Offers?????

Yesterday, all the Nike Combine in Columbus, I asked a quarterback who participated in the "Elite(?) Quarterback" competition how he did. Being an Ohio prospect, I was interested, because I like him. His comment was " they told me that if I had more "offers," I would have made the finals. My answer, "that figures." Honestly, I get so tired of the "offers" crap. I asked another Ohio prospect about how recruiting was going, and his answer was "I have 20 offers." My answer was "okay, how is recruiting going."

Offers, to me, are just like getting engaged to be married. Probably a good sure thing, but if something really a lot more appealing comes along, who knows, either party could break the engagement. Nothing is final until that ring is put on the finger. Nothing is final in recruiting, until the dotted line is signed. Chances are good that an offer is solid, but one never knows.

Get your highlight video done as well as you can. You do not need music and fancy trim or a play run over and over, to highlight how tough you are. There are some good companies out there. With the "Hudl" video systems available to your high school, you can make your on highlight video. Why a good highlight video???? Colleges are now sending out offers off of highlight video. Young coaches do not study video that thorough or work at recruiting like the old days. One - not enough time. Two - too lazy, worried more about schemes. More on highlight video at another time.

Another concern about offers. If one school offers, guaranteed others will follow. For example, here in Ohio, if O-state offers, many colleges will follow suit. If one MAC school offers, three more will offer the next day. You might be surprised how offers build up. Sometimes, if another state offers, an effort will be made not to lose a prospect to another state. Penn Sate offers just so they can get a prospect from Ohio.

One school at one time this spring had 182 offers out there. Usually the rule is 25 scholarships. Do the math. Other schools put alot of offers out there, so that just in case a prospect falls through the cracks, the recruiter can say that he has been there all along.

I do not get too caught up on offers, because often a parent or prospect is not sure what an offer really means. Years ago, I talked with a parent from Defiance who had been at the OSU Camp. Asked the dad how it went, and he told me that OSU offered. My answer was something " that is good. Did Coach Cooper take you into his office and say positive things?" The dad said that he did not do that. He told his son, "You keep working hard and you'll be a Buckeye someday." Went on to be a good lower division one college player, but was never offered by O-state. I have never forgotten that story.

Some college coaches tell me that some recruits play a game with offers. They follow offer lists on Rivals to see who can collect the most. Some recruits will even call colleges to try to build up their lists. Here, that is the exception, rather than the rule.

Part of the 5-Star ranking system that recruiting sites use is based on the amount of offers and the quality of offers, a prospect has accumulated. If you are into the 5-Star ranking thing, getting offers is probably important.

With my scouting and evaluation system, sometimes I hear the comment, "Who has offered?" My answer, "Who cares!" Unlike some recruiting analyst, I do not base my evaluations on what college rates them high. I would not be doing my job.

Finally, on the subject of offers. I often use this analogy. Four men are standing on a street corner. A very attractive woman walks by. One man likes long legs and likes her. One man does not like her long hair. One man does not like her fair complexion. The last man thinks she is "smokin!" Just like with offers, not every coach is looking for the same quality. What one program needs, another may not be looking for the same thing.

Bottom line - prospects. Work hard this summer. Compete hard at camps. Play hard next fall and be a leader. Do not worry about what you can not control.