[msqueri]

Quantity, addressing all positions, and not "dipping even further into the pool" for guys who aren't credible P5 recruits is just as important to me.

This!  In past Shaw classes, we would have a few mega-whale headliners, but gaping holes in other positions, or we would have to put in desperate late offers on plan C guys.

Yes, we’ve featured fewer headliners last year and this, but the classes have been balanced, full, and deep, with fewer gaps than in past years.  I think it is a recipe for more success over the long haul, though of course there is now a lot of uncertainty over what the long haul means.

BC

I don't think this is the best way to describe Shaw's recruiting. He has recruited by far the best on paper depth of any coach in Stanford history. The guys in the bottom half of the class are much more frequently Power Five-level recruits than any coach before him. His recruiting successes have not been about a few mega whale headliners, or at least not solely so. Yes, 2012, 2014, and 2017 were quite notable for having significantly more whales than the Stanford norm. But 2015, 2016, 2019, 2020, and 2022 tell a more representative story of his recruiting. Those classes were supremely deep compared to the Stanford norm (as were 2012 and 2014). Among the deepest in program history compared to what was done before him.

That is not to say there weren't holes. We have had stretches of recruiting at OL and ILB in particular that did indeed leave gaping holes. To some degree, though, that's the story of college football outside the most elite recruiting teams. It's not easy to check all boxes and maintain full balance. Look at how pitiful UCLA offensive line recruiting has been for several years.

I agree with you that balance has been a nice attribute of our recent recruiting. Not all recruits are created equally, however, and there are holes as a result. Rose and Hudson are bodies but they're pretty fringe Power Five recruits. It's charitable to put our ILB recruiting on the balanced/deep side of the ledger. There are other positions where 2022-2023 looks to bring in the volume you'd hope for but at a lower quality level than the prior norm - RB, OL, DL - and it remains to be seen whether that adversely impacts us or not.

[msqueri]

Quantity, addressing all positions, and not "dipping even further into the pool" for guys who aren't credible P5 recruits is just as important to me.

This!  In past Shaw classes, we would have a few mega-whale headliners, but gaping holes in other positions, or we would have to put in desperate late offers on plan C guys.

Yes, we’ve featured fewer headliners last year and this, but the classes have been balanced, full, and deep, with fewer gaps than in past years.  I think it is a recipe for more success over the long haul, though of course there is now a lot of uncertainty over what the long haul means.

BC

I don't think this is the best way to describe Shaw's recruiting. He has recruited by far the best on paper depth of any coach in Stanford history. The guys in the bottom half of the class are much more frequently Power Five-level recruits than any coach before him. His recruiting successes have not been about a few mega whale headliners, or at least not solely so. Yes, 2012, 2014, and 2017 were quite notable for having significantly more whales than the Stanford norm. But 2015, 2016, 2019, 2020, and 2022 tell a more representative story of his recruiting. Those classes were supremely deep compared to the Stanford norm (as were 2012 and 2014). Among the deepest in program history compared to what was done before him.

That is not to say there weren't holes. We have had stretches of recruiting at OL and ILB in particular that did indeed leave gaping holes. To some degree, though, that's the story of college football outside the most elite recruiting teams. It's not easy to check all boxes and maintain full balance. Look at how pitiful UCLA offensive line recruiting has been for several years.

I agree with you that balance has been a nice attribute of our recent recruiting. Not all recruits are created equally, however, and there are holes as a result. Rose and Hudson are bodies but they're pretty fringe Power Five recruits. It's charitable to put our ILB recruiting on the balanced/deep side of the ledger. There are other positions where 2022-2023 looks to bring in the volume you'd hope for but at a lower quality level than the prior norm - RB, OL, DL - and it remains to be seen whether that adversely impacts us or not.