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There are numerous examples of 3 star recruits making a huge impact. I know it's a single example but if I recall correctly Julian Love was a 3 star and viewed somewhat as a player added to round out that class and to have a warm body at a position of need. I really like this class despite what the "experts" say.
Assuming we get Foskie and Turner this will be Kelly's best defensive class and deepest OL class.
I also think that offensive skill guys are probably the hardest to project. Will Fuller, CJ Procise, Josh Adams and Ian Book were not high-rated recruits. Bandon Wimbush and Alize Mack were.
I think the #15 ranking gives people the wrong impression. I'm going to add Foskey to this because I think he's in the bag; Notre Dame is going to sign at least 22 players. Only 6 are three stars. Their average player composite rating is the best since 2013, and is only behind that '13 class and the '12 class by that metric. So it's a better class than people think in terms of talent.
I was saying way back in the spring of 2018 that given their target list and who they were likely to get, they'd top out at 15. They are currently 15th, and could conceivably get to13th. They just weren't in on a lot of top 50-100 talent, which is what drives the ranking. But, of the guys they were after, they landed them, which is a good thing, obviously.
If you're frustrated there isn't a ton of firepower, especially at receiver and running back, that's fair. It just wasn't a good board for them this season at those positions, plus running back recruiting has been sub par for about 4 cycles now.
Of the six 3*s, one is a punter.
On defense and in the trenches, this is a solid blue collar class.
My main gripe is the lack of top level talent at the skill positions, particularly at running back and at wide receiver. I don't see any difference makers in those positions, not only in this recruiting class but on the present roster. Our players at these positions aren't or weren't ranked anywhere near those at Alabama, Georgia, Clemson, etc.
I hope this will be addressed for the 2020 class and that Kelly will be more personally involved in recruiting so that we can land some difference makers.
And even at RB, ND got a guy whose stock has risen. I like Williams a lot. Just wish there were two of him.
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I think the one RB (Kyreen Williams) is a legit prospect.
I’m not so sure on the two WRs. With the offense ND runs, I’m not sure why ND isn’t more appealing to top WRs—unless it was the QBs on the roster when these kids were making a decision.
So that's probably part of it. I'm more concerned about only one RB this year.
I noticed many schools in front of ND have 28 recruits to ND's 21.
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Link: https://247sports.com/Season/2019-Football/CompositeTeamRankings/
Might be interesting now that Hamilton is a 5* and Kiser is a 4*.
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I think 12 is a real possibility. Not that it matters much, . . the difference between 12 and 17 is mostly guesswork. But it matters to fans. I suspect ND will get both guys. At least one, Foskey.
Recruit only a 12-15th ranked class? What is wrong?
For the most part, recruiting is about relationships built over time. Reaching the CFP in '18 might sway a player or two who already had ND in a top 2 this cycle, but probably isn't going to completely turn around anyone who wasn't previously listing ND high. So that's part of it. Another part is that a top 15 class is pretty good. The large majority of college football teams would love to have a top 15 class. Also, rankings don't necessarily correlate perfectly with how well a team recruited. Rankings are largely raw data reviews. Some times a team has a great class that doesn't translate that well to paper analysis because its value is based on filing needs, or balance, or key acquisitions. Teams with fewer recruits tend to have lower scores, because the math is cumulative to some degree. I think most services rank based on the top 25 recruits in a class, so falling below 25 recruits costs you points. At 247, only one team in the top 10 right now with as few recruits as ND has (21). Interestingly, ND has a higher average rating per player than Clemson, who is just in the top 10 (with 27 recruits) at #9. Finally, ND is kind of tough sell. The lore and tradition isn't what it used to be (though ND's brand still has some shine). ND isn't every kid's cup of tea: cold weather, South Bend is kind of a pit, academics are serious, ND isn't as easy a sell as it used to be. Tough to compete for kids from the South and West, where most of the talent is, when sunny fun schools are in the mix.
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I like the RB. But only one top RB isn't enough. And I think another WR would have helped a lot. If Foskey and Turner sign up, I think it is a really good class, regardless of the ranking.
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Adding Turner and Foskey to the 247 class calculator gives them a team score of 260.25, just ahead of #13 Ohio State and just behind #12 Auburn. Good chance Ohio State signs some guys on NSD and bumps up again, although I could see a jump over USC at #14 sticking.