[MV72018]

I can understand the desire to start winning and to replace TT if this is another downer year.  Unfortunately, if you get what you ask for, the end result may be even worse. Ask yourself how many successful D1 coaches would want the Stanford job.  Money maybe OK but hardly great, ability to attract to players near zero etc etc. 
TT has shown he can coach, but is the Stanford job just a bridge too far considering the state of college football today?  If I was a 4 or 5 star recruit coming out of highschool and with Stanford grades and scores, would I choose Stanford over tOSU or others?

IMO this is really the crux of the matter. There are a few such recruits that would come to Stanford because they like the academics and they (at least initially) believe they will enjoy being at Stanford. The vast majority look at the academic requirements as onerous and the Stanford social experience as not for them. Some recruits can be persuaded to come to Stanford despite these disincentives. Some will decide they like Stanford and stay. Many others will decide it isn't for them and go elsewhere, particularly if these recruits are still being "recruited" by other schools.

IMO the social fit is an issue for many athletes. It isn't just that "Stanford hates fun". That is only part of the issue. These athletes are used to their peers being "wowed" by the athlete's skills. They are used to being in an environment that has values similar to their own. Stanford isn't that. Athletes believe they are "entitled" because their experience is that they in fact are. There are all kinds of people at Stanford with all kinds of exceptional skills. It isn't all that exceptional. That doesn't work well for many athletes. They are used to at least being appreciated. They can get that elsewhere. Why remain where you aren't special when you can go someplace where you are?

Shaw told the story of the 5 star player he couldn't convince to attend Stanford because Stanford's team wasn't good enough to showcase the recruits talents. Shaw said he didn't want to be in that position again. Unfortunately, Stanford is in that position. If you think you are an NFL caliber talent, Stanford isn't the place to be. Arguably, it never can be. Even when Stanford is "good" an athlete still has to expend a significant amount of energy on academics. This is a distraction from NFL preparation and not at all "fun".

Do you want to play infront of an empty stadium while the coaching staff tries to bring in others near your level so as to start winning?  How much can a 4 star recruit demand in NIL payments if he say goes to USC, tOSU, ND etc?
If schooll A offers you $1,000,000 in NIL payments and you can go to Stanford and get half of that why would you go to Stanford?  The 40 year decison thing is dead in the water for almost all recruits. Playing in front of a crowd of 1000 is hardly inspiring.  Most good high school players had bigger crowds than Stanford can offer now days.
While I would love to see this problem solved, I believe it is pretty much beyond the ken of current fans to solve.

While the size of the crowd is a factor, I think it is a minor one compared to 1) academic requirements, 2) social fit, 3) lack of competitive parity. It is possible that by throwing enough NIL money at it competitive parity can be improved. Given the society in which Stanford must now operate, IMO the other problems are intractable.

Superb analysis. Camus's THE MYTH OF SISYPHUS comes to mind. Stanford is condemned to push that recruiting boulder up a steep hill over and over again.

[MV72018]

I can understand the desire to start winning and to replace TT if this is another downer year.  Unfortunately, if you get what you ask for, the end result may be even worse. Ask yourself how many successful D1 coaches would want the Stanford job.  Money maybe OK but hardly great, ability to attract to players near zero etc etc. 
TT has shown he can coach, but is the Stanford job just a bridge too far considering the state of college football today?  If I was a 4 or 5 star recruit coming out of highschool and with Stanford grades and scores, would I choose Stanford over tOSU or others?

IMO this is really the crux of the matter. There are a few such recruits that would come to Stanford because they like the academics and they (at least initially) believe they will enjoy being at Stanford. The vast majority look at the academic requirements as onerous and the Stanford social experience as not for them. Some recruits can be persuaded to come to Stanford despite these disincentives. Some will decide they like Stanford and stay. Many others will decide it isn't for them and go elsewhere, particularly if these recruits are still being "recruited" by other schools.

IMO the social fit is an issue for many athletes. It isn't just that "Stanford hates fun". That is only part of the issue. These athletes are used to their peers being "wowed" by the athlete's skills. They are used to being in an environment that has values similar to their own. Stanford isn't that. Athletes believe they are "entitled" because their experience is that they in fact are. There are all kinds of people at Stanford with all kinds of exceptional skills. It isn't all that exceptional. That doesn't work well for many athletes. They are used to at least being appreciated. They can get that elsewhere. Why remain where you aren't special when you can go someplace where you are?

Shaw told the story of the 5 star player he couldn't convince to attend Stanford because Stanford's team wasn't good enough to showcase the recruits talents. Shaw said he didn't want to be in that position again. Unfortunately, Stanford is in that position. If you think you are an NFL caliber talent, Stanford isn't the place to be. Arguably, it never can be. Even when Stanford is "good" an athlete still has to expend a significant amount of energy on academics. This is a distraction from NFL preparation and not at all "fun".

Do you want to play infront of an empty stadium while the coaching staff tries to bring in others near your level so as to start winning?  How much can a 4 star recruit demand in NIL payments if he say goes to USC, tOSU, ND etc?
If schooll A offers you $1,000,000 in NIL payments and you can go to Stanford and get half of that why would you go to Stanford?  The 40 year decison thing is dead in the water for almost all recruits. Playing in front of a crowd of 1000 is hardly inspiring.  Most good high school players had bigger crowds than Stanford can offer now days.
While I would love to see this problem solved, I believe it is pretty much beyond the ken of current fans to solve.

While the size of the crowd is a factor, I think it is a minor one compared to 1) academic requirements, 2) social fit, 3) lack of competitive parity. It is possible that by throwing enough NIL money at it competitive parity can be improved. Given the society in which Stanford must now operate, IMO the other problems are intractable.

Superb analysis. Camus's THE MYTH OF SISYPHUS comes to mind. Stanford is condemned to push that recruiting boulder up a steep hill over and over again.