[Goose]

While taking enough numbers is a problem, in an alternative scenario it can be difficult to get those players experience if they come in behind a glut. It can also be hard to recruit past a glut (so, looking forward a bit, a good 2020 ILB recruit might be ever so slightly disinclined to go to Stanford after 4 guys in two years.)

To be fair “nasty side effects” is probably strong; I took some literary license.

I agree totally with your statements above. While it is great to get a lot of real good recruits at one position, it can make future years tough for a while. Smart guys look at the depth chart and say maybe not. One can also assume that competing programs point out the fact that there are lots of guys ahead of you at Stanford, so why go there? Yes, a few guys don't care about that, but I am sure it is a factor to at least most candidates. It is further complicated by the fact our recruiting pool is shallower than other schools because we may have trouble getting some good football players into Stanford. We can't necessarily fix a shortage in any given year by recruiting our way out of it. The guys we need may just not be there.

[Goose]

While taking enough numbers is a problem, in an alternative scenario it can be difficult to get those players experience if they come in behind a glut. It can also be hard to recruit past a glut (so, looking forward a bit, a good 2020 ILB recruit might be ever so slightly disinclined to go to Stanford after 4 guys in two years.)

To be fair “nasty side effects” is probably strong; I took some literary license.

I agree totally with your statements above. While it is great to get a lot of real good recruits at one position, it can make future years tough for a while. Smart guys look at the depth chart and say maybe not. One can also assume that competing programs point out the fact that there are lots of guys ahead of you at Stanford, so why go there? Yes, a few guys don't care about that, but I am sure it is a factor to at least most candidates. It is further complicated by the fact our recruiting pool is shallower than other schools because we may have trouble getting some good football players into Stanford. We can't necessarily fix a shortage in any given year by recruiting our way out of it. The guys we need may just not be there.