TekkNerd

At the beginning of the season when Pry was on the hot seat I really didn't see the point of why he was still here. There was no way we were ever going to be even a .500 team with our talent level and coaching staff.

I didn't really see a lot that was worth adding to our class at other positions, we'd be downgrading LoL. I think you're thinking Mike LB. They do have one that seems decent.

I just looked. They only have one 4* and bunch of high 3*s, then it drops off. I can't say any of their recruits jump out as an upgrade over what we have in the boat thus far.

They've hired folks from that era with Andrew Luck as their GM and Tavita Pritchard as their coach, but I just don't think they can duplicate what Harbaugh does. On a side note....really glad we didn't follow their model with a GM that runs things and has more power than the HC. At one point, we were considering that.

Grunk is solid, and even though Baker hasn't played, based on reports I feel like he is a very capable back up. That's really all you can ask of a QB room. For some reason I think we are going to see Baker get a series here or there early in the season, and not during garbage time either.

I certainly consider myself a RATT, however some may have assumed I was a NATT during the last year of Pry's campaign. From my perspective at least, there was soooo much toxic positivity. To some posters nothing was his fault at all.

I am well aware of how Cignetti has changed his approach. He still isn't going for top ranked guys across the board, even though he easily could. Their class will probably finish somewhere in the 20s, I'd bet they finish ranked lower than us in recruiting. With that said he'll likely be right there in the playoffs competing, with a recruiting class that cost significantly less than schools like Miami, LSU, or the Texas schools. I'd be irate if I were a blue blood fan. Cignetti is the new Saban, I don't think he will build a dynasty, but his mere existence gets other coaches fired.

Personally I like Matt Campbell, but let's not pretend he would be on the short list for any P2 school that is looking to win a national title. I just really don't see how he is an upgrade over Franklin in any way.

Warn us about what? Great recruiting classes and 10 win seasons, sign me up for that.

I do think that if he changes his mind he would be decent at it. He is only 49, he could change his mind.

On the flip side I was like why do so many love Pry? While I don't think either of them was the guy for us. Fuente > Pry when it comes to being a HC IMO. I feel like he could coach a G6 team up and be right back in consideration for a P4 gig.

It's definitely sexual innuendo, but not rapey at all. It's the consensual kind of innuendo for sure as we all want our team to stick it in the endzone, regardless of our gender. I suppose its rapey for the opposing team as they don't consent.

Plus Franklin once compared playing Pitt to playing Akron LoL....people don't forget things like that. Nardouzzi is really going to want a W.

He has had the same role for years. He was definitely instrumental in bringing in Franklin, but I don't think he has much of a direct role with the team, and IMO I kind of doubt he even wants that.

I don't think he is out there on the practice field with the LBs or watching film with the players. Unless something has changed he is more of a program ambassador than a consultant or analyst. I'm glad he is around, but I don't think what we see on the field will have much to do with Bud's input or influence. Am I missing something? Is he doing more now than he did during the Pry years?

Fans of teams that recruit poorly use this as a cope. Fans of schools that recruit well know better, and wouldn't give up their classes that are loaded with 4* players.

I think they know exactly who they signed, meaning they know his limitations, and they fully intend on developing him. Good for him if he makes it.

What I mean is, from what I know now of how James Franklin recruits. I can see why so many recruits VT fans were excited about in VA made no impact at all at PSU, or other places that recruit really good players. It's a dog fight to get reps and playing time. Meanwhile if they'd gone to a G6 school they could have ended up a sought after player with some game experience. I think that's what this list tells you. Take a guy like Ben Bell, a Texas G6 recruit that we signed out of the portal, had he gone to a school with more talented players, we probably never would have heard of him, because he never would have played and gotten the game experience to get better. He was all conference in the G6, but very average in P4. I feel like most G6 guys are Ben Bells at the P4 level, not Jaylin Lanes. JMO. Recruiting rankings do matter.

If you recruit like mid tier or lower level ACC program like we have, every game with teams with comparable talent level is a dog fight. Couple that with an OC in Montgomery, and a DC like Siefkes, and you get a below .500 record. At the level we're recruiting now we should be beating most of the teams that we struggled with in recent years given time.

If I were Hudson, our depth chart at OT would've been a bigger concern. We've bought a lot of guys into that room. But it's probably more likely that he simply liked the Vols better, we can't win every battle, at least these days we win the majority of them.

We have several that blue blood schools really wanted. Guys like Bourque, Karhoff, and Bryce Woods come to mind. Did we pay them a lot? Probably. I am just not buying that Franklin is paying significantly more than market value for his recruits.

When a recruit is down to you or Miami, or Ohio State, or UGA. It's not about the money anymore, those schools have big bags too. Lately we've been able to shop for nice things, which mean our competition is the schools that can also afford to buy nice things. You still have to close the deal. Schools like Pitt, BC, and even FSU can't afford to shop where we shop. The money helps, but there is still significant competition.

As a result we are being very selective in state, and Zayvon Miller didn't make the cut. From what I've observed we're really only pursuing kids that are as good or comparable as out of state options, which means we're focused on roughly the top 15 or so VA prospects. Given the class he has signed thus far, I don't think too many of us are complaining about his approach. Maybe it's just me, but it also feels like he takes more southern recruits now than he used to at PSU.

It's about them getting a return on their investment, and they don't care if it makes you and your fans miserable in the process.

More interested in seeing how all this talent looks on the field. I think even if we're average at coaching this team could win the ACC in two years. If we're decent on defense this year we might even have a shot at it this year

Just don't expect most people that understand how statistics and probability actually work to agree with you. Not saying that to be mean. Feel free to have the last word if you must, I've said my piece, and you're certainly entitled to your own opinion on recruiting.

An analysis that is based on finding the rarest of the rare. It's simply not feasible, and I'm glad we are going after guys that other schools are interested in.

I didn't say Bourque was a guaranteed multi-year starter. I'm saying his potential to be one is significantly higher than a lower ranked QB. Our QB room currently has four highly ranked QBs in it counting Borque's commit. Are you really saying that we'd be better off replacing them with lower ranked guys with limited offers. Secondly. Are you willing to trade Franklin's first recruiting and portal class, with ODU's? Lastly on a separate note, I doubt your 3* ranking eval is apples to apples. There is a world of difference between a 3* with a score of 88 or 89, vs a kid with a score of 85 or lower. Finding outliers IMO does not support your thoughts on the rankings. If a program were to fill their 105 roster spots with low ranking kids, their likelihood of success as a program would be significantly reduced.

If it doesn't matter why are the teams that recruit the best players and have the highest ranked classes always the ones in the playoffs vs those teams that recruit in the middle of the pack or worse? Also, from a numbers perspective there are a lot more three star kids then there are four and five, so the majority of the NFL is always going to be comprised of mostly three star players. Cherry picking diamonds in the rough isn't a strategy that will build a winning program. All it will get you is a roster of one or two standouts that will eventually transfer to a P4 school combined with bunch of guys that would get pushed around by a decent P4 team. Based on your assessment G6 teams should have a lot more success than they actually do. I can tell you right now I wouldn't trade Peter Borque, or any of our top 3 QBs for a random 2* QB. Nor would I trade our recruiting class with a school like ODU's. You can't point at outliers as proof that recruiting rankings don't matter.

Is that fair to him? Probably not, but I think that's what it will take to ensure that current players, recruits, and fans to continue to believe we aren't the same old VT.

There seemed to be more drama around him than any other strength coach we ever had. Were our players really that toxic or was he part of the problem?

Every now and then Fuente would put a kid in the dog house and it was unfair. The kid was a true freshman away from home for the first time, who commited to play for us, and you kick him off the team after a few weeks? How about work with him to get his weight down. I remember Cam's HS coach and his mother being really upset about how Cam Goode was treated, in retrospect I do feel it was an extreme over reaction by Fuente, and I'm really glad the kid landed on his feet and ended up playing for sensible coaches that knew how to best utilize and motivate him.

In reality not so much. Great analysis by the way, and I think it shows how a guy like Cignetti was able to find unheralded guys that were in actuality very good players that belonged on P4 rosters. With that said I think your list says more about the talent level in VA than it does about the star ranking system. I somehow doubt the top 25 list in a state like GA or even MD looks as dismal years later. I really don't want us to change our recruiting approach to finding diamonds in the rough in our back yard. It's unnecessary these days because we are now shopping at Neiman Marcus with a high limit card and able to get nice things. If we go back to shopping at Wal-Mart, recruits are going to see that, and elite recruits really only want to play with the best. Selling a blue chip kid on being the big man on campus is a fan created pipe dream IMO. We're just going to have to accept that there will always be guys outside of the top 25 in VA that keep working and develop into a phenomenal players. IMO, we should only get upset about it if the guy we have on the field at that position isn't up to par. I doubt this will be an issue in the future, because it appears we are recruiting well enough that the competition level will ensure that the top two guys that emerge at each position should be more than capable.

I think it just worked out that way, but I'd imagine it's easy to make someone feel special when they are the only recruit in town.

I guess we're already spoiled LoL. For reference point the kid at number 14 in the state right behind him is also an offensive lineman, and he is committed to Ohio State. Meanwhile arguably the number one OT on our board is ranked 5th in the state of Ohio and doesn't hold an Ohio State offer. I guess what I'm trying to say is, if your coaches think an offensive lineman is a take, you'll just have to trust their judgement, and you'll find out two to three years later if the kid is any good. As for LBs, that's definitely a need, but I don't see any connection between taking this kid's commit and recruiting LBs. Meaning signing him isn't preventing us from landing a 4* LB. That's presumably Brent Pry's department, and it appears even with Franklin's help we're a tough sell to LB recruits right now. At least we got a few in last year's recruiting class that should pan out, and there is always the portal.

Looking at his final list of schools I'd guess Colorado. Coach Prime is that dude that says to himself, "I can fix her".

I think it's been a while since we've had a notable LB, I can't help but think it's pretty easy for other schools to point out that our track record for developing LBs hasn't been great in recent years. It's not negative recruiting if it's the truth. Although our board changes all the time, we aren't exactly "cooking" right now at the LB position. I think Woodson is going to blow up at Alabama, and Brumfield who looked very average in Marve's system. Returned to becoming a tackling machine and was first team all conference at Memphis. and ended up signing with the Saints as an undrafted free agent this year. Yeah....we're doing something very wrong at the LB position. ** Edited by TekkNerd at 5/25/2026, 6:51:38 AM

The reality is the over whelming majority of players really don't want to be activists in this way. A few may speak up on causes that are important to them or wear a t-shirt for something. But nobody is going to not choose the best college for them based on a state's politics. Race stuff is always touchy. I can remember when James Franklin used to mention that he wanted to be the first black coach to win a national championship, I believe he still does say that. Him saying that did rub some people the wrong way when top VA kids started heading to PSU. They thought it was the actual reason he recruited so well. Like some of us literally thought it was his final pitch to seal the deal. However, recruits don't play for him because he is black. They play for James Franklin, because he is James Franklin. I think we can all see that now. Kids are going to go wherever they feel is best for them. While they may have opinions on political matters, they don't prioritize it high enough to factor that in when making a major life decision.

It doesn't really make sense for him or us.

A favorable schedule would not be wasted this season, it could've catapulted us to greater things. The only positive about our schedule is we essentially have two easy opponents before it gets difficult. That should help our young team gel. However, we need to win now. People aren't patient, anything less than eight wins and recruits and portal players that transferred here will no longer "trust the process". Potential HS recruiting targets will be thinking it's the same ole VT, and that new car smell that Franklin has will be gone. That goes for us fans too, even those of us that said we'd be fine with eight wins. Fair or not, Franklin pretty much has to win eight games to keep this train moving. He probably understands that, and I think we'll probably pull it off. We simply have too much talent to be bad on offense, even Stiney or Corny would put up serious points with this roster,...like CC said, how the defense performs will ultimately decide our season.

McCarthy claims that he did the exact same thing with hall of famer Aaron Rodgers when he coached him at Green Bay in the article I linked. The headline even says that he is treating Allar like a young Aaron Rodgers. For the record Allar was the fourth of Franklin's PSU QBs taken in the NFL draft. I'm not sure there are many if any college coaches that can say they have that many taken within that time frame. IMO that's what will matter most to QB recruits. Clearly Franklin and his staff developed those QBs well enough to get drafted, which means they played at a high level in college. I'd say most rookie NFL QBs are put through "QB school" by their OCs and QB coach. IMO I view Allar as a faster Jim Druckeniller, he has a ridiculous set of physical tools....but he probably isn't an NFL QB, and I don't think that's on Franklin, just like I don't think that any amount of coaching was ever going to make Logan Thomas an NFL QB.

I don't think their strategy of relying on the transfer portal is sound. They did well last year, but Morris was the difference maker IMO. It's like they aren't even trying. I'd be nervous about this strategy if Franklin and his staff were treating recruiting as optional. You really don't even know what's going to be available to you in the transfer portal.