I'm mixed on this - not so much on Stutzman, but on the whole "recruiting freshmen and sophomores" phenom which we are starting to see more and more. Yes, it builds loyalty to the recruit by starting early, but when I was 16, I had no idea what I was going to do the following weekend, let alone two years out.
Back to Stutzman. He has 3 years left of high school ball. In another article, he has already indicated he wants to serve a church mission, so that's another 2 years. Throw in a redshirt year, and this kid won't see time in an actual game until 2017! Honestly, how can you plan that far out? Needs change. Coaching staffs change. Heck, players change.
No doubt it strikes me a bit funny as well. I mean, chances are that Stutzman (any anyone else in his shoes - recruited so young) - even if they do "commit" somewhere early, they have a great chance of changing their mind.
You are spot on about the difficulty (or futility, depending on how you want to look at it) of projecting things in 2017. I guess the only thing these coaches figure is that if a guy is talented enough, he will have a role no matter the makeup of the team.
What colleges need to know is that the top talent is being recruited this young. TJ Haws committed to BYU and he is Stutzmans age. Several top programs - Butler- Kentucky- even Duke- are getting rosters full already of 2014 and 2015 players. Good coaches know how to scout the bodies and athletesim that early. Not all work out, but most do. For big sky teams, the better ones will recruit younger. Kudos to Weber State. Kids have egos, and they go where they are wanted, and the earlier the better. Only problem for the big Sky with Stutzman out of Idaho Falls Idaho is he already holds a PAC 12 offer- he is that good. Wonder if he will choose to play close to home with the Big Sky. Time will tell, but kudos for a big sky team following the lead of some of the top programs in the country and NOT waiting til a kid is a senior. Those programs pick up the crumbs of what is left out there and often there record shows it.
That is true... heck, a good example would be Joel Bolomboy, who recently committed to Weber State. They started recruiting him in his sophomore year, before everyone else, and that was a huge factor (according to him) in why he is coming to Weber. Whether we like it or not, that is really the way college basketball works these days.
I'm mixed on this - not so much on Stutzman, but on the whole "recruiting freshmen and sophomores" phenom which we are starting to see more and more. Yes, it builds loyalty to the recruit by starting early, but when I was 16, I had no idea what I was going to do the following weekend, let alone two years out.
ReplyDeleteBack to Stutzman. He has 3 years left of high school ball. In another article, he has already indicated he wants to serve a church mission, so that's another 2 years. Throw in a redshirt year, and this kid won't see time in an actual game until 2017! Honestly, how can you plan that far out? Needs change. Coaching staffs change. Heck, players change.
It will be interesting to watch it play out.
No doubt it strikes me a bit funny as well. I mean, chances are that Stutzman (any anyone else in his shoes - recruited so young) - even if they do "commit" somewhere early, they have a great chance of changing their mind.
ReplyDeleteYou are spot on about the difficulty (or futility, depending on how you want to look at it) of projecting things in 2017. I guess the only thing these coaches figure is that if a guy is talented enough, he will have a role no matter the makeup of the team.
Throw in the twist that a player can be re-recruited one year into his mission, and then things start to get interesting for sure.
ReplyDeleteWhat colleges need to know is that the top talent is being recruited this young. TJ Haws committed to BYU and he is Stutzmans age. Several top programs - Butler- Kentucky- even Duke- are getting rosters full already of 2014 and 2015 players. Good coaches know how to scout the bodies and athletesim that early. Not all work out, but most do. For big sky teams, the better ones will recruit younger. Kudos to Weber State. Kids have egos, and they go where they are wanted, and the earlier the better.
ReplyDeleteOnly problem for the big Sky with Stutzman out of Idaho Falls Idaho is he already holds a PAC 12 offer- he is that good. Wonder if he will choose to play close to home with the Big Sky. Time will tell, but kudos for a big sky team following the lead of some of the top programs in the country and NOT waiting til a kid is a senior. Those programs pick up the crumbs of what is left out there and often there record shows it.
That is true... heck, a good example would be Joel Bolomboy, who recently committed to Weber State. They started recruiting him in his sophomore year, before everyone else, and that was a huge factor (according to him) in why he is coming to Weber. Whether we like it or not, that is really the way college basketball works these days.
ReplyDelete