How is this class shaping-up talent-wise relative to: (1) verbal commits during the Mason regime at this time of the season, and (2) Brew's verbal commits for his class last year? Thanks much.
I'm not sure if I'm a guru, but I was put in charge of the database so I guess that's something.
Obviously judging recruiting classes is a bit of a crapshoot, but I think the star rankings and the offer lists are about as good as you can get from a big-picture standpoint.
To be honest, this class has a lot more 2-star/1st offer type of guys than we had the last two years. There are a couple of reasons for this:
1) Less JC transfers, which is in the longterm a very good thing. JC guys tend to be ranked a little higher by Rivals because they have a track record. ESPN doesn't even rank them, which I prefer. Brewster had to bring in JC transfers in his first real class because he simply didn't have the guys to even field a competitive team. In the long run, its always ideal to bring in a guy you can redshirt and develop for a few years in your system and under your tutelage. So, from that perspective, it's a good thing. Sometimes JC's work, but sometimes you get a David Pittman with lots of promise and almost no results. They also run the risk of hurting your retention rate, since they are often on the fringes academically.
2) More scholarships. More scholarships = wider net. Wider net = more chances. Take the Wisconsin lineman. They didn't get a Wisconsin offer because Wisky has less scholarships to work with. That works to our advantage, but they may have been guys we woudln't have offered last year either.
3) Less playing time. Less "new coach smell." It's a basic fact of college recruiting that new regimes often see a spike in recruiting. In a sense, Brewster's success the last two years has hurt him a bit this year. It's just not as convincing that a guy could come in and start right away, which is a good thing in the long run, which leads me to point #4
4) Brewster did a really damn good job in 2007 and 2008. We really hit on most of the prospects we were after, which doesn't necessarily stand to reason considering of the disadvantages the program has to deal with.
I still think this will be a good class. Maybe right outside the top 30, but likely still within the top 40. Hopefully a few of the high-ceiling prospects (looking at you Ragoo) pan out.
As for the Mason question. The worst year of Brewster recruiting will still beat the best year Mason ever had. Hands down.
