppose I could be wrong about that, but that seems really high. I am not even sure RU had 9 decommits after Ash was hired. Here are the decommits I count after Ash was hired: Russo, Rene, Barbir, Mack, Wright, Campbell, Idrizzi for sure. Reynolds decommitted before Ash was hired. Campbell did decommit after Ash was hired, but while he was on a visit to Pitt the weekend of December 12th - before he ever met with Ash ... and was quoted that though he was committed to RU, he had been considering Pitt all along anyway, and with all that was going on with RU, his commitment to Pitt was much easier. Elijah Johnson was NOT a decommit, but had the offer withdrawn, by all accounts. Bah decommitted ... but then recommitted after RU re-offered. So I count 7 (or 8 - but then the 8th recommitted) decommits after Ash was hired - but I guess I could be missing a couple.

The MAIN point: Ash's delay in pulling together a full staff was not a major impediment, since he only had a few days before the dead period anyway, while Durkin had a full 2 weeks prior to the dead period.

 

[vascosg]

the huge difference was as soon as durkin got the job he left for maryland. ash stayed at osu and coached the bowl game. that really put ash in a bad spot with recruiting.

do you think the recruits had caller Id and knew he was calling them form Ohio rather than NJ?

 

[PaKnight]

A difference...yes....huge.....no

tiny

 

[rutgersdave]

Maryland players value Maryland University than Nj players value Rutgers especially after Flood's tenure. Maryland even during Edsall tenure was able to get 4 star recruits every year. After Schiano, we got 1 4 star recruit and he was out of state.

People expect Ash to turn it around in a couple weeks after Flood's recruiting. I don't know what Flood actually did to turn off NJ recruits but he did and it's obvious. Many of the recruits that de-committed were from Brooklyn who were recruited late, Jan and Feb, and they started thinking about their options. Remember, most Flood years had more than any de- commits than other schools.

 

[FanuSanu52]

I can't believe people are still butthurt about Ash coaching the bowl game. LET. IT. GO.

No proof that it had an iota of impact, and Maryland's class was always better than ours, Flood v Edsall or Ash v Durkin.

 

[ru66]

don't the mere number of recruits affect your rating--ash was quoted as saying he had 22 spots he could have filled but held back on 5 or 6 by choice

 

[AreYouNUTS]

don't the mere number of recruits affect your rating--ash was quoted as saying he had 22 spots he could have filled but held back on 5 or 6 by choice

Yes, which is why I noted the fact that there are 15 teams ranked ahead of us, by Rivals, who have LOWER "average star" ratings.

 

[BlockR]

Not correct in a lot of details and inferences/conclusions.

First, and foremost, Ash was only officially hired just 6 days prior to the dead period starting. He literally only had a few days to actually visit players. Durkin was hired 1 week earlier, so had more time to actually visit players - both current commits and new possible recruits. And Ash DID visit players, with a focus on seeing the potential early entrance recruits 1st, to make sure they actually entered RU: Pollock, Sneed and Manning. And he hired Okruch in time for Okruch to visit Barbir before the dead period. I believe Okruch was also able to visit Russo prior to the dead period. So your inference that Ash's delay in starting full time at RU put him at a disadvantage relative to what Durkin was able to do in terms of seeing players in person is basically false.

Second, I do not believe RU had 14 total decommits. Not even if you count Pridgeon (who was committed for less than 12 hours). I suppose I could be wrong about that, but that seems really high. I am not even sure RU had 9 decommits after Ash was hired. Here are the decommits I count after Ash was hired: Russo, Rene, Barbir, Mack, Wright, Campbell, Idrizzi for sure. Reynolds decommitted before Ash was hired. Campbell did decommit after Ash was hired, but while he was on a visit to Pitt the weekend of December 12th - before he ever met with Ash ... and was quoted that though he was committed to RU, he had been considering Pitt all along anyway, and with all that was going on with RU, his commitment to Pitt was much easier. Elijah Johnson was NOT a decommit, but had the offer withdrawn, by all accounts. Bah decommitted ... but then recommitted after RU re-offered. So I count 7 (or 8 - but then the 8th recommitted) decommits after Ash was hired - but I guess I could be missing a couple.

The MAIN point: Ash's delay in pulling together a full staff was not a major impediment, since he only had a few days before the dead period anyway, while Durkin had a full 2 weeks prior to the dead period.

Field,Pridgedon,hewitt,reynolds,oliver,campbell,morgan,russo,rene,barbir,Idirizzi,johnson,wright,mack..the #14..

 

[jellyman]

Field,Pridgedon,hewitt,reynolds,oliver,campbell,morgan,russo,rene,barbir,Idirizzi,johnson,wright,mack..the #14..

I did forget about Hewitt ... though that was well before Ash was hired.

Field was a mutual decision - not really a decommitt - also before Ash.

Oliver decommitted prior to Ash being hired as well.

So, there are 14 "decommits" ... though I would not really include Pridgeon, whose commitment was strange and lasted less than 24 hours I think ... maybe less than 12 hours. Also, Field and Johnson were not really decommits, but RU parting ways ... so really 11, not 14.

Of those 14, Fields, Pridgeon, Hewitt, Reynolds, Oliver were before the Ash hiring. That would leave 9 others who decommitted after Ash was hired - but it was really 8, since Johnson had his offer withdrawn, more than a decommitt. Campbell DID decommitt after Ash was hired, but based on the timing he was gone, regardless ... and had only not decommittted long before Ash was hired because he had not yet visited Pitt - he committed to Pitt while on his OV on December 13,.

And Bah did decommit - before being reoffered and recommitting.

The big losses, in my opinion, were Barbir, Rene, Mack and Wright. The others who decommitted after Ash was hired are all relatively easily replaceable - and were: Russo with Oden, Morgan with several better OL prospects, Idirizzi with no one - but it is not like he was that highly rated, Johnson with apparent better personality/character fits.

Regardless, the MAIN point of my post is that Ash coaching the OSU bowl game had zero or little impact on recruiting, mainly due to the dead period starting just 6 days after his hiring. Which continues to be un-refuted - and actually CANNOT be refuted. Because it is simply true.

 

[ArminRU]

I can't believe people are still trying to say Ash coaching the bowl game hurt

Also, most of the decommits under Ash were really decomitted well before Ash arrived, just not announced. Then you have the offense change for Russo. Maryland had some coaches stay and was in much better position than us....they had a lot of recruiting momentum. And their class still fell apart.

 

[FELONIOUSMONK]

grunt no state is as self hating as ours.

 

[WhoRU?]

A more telling measure might be to look at how the classes for each school changed after the coaching switch. Each program gained and lost a few guys. Were the new coaches able to improve the classes from the previous regime? Did they keep it the same? Did it decline? Yes, the new Maryland coach had more time, and it needs to be considered too. This presupposes that you buy into the ranking of recruits (but this is a rivals forum, so what the heck).

 

[seansherm]

I think the key point in UMD's recruiting, for this year only, is that the staff Durkin hired consisted of a lot of guys who were probably recruiting the DMV area in their prior positions, so prior relationships may have been established with many recruits. London at UVA, ect.

 

[yesrutgers01]

I just cant find anyway to remotely consider Pridgedon a decommit, that is just silly. It is no different then a kid at an icecream shop that says- I want chocolate only to change his mind before it is even scooped and changes to strawberry instead.
Idrizzy- f-him. he walked out with the chocolate, spit on it and then came back in and wanted to return it.
Field- I love the kid and his family but that was very mutual. And a few others- Ash did it much classier the Jim H did...thanks but no thanks.

Anyway- comparing the two...Coaching OSU in the bowl had zero to do with it. In some ways it was positive as much as some of you think it was negative. I believe he spoke to all of our current commits in that 6 day time frame and visited quite a few. The extra week Durkin had was huge. Md, also did not have the same hurdles Ash had to over come.

Rankings are also so flawed that ave star ranking is overruled but numbers. That just seems so out of sorts to me.

 

[Caliknight]

Durkin dropped the ball. Their class was ranked much higher before his arrival.

 

[jorand]

Durkin dropped the ball. Their class was ranked much higher before his arrival.

I don't think Durkin "dropped the ball" per se.

It's typical to lose some guys during a coaching change. It is what it is.

Basically he lost Haskins & Jones and added 3 four stars (Davis, Merritt & McLean).

 

[NickyNewark51]

I think the key point in UMD's recruiting, for this year only, is that the staff Durkin hired consisted of a lot of guys who were probably recruiting the DMV area in their prior positions, so prior relationships may have been established with many recruits. London at UVA, ect.

the staff they hired was ''ready made'' for recruiting ours was hired for coaching and youthful exuberance...we'll get a better handle next class..

 

[Caliknight]

Another point is those guys looked to flip kids from the schools they left. I guess that happens when you get fired.

Not saying Ash would have been able to, but he made it clear he wasn't going to try and poach OSU kids.

Given he left on good terms and wasn't fired, I have no problem with that.

 

[NickyNewark51]

Maryland players value Maryland University than Nj players value Rutgers especially after Flood's tenure. Maryland even during Edsall tenure was able to get 4 star recruits every year. After Schiano, we got 1 4 star recruit and he was out of state.

People expect Ash to turn it around in a couple weeks after Flood's recruiting. I don't know what Flood actually did to turn off NJ recruits but he did and it's obvious. Many of the recruits that de-committed were from Brooklyn who were recruited late, Jan and Feb, and they started thinking about their options. Remember, most Flood years had more than any de- commits than other schools.

No Edsall couldn't get a 4 star if his life depended on it....ask UConn..thats why his job was on the line during the team revolt and he had Mike Locksley jammed down his throat or he was done 2 yrs ago...Locks is an amazing recruiter...bad coach...sorta like Jeff Hafley..