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How Far Are You Willing to Go...?

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How Far Are You Willing To Go...?

  • I'd do it just like JT (soft sell approach)

    Votes: 38 50.0%

  • Play fair, but push harder (hard sell approach)

    Votes: 34 44.7%

  • Make false promises to recruits ("Sure you can play safety, Prescott....")

    Votes: 2 2.6%

  • Negatively recruit the competition (the Larry Johnson, Sr. specialty)

    Votes: 4 5.3%

  • Make illegal contact with recruits ("Hey, Dwayne, this is Pete calling....")

    Votes: 2 2.6%

  • A few little extras (hats, jerseys, gym bags - who's gonna notice?)

    Votes: 4 5.3%

  • Illegal employment opportunities ("Did Rhett show up for work today...?")

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • The SEC approach (condos and Cadillacs)

    Votes: 5 6.6%
  • Total voters
    76
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LordJeffBuck

LordJeffBuck

Illuminatus Emeritus
Staff member
BP Recruiting Team
Every year, we hear the same old routine: "Tressel can't close! ... JT is a lazy recruiter! ... Ohio State doesn't show kids enough love! ... The Buckeyes don't push kids hard enough for a commitment! ... The "soft sell" approach just doesn't work for the blue chip prospects!"

What should JT & Co. do to remedy these perceived faults? In other words, how should the staff "push harder" to "sell" recruits and show them "love"?

On a related point, we all know, or at least strongly suspect, that "certain other programs" sometimes bend or even break the rules of recruiting. We also like to believe that the Ohio State staff doesn't engage in any shady recruiting practices. If bending or breaking the rules would lead to the Buckeyes being able to sign "better" recruits, would you be for it? If so, how far would you be willing to go?

The poll is multiple choice, and it is private for those of you who are embarrassed to say that you'd break the rules to get better recruits (we know that you're out there).
 
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I think they should drop somewhere around 21 million, cash money on the most kick-ass athletic facility in the country. Let's see them OOS recruits turn that down...

...(inaudible whispers)...huh...oh, o.k., then. I think Coach T's approach is fine as is.

Carry on. :osu:
 
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If you ain't cheatin' you ain't tryin', yeeeeeeeeeehawwwwww!!!! Bring on da ho's like in He Got Game!

Seriously, I think the staff should go for a bit more of a "hard sell" approach-nothing negative or illegal, but let the kids know in a firm way exactly what they will be missing by not signing at tOSU vs. another school, and give them some pressure if they are on the fence and it is clear they are a kid that that tactic might work with. Obviously there are differences in recruiting Joseph Barksdale or Ben Martin vs. recruiting Todd Denlinger or Danny McCarthy.
 
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I'd go 'soft sell' and would hardly consider any of the other options. Hard sell, maybe, I guess.... but on probably a recruit by recruit basis ("must haves")

Overall, I think kids will play harder for you once they are on Campus when they see you respect them and their decisions, and they don't feel like they were schnookered in to ending up under your direction. Furthermore, when you soft sell, the kid picks YOU and not you picking THEM, I think that can go a long way as well.

Ultimately, though, it's my opinion that if you're hard selling a kid to come to your school, you're doing so because you know he'd rather be elsewhere. If you're negatively recruiting, it's because you don't have pride in your own school to sell itslef... etc. In all these other options, you've got the makings of a potential malcontent, or at least a young man who feels betrayed.... especially when he doesn't get the starting WR job he was promised, and ends up taking reps at TE after flirting with Safety.
 
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Buckeyeskickbuttocks;889870; said:
I'd go 'soft sell' and would hardly consider any of the other options. Hard sell, maybe, I guess.... but on probably a recruit by recruit basis ("must haves")
Click to expand...

Ditto. Except replace "must haves" with "depending on the kid's personality".
 
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All I'm saying is this:

People kinda remember that Bear Bryant bought a few extra cars and employed a few mothers.

But he's also one of the coaching legends. He will be remembered for taking 'Bama football to new heights. And I dont think any 'Bama fans are going to give back all those wins and look at Bear Bryant with disgust because he committed some recruiting violations.

I say: Do whatever, but don't get caught.

It's nice to imagine that schools have great success recruiting with kind words and respect... but the fact is that I'd be willing to bet that 99% of schools commit violations, some larger and some smaller.

So as long as you don't get caught, go ahead and take it to the limit. I wouldn't feel bad and I wouldn't blame the coaches. It's what recruiting has become. All you have to do is stay on top of the game.
 
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Oneshot;889884; said:
All I'm saying is this:

I say: Do whatever, but don't get caught.

So as long as you don't get caught, go ahead and take it to the limit. I wouldn't feel bad and I wouldn't blame the coaches. It's what recruiting has become. All you have to do is stay on top of the game.
Click to expand...

Hmmmmm....do whatever: i.e., lie, cheat, slander, bribe, payoff, manipulate, intimidate, misrepresent, lack integrity, etc. etc.

Yeah, that's the ticket. JUST DON'T GET CAUGHT because that is worse than the crime itself.

Thanks, but no thanks. I'll stick with integrity, honesty, hard work, motivation and SUCCESS to get the job done.
 
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I respect and like the job Tress and Co. are doing. But I wouldn't hold back at pointing out the obvious. Michigan doesn't send you to the pros, Pete Carroll lies, Tennesse can't go much longer with out death penalty, Paterno died 3 years ago, it's really a puppet... etc. etc.
 
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Come on, do you really think it's that easy? Do you really believe that you can achieve elite status WITHOUT those sorts of games?

This doesn't apply just to football, it applies to everything.

What corporation went to the very top without bending a law? What president came to office without breaking the fundraising rules? What distributor didn't sell its product for a price half of his competitors because they were stolen?

Here's a tipoff: Do you think that when Rhett Bomar got caught with his hand in the cookie jar that he (and that one other guy who got caught) were the ONLY players on that team taking a little extra on the side?

No. The fact is that it happens at every single school, and only a handful of those people get caught.

I believe that some people have done a great job at keeping a 100% clean ship. But I can't expect it of everyone. And I don't.
 
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I witnessed mild cheating at ASU... but nothing "blu-chips" style. But I know Tennessee has been doing it pre-Fulmer... aka Carl Pickens driving around an expensive convertabile in his days.
 
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Oneshot;889921; said:
Come on, do you really think it's that easy?

"I believe that some people have done a great job at keeping a 100% clean ship. But I can't expect it of everyone. And I don't.
Click to expand...

I never said it was easy...it's just the right thing to do, imo.

I agree. Let's be part of that group that keeps it 100% clean and still acheive success. I expect it of tOSU, but not necessarily of other schools.
 
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