As this next recruiting class further develops into some kind of "HAUL", I cannot ignore the inescapable truth that "THIS IS HOW IT IS DONE, my friends..."
We have already seen how good this Coaxh is at recognizing not just "TALENT", but of the variety that he in particular is searching for--guys who are not just good, but GOOD FOR THE KIND OF TEAM AND PROGRAM HE IS BUILDING.
Players of character who will likely fit together, help to make this a TEAM OF CHARACTER.
We are already seeing it on the field, slowly coming together and revealing itself even as the talent only JUST begins to shine.
With an elite class now surely on tge way in 2024, and signs already that he and his staff are determined to carry on similarly into '25 and beyond, we have seen this before--right here in the SEC: Saban, Smart, others to a lesser extent for a season or two...but there's a/pattern that starts things, snd a seeming inevitability to what follows.
Of course, these Coaches and their staff's must make good on the promise--develop and bring that TEAM along. I believe, if given the time and continued wisdom and flexibility, Napier and HIS staff will see it through. Yes, he needs a strong in game, onfield OC to help shoulder the fast-changing realities of running a modern offense, in addition to all his other duties as "overall program CEO". Word is that eill happen after the season. But we are seeing certain as in signs of "adaptive change" already even now.
But one of the major factors in our long, slow slide as a "major program" was the deteriorating quality of successive recruiting classes over the years--finally sealed by near-total "blase inattention" on Dan Mullen's part--left us with a strange hodgepodge of "parts that didn't add UP to anything". Billy damn near had to start over ENTIRELY. Worse, there was little sense if "team":
Everyone was out for themselves.
The results were obvious and inevitable: hard to watch--even "mediocrity" was often beyond them.
It's been a rough road, but we're finally starting to see the (albeit SLOW) emergence of character and tenacity among what Coach and his guys are putting together here. I am excited to see what they can do with the team they are now purposefully assembling to compete out there.
Let's give them the chance to prove it, one way or another.
We have already seen how good this Coaxh is at recognizing not just "TALENT", but of the variety that he in particular is searching for--guys who are not just good, but GOOD FOR THE KIND OF TEAM AND PROGRAM HE IS BUILDING.
Players of character who will likely fit together, help to make this a TEAM OF CHARACTER.
We are already seeing it on the field, slowly coming together and revealing itself even as the talent only JUST begins to shine.
With an elite class now surely on tge way in 2024, and signs already that he and his staff are determined to carry on similarly into '25 and beyond, we have seen this before--right here in the SEC: Saban, Smart, others to a lesser extent for a season or two...but there's a/pattern that starts things, snd a seeming inevitability to what follows.
Of course, these Coaches and their staff's must make good on the promise--develop and bring that TEAM along. I believe, if given the time and continued wisdom and flexibility, Napier and HIS staff will see it through. Yes, he needs a strong in game, onfield OC to help shoulder the fast-changing realities of running a modern offense, in addition to all his other duties as "overall program CEO". Word is that eill happen after the season. But we are seeing certain as in signs of "adaptive change" already even now.
But one of the major factors in our long, slow slide as a "major program" was the deteriorating quality of successive recruiting classes over the years--finally sealed by near-total "blase inattention" on Dan Mullen's part--left us with a strange hodgepodge of "parts that didn't add UP to anything". Billy damn near had to start over ENTIRELY. Worse, there was little sense if "team":
Everyone was out for themselves.
The results were obvious and inevitable: hard to watch--even "mediocrity" was often beyond them.
It's been a rough road, but we're finally starting to see the (albeit SLOW) emergence of character and tenacity among what Coach and his guys are putting together here. I am excited to see what they can do with the team they are now purposefully assembling to compete out there.
Let's give them the chance to prove it, one way or another.
