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Message: [QUOTE="SU94, post: 1542380, member: 202"] I agree with most of this. Not all, but most. I think we can and would do a fine job recruiting quality 3* athletes. We should be able to battle and win our fair share against the likes of BC, Maryland, Pitt, VT, UVa, etc. And then we beat these programs on the field because we resist the temptation to play kids that are not ready to truly excel the first time they step on the field. Think about Marvin Harrison. IIRC, he red-shirted at SU because he was a Prop 48 “casualty.” Silly concept, same effect. But man, #8 was an above-grade wideout the moment he stepped on the field (in his 2nd season at SU). There was no learning curve. No freshman mistakes. Think about Todd Philcox. He had to wait 2-3 years to get on the field at SU. And it launched an NFL career. There are so many positive examples from our past: D.McNabb, Kevin Johnson, Kevin Abrams (iirc), Justin Pugh, Duke Pettijohn. Obviously, not every kid we redshirt is going to be an NFL draft pick. But, the odds certainly increase, don’t they? Let's communicate this to the recruit, the parent, the HS coach. THIS is why this is best for the kid, his family AND the program. I think in this model, you appeal primarily to kids that want to take their academic seriously, that might want to get a grad degree. That might want to tackle a complex major at SU. Stanford, granted an elite institution, is winning 9, 10, or 11 games annually these days with top-tier students. Why cannot we do the same by valuing the red-shirt at SU? I know we can. And yes, can we could do this with a Big XII-style offense? Sure. There is no reason we cannot. I am all for it. But my primary point is that the answer to winning football games at SU goes MUCH MUCH deeper than we need to[B] recruit better[/B], or [B]pay more for a good head coach[/B], or [B]install a passing-based spread offense[/B]. For the record, all of these great ideas sound good to me. I am not against them. I just believe that the plight of SU football necessitates that we have to ALSO be smarter/more efficitent to win on a consistent basis. We have to treat this program like a business. We have to really develop/cultivate our players, our product and our program. Money ball mentality meets CFB at Syracuse University? And a great place to start exploiting a market inefficiency is to realize that 22-year-olds are almost universally stronger, smarter and more experienced than 18-year-olds. [/QUOTE]

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