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Message: [QUOTE="billsin01, post: 175265, member: 837"] Setting aside for the moment that there are something like 115 schools and they all sign somewhere around 20 kids each year, meaning that these services are essentially trying to rank 2,300 kids annually (yes I had to use a calculator) as well as at least a few hundred more who don't end up in the FBS -- a near impossible task -- I think there are two major flaws in the scouting service system: [B]1. A wildly inconsistent set of evaluators, evaluation standards and regional biases[/B] Who works for rivals or scout? Why are they experts? Do they follow a standard evaluation system? Is it possible to look at a kid from Florida or Maine without a jaundiced eye (i.e. fla = good; ME = bad)? What you have are a group of pretty minimally paid guys trying to cover vast areas and evaluating all these kids according to their own (often pretty biased) standards (i.e. an RU writer isn't going to look at an RU recruit and write a scathing report very often). [B]2. Often the evaluation is about who's ready to play[/B] If you were a rivals talent evaluator and you saw two players: Morlon Greenwood in high school and Mike McNair in high school, how do you rate them? McNair was a 6-3, 240 lb linebacker from matre dei (I think) in Calif. Played at a high level. All state. great size great measurables. Greenwood was a scrawny kid playing on LI with a good motor and athleticism but extremely raw as an FB player. How do you rank them? McNair is a top 100 guy, Greenwood is a prospect but a kid a long way from being a stud. 2 stars ... maybe 3 if you're really optimistic. So what happens? McNair goes to ND, never plays a down in 4 years. Greenwood gains, what, 25 lbs adn develops into an all-BE linebacker and goes on to have a huge nfl career. THis stuff happens all the time b/c the focus is on mcnair's measurables and pedigree, but not really his projectibility, desire and work ethic. [/QUOTE]

Verification: What is a Syracuse fan's favorite color?