[Bruce Wang]

Saw an interesting conversation on Andy Drukarev's Twitter:

"Rule of Tree ‏@RuleofTree 15 Jul
@StanfordRivals I especially like how the program has made inroads in Georgia. Going a long way to get good players in a recruit goldmine

Andy Drukarev ‏@StanfordRivals 15 Jul
@RuleofTree Aside from CA, Georgia and Texas are the two most important states for Stanford recruiting moving forward in my opinion.

Andy Drukarev ‏@StanfordRivals 15 Jul
@RuleofTree Florida also has a ton of talent, but at least lately, hasn't produced as many guys with strong admissions profiles."


They, of course, forgot to mention Virginia.  This is an interesting point about Florida, which is a football talent rich state.  We do have some notable players (Noor Davis and Wayne Lyons).  And Ed Reynolds is originally from Florida, but went to high school in Virginia (the exception that proves the rule?).  Even Drew Mathu made a self deprecating joke about this when interviewed by TMZ ("I don't know.  I'm from Florida").  Are there issues with Florida schools that are even worse than other parts of country? Perhaps our favorite denizen of the Sunshine State can shed some light on the topic.

[Bruce Wang]

Saw an interesting conversation on Andy Drukarev's Twitter:

"Rule of Tree ‏@RuleofTree 15 Jul
@StanfordRivals I especially like how the program has made inroads in Georgia. Going a long way to get good players in a recruit goldmine

Andy Drukarev ‏@StanfordRivals 15 Jul
@RuleofTree Aside from CA, Georgia and Texas are the two most important states for Stanford recruiting moving forward in my opinion.

Andy Drukarev ‏@StanfordRivals 15 Jul
@RuleofTree Florida also has a ton of talent, but at least lately, hasn't produced as many guys with strong admissions profiles."


They, of course, forgot to mention Virginia.  This is an interesting point about Florida, which is a football talent rich state.  We do have some notable players (Noor Davis and Wayne Lyons).  And Ed Reynolds is originally from Florida, but went to high school in Virginia (the exception that proves the rule?).  Even Drew Mathu made a self deprecating joke about this when interviewed by TMZ ("I don't know.  I'm from Florida").  Are there issues with Florida schools that are even worse than other parts of country? Perhaps our favorite denizen of the Sunshine State can shed some light on the topic.

[Redrum]

Some places have it, others don't.  If they want to be football stars, Florida kids have two great options:  First: Two and a half top-flight in-state football programs:  Florida, Florida State and Miami.  They can play on a national stage for teams that get all the coverage seen by friends and family and can play where friends and family can actually see them.  Added to that, one of the Florida schools plays in the ginormous SEC solar system, so if they don't play in exactly Florida, players can go to a prestige program in the Southeast.  Despite three NFL franchises,  college ball occupies more mindspace throughout the state.  Florida without the Jacksonville Jaguars?  ZZZZzzzzz.  Florida without the Gators or Seminoles?  Unthinkable.  Now...start a secondary sort for admissible, interested HS football players inclined to escape gravity.  There you have Drew Madhu, and ummm,  David Marerro and, ummm....

Compare the condition of Florida's  (the state) situation and the parallel/ reversed situation of the state of Illinois.  Large state, major population and media center, flagship state school and one private school, part of another major conference and...nothing. No gravity.  Stuck away downstate, Univ. of Illinois football hasn't really been consistently relevant since the 50's.  Northwestern plays competitively, directly in the Chicago population and media center and can barely make a splash in its own back yard.  All the real football fervor goes to the NFL Bears and an out-of-state parochial college.

[Redrum]

Some places have it, others don't.  If they want to be football stars, Florida kids have two great options:  First: Two and a half top-flight in-state football programs:  Florida, Florida State and Miami.  They can play on a national stage for teams that get all the coverage seen by friends and family and can play where friends and family can actually see them.  Added to that, one of the Florida schools plays in the ginormous SEC solar system, so if they don't play in exactly Florida, players can go to a prestige program in the Southeast.  Despite three NFL franchises,  college ball occupies more mindspace throughout the state.  Florida without the Jacksonville Jaguars?  ZZZZzzzzz.  Florida without the Gators or Seminoles?  Unthinkable.  Now...start a secondary sort for admissible, interested HS football players inclined to escape gravity.  There you have Drew Madhu, and ummm,  David Marerro and, ummm....

Compare the condition of Florida's  (the state) situation and the parallel/ reversed situation of the state of Illinois.  Large state, major population and media center, flagship state school and one private school, part of another major conference and...nothing. No gravity.  Stuck away downstate, Univ. of Illinois football hasn't really been consistently relevant since the 50's.  Northwestern plays competitively, directly in the Chicago population and media center and can barely make a splash in its own back yard.  All the real football fervor goes to the NFL Bears and an out-of-state parochial college.

[Hank 91]

This reminds me of something I read from David Shaw recently. He talked about how Stanford gives kids an out. His argument was that if you've got a kid in Florida, he's probably hearing from a lot of people who want him to attend Florida and others who are screaming Florida State. A kid in Alabama has to decide between Alabama and Auburn. Shaw's point was that sometimes, for some of those kids, choosing Stanford gets them out of a sticky situation. If they choose State School A, half the family is disappointed; if they choose State School B, the other half is upset. No one is bothered when the choice is Stanford. It's something I'll watch going forward. If Stanford is in the final three with two local schools, might that give us an edge? I doubt if that's what happened with Harrison Phillips, who chose us over Kansas State and Nebraska, but it might've factored in. Can anyone else think of any situations like this?

[Hank 91]

This reminds me of something I read from David Shaw recently. He talked about how Stanford gives kids an out. His argument was that if you've got a kid in Florida, he's probably hearing from a lot of people who want him to attend Florida and others who are screaming Florida State. A kid in Alabama has to decide between Alabama and Auburn. Shaw's point was that sometimes, for some of those kids, choosing Stanford gets them out of a sticky situation. If they choose State School A, half the family is disappointed; if they choose State School B, the other half is upset. No one is bothered when the choice is Stanford. It's something I'll watch going forward. If Stanford is in the final three with two local schools, might that give us an edge? I doubt if that's what happened with Harrison Phillips, who chose us over Kansas State and Nebraska, but it might've factored in. Can anyone else think of any situations like this?