http://www.ajc.com/weblogs/college-recruiting/2013/jul/11/qb-picking-uga...
The QB commit dominoes fell once Park committed to Georgia. Cornwell pledged to Alabama, then VT found their man Ford. However, at the time it seemed like Saban was the one to flip the switch when it may have been Park all along. Park gives one of the better behind the scenes look at recruiting that I've read.
Also, he said this about the Hokies too.
Which school finished third for you? "Virginia Tech was my No. 1 for a while because I had a good relationship with (assistant Scot Loeffler) when he was at Auburn. I was going to commit to Auburn last year. But then all that stuff happened, and he ended up getting fired. He went to Virginia Tech, and I've got family there. But once I picked up an offer from Alabama and Georgia, it just didn't seem real to pick Virginia Tech over those two schools."
I hope people take it as a cold splash of water on the face rather than a slight. I know a lot of us, myself included, struggle to understand why we can't land the big fish more often. From Park's perspective it's clear, VT isn't in the same class as Alabama and Georgia.
Virginia Tech was never at the peak of the mountain, but for a while the Hokies had the next best view. Lots of things, culminating with last year's disaster of a season, are responsible for a bit of a tumble down. The coaching changes were giant steps in the re-ascension of the program, now results have to happen on the field.
Comments
Well that's a swift kick to the nads. I can't say I wouldn't do the same if I were him though. Alabama has won 3 National Championships in 4 years and UGA has one of the better programs in the country year in and year out. Additionally, UGA's campus is awesome and if there's one school I could imagine going to besides Tech, it would definitely be Georgia.
We have to beat OOC schools when we play them if we want these recruits. Those are the games (for the most part) that have kept us out of the running for these recruits and moreover, the NC hunt. USC, LSU, Boise, Bama, Kansas, Michigan, etc. We HAVE to start beating them in order to get to that next level and for the last decade or so, that just hasn't been the case.
Kansas still looks weird among the other schools listed...Ugh...
You gotta put some weight behind the fact that his entire immediate family are huge UGA fans... SEC helps, but IMO the reason Alabama and Georgia were a step above VT in his book were not because they were SEC but because
A) Alabama: high quality program/coaching + dynasty / championship run
B) Georgia: high quality program/coaching + immediate family's affliation with them
VT was in the mix because of our high quality program/coaching but we did not have the X factor (for Mr. Park anyway) that those other two schools had.
Makes me appreciate Loeffler. Letting Park know that the situation he may be committing to may not be what he thinks it is was a good judge of character. Essentially "hold off until after the dust settles and decide if you still want Auburn."
Or Loeffler didn't want him to commit to a school he wouldn't be at?
Can't disagree with the kid. The big SEC schools will always pull in the recruits. We've always been a school who succeeds with less heralded recruits, so I can't say I'm surprised.
I totally agree with him. It's illogical to pick VT over those two schools.
can't blame him for the Alabama thing, but I dont think we're too far behind UGA. Total tradition; sure. Recent history; we've put some good teams on the field that could compete with them.
Yea, VT has even had better teams like in 2006 when VT and UGA meet in the Chick-fil-a Bowl. VT was up 21-3 at half time, but then Sean Glennon happened and 4 turnovers later, VT ends up with the loss. VT needs to win these games.
That was the most miserable night of my life. Riding back to my hotel on the Marta listening to drunken Georgia fans bark at me....I hate you Sean Glennon
That had to be the Karma balance for the 2004 @ GT game where we rode the opposite wave, misery to start and then holycrapcomebackwinwheeeeeeeeeee for the second half. I was at both games: the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat.
Nope, the perception isn't even close. Not only has UGA been very successful recently (they were arguably one play from a national title last year), but the program has all the cache (read: girls) in the world. It's got cool uniforms, a massive following, an awesome stadium, in a great location, 90 minutes from Atlanta close to South Carolina, etc.
We are what we are, but we should all appreciate to be as successful as we are is very remarkable. We succeeded in spite of ourselves in a lot of ways.
Translation to the Hokies: You have to play the cards that you are dealt.
We are not an SEC program and there is a difference, (argue if you want to) in the perception of some kid's minds.
However, it is not all negative-look at Clemson, FSU, etc.
You can recruit high-caliber players if you play your cards right.
Playing time, depth chart, playing AND BEATING SEC schools, academics (SEC is not highly regarded....sorry, it's true.)
Perception is everything.
The quickest way to change this is, IMHO:
1. Beat Bama, and everybody else we can.
2. Fans become SEC-like and donate crazy money. (Look at Clemson's IPTAY program as an example.....Fans demanded change, and then paid for it....results are still pending, but they are definitely on an upswing.....)
Great stuff, totally agree with everything.
as a rational hokie fan i understand what he means
as an emotional hokie fan who wants to keep it classy i'll say "cool story bro"
I'm new to the website and wanted to say that the way I would describe the posts on this site, compared to Techsideline, is positive and more realistic. I believe the coaching changes were good but with another 10 win season... it doesn't happen. Worst enemy of great is being just good enough. And I agree with Shoog's comment: Beating high profile teams and throwing mad money like Clemson will not hurt!
Just how it is until we can beat teams like Alabama.
This is a tangible example why moving to the SEC (from a football perspective) is the best thing for Virginia Tech. Strong arguments have been made on TKP in the past so I don't want to rehash old arguments.
It's an incredibly big deal to be able to say to recruits, "If you sign here, you will play against the best college football teams in the country. This means you get national recognition and the opportunity to test yourself against NFL neophytes. Both of those things will maximize your draft stock unlike any other conference in the country."
Get it done Weaver.
Really? I'm not sure it really helps Miss St. I don't think the fact that he considered both Bama and UGA to be higher than us was simply because of the SEC affiliation. I think the SEC is respected because of those programs. Had VT been in the SEC, I really don't see recruits suddenly bumping us up to their (Bama and UGA in this instance) level. It goes a lot deeper than that.
Seems to be working for UK and A&M. They're playing the most northern/midwestern SEC school card right now, and they're pretty much leading the pack. A&M plays the most western/Texan SEC school card, and it's working for them. Mizzou, well, not so much. If VT were in the SEC, the most Northeastern SEC school card might work well in the DMV, Pennsylvania, NJ, and NY. But I do agree, it takes more than just the SEC card to get recruits, but it can help significantly.
I think you are missing a couple of key points. A&M wasn't that bad at recruiting before, always pulled in decent talent. When they jumped to SEC, it did help bring it up, but that wasn't the only reason. They were always a mainstay and tough team. A&M though is probably the most convincing arguement of what would happen if we did join the SEC though, since I feel like we are in the same position they were in the Big 12.
UK is riding the Mark Stoops wave right now. He is pulling in the kids, not UK's history in the SEC.
Mizzou is just, well Mizzou. They have had blips of greatness, but nothing consistant, so joining the SEC didn't help nor hurt.
I've said it before, but I think being able to pitch VT as the northernmost SEC school would really improve our recruiting not only in VA, but MD, NJ, PA, etc... "Come play against the best, and be close to home."
I agree but I think getting in to the SEC would put VT on the path of reaching UGA & Alabama's level. Miss St.'s coaching staff and tradition doesn't compare to ours...I guess I should of added that in my initial post.
Irony of tradition is that ours is still so young. I mean, we are talking about like 20 years, while Bama, PSU, Michigan, etc are far beyond that.
I would have loved being in the SEC, but I'm not sure where we would fit right now. Part of me would rather be on the top of a lesser conference, than be middle or bottom of the pack in the best conference. The other part of me feels that we fit with ACC better, academics, other sports, etc.
Those don't really matter though, looks like we will be in the ACC for a while, so gotta make the best of the situation.
In the meantime, I just keep it trucking, continuing to build the traditions and respect. I mean, when I first wanted to go to VT, people thought I was a fan of the state of Vermont...
Did Auburns new staff reach out to you? Yes sir, they called quite a bit. But I just didnt have any interest in them after the coaching change.
This line from the AJC article really sticks out to me. Says a lot about Loeffler's recruiting ability, reputation, and hopefully coaching ability. That said, Loeffler's offense at Auburn was SOOO bad I am concerned that there is no way it could have just been a result of a bad QB and weak personnel.
I may be proven wrong in the future but I think at Auburn it was about fitting a square peg in a round hole. At the core we have always been a running team.. I think Loefflers philosophy matches up with who we are best. Every type of offense has its strengths and weaknesses. But I think it's about recruiting to your philosophy and then translating to performing on the field.
We all know