Recruiting impact unclear of playing out of region games
Right about now Georgia is landing in Oklahoma City, Okla., and heading to the team hotel to lay in wait there until they bus over to Stillwater for tomorrow’s monumental season opener against No. 9 Oklahoma State (quarterback Joe Cox will indeed be there, as our beat writer Tim Tucker reports).
As head coach Mark Richt has said numerous times this week, tomorrow’s opener is the toughest the Bulldogs’ have had in his tenure and maybe the toughest since Georgia opened against Alabama in 1965. That can’t really be quantified so let’s just say it should be a nice little challenge.
Georgia AD Damon Evans, in discussing his philosophy of ramping up the Bulldogs’ non-conference schedule, always talks about his desire to “build Georgia’s brand” nationally. I think I understand that from a marketing standpoint but I’m not completely certain I agree with it entirely. I mean, Florida played outside its own state only three times during the regular season last year (at Tennessee, Arkansas and Vanderbilt) and that didn’t seem to hurt their “brand.”
I asked Coach Richt this week what value he thought there was in playing a game such as Georgia will Saturday.
“There is going to be a lot more attention on this game than there would have been if we were playing someone who’s not ranked as high,” Richt said. “If we played a non-BCS conference team, there wouldn’t be as much national attention. There will be national attention because people always want to compare leagues, and most people that I’ve heard said that the Southeastern Conference and the Big 12 might be the two best as of recent times, so they’re wanting to see which league is better. That will be a big question across the country. People may watch it just for that reason. More people will see and hear about Georgia because we are playing this game, and that’s good for us. It’s certainly better for you if you win these kinds of games as far as the perception of the voters and the perception of the recruits. This game, win or lose, should prepare us for what we are about to face when we get into league play. It’ll be good preparation for that.”
You’ll note, nowhere in there did he say anything about recruiting. And that’s the big question for me. When talking about “brand,” are we talking about marketing possible matriculates or T-shirts and hats or are you trying to sell your football program to out-of-region recruits? If it’s the latter, then I’m curious to find out if games such as tomorrow’s and the one last year at Arizona State have any actual recruiting impact.
Of course, the great majority of the Bulldogs’ players come from inside the state. But they’re attracted more-and-more out-of-state kids in the nine years under Richt’s watch. They’re getting far more players from Florida but have always snagged a few out of the Sunshine State. Currently there are players on the roster from Alabama, California, Florida, Maryland, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Missouri, New Jersey, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virignia. There are, notably I guess, none from Oklahoma or Texas. TE Aron White and QB Logan Gray of Columbia, Mo., are the only two from what you’d call Big 12 country.
Anyway, do you guys think it has or should have an impact on recruiting playing in games such as the one Georgia will play Saturday? Or are you just happy to see the Bulldogs brawl outside their backyard for the sheer competition of it?
- REMINDER: Starting tomorrow I’ll be a regular on “Buck Belue’s College Football Today” radio show on 680 The Fan (WCNN-AM 680) from 9 a.m. to noon each Saturday this fall. Come on down to Centenniel Olympic Park and catch us there live!
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13 comments Add your comment
JBTs
September 4th, 2009
4:15 pm
It has to help in my opinion. Anytime you are on national television is a positive in recruiting.
Tim Tucker has reported that Joe Cox is not with the team right now. He is suppose to leave later today to join them.
Flo-Ri-Duh!
September 4th, 2009
5:20 pm
They may get a four star once in a blue moon but mostly will pick up an occassional 3 star fringe player that has not been offered by the big schools in that area. Still I think it is good for the players and good for the school to play major out of conference schools. This is almost like a bowl game in interest and pub. I will say that there should be an open date before Florida and a warm up game before someone like Bama or LSU.
Gerald
September 4th, 2009
5:42 pm
Chip:
“I think I understand that from a marketing standpoint but I’m not completely certain I agree with it entirely. I mean, Florida played outside its own state only three times during the regular season last year (at Tennessee, Arkansas and Vanderbilt) and that didn’t seem to hurt their “brand.””
How absurd. Florida’s population is 18.3 million. They can get the talent that they need to do whatever they want by staying in – state, and can add to that by selling sunny Florida i.e. proximity to beaches for weekend trips. Georgia’s population is 9.6 million. They can’t even run their pro style offense without QBs and WRs from out of state, and if you can tell me what there is about the Athens area or Georgia as an institution that would draw a kid from California, Texas, Virginia, Ohio etc. then I’d like to know what it is. Or better yet, let Mark Richt know so he can put it in his recruiting brochures.
Florida has been a national program ever since the 1990s thanks to Spurrier, the rivalry with FSU, and also the rivalry with Tennessee, especially when Peyton Manning was there, and now has a rivalry with LSU, who has two titles this decade. Meanwhile, what is UGA’s record against Florida again? Thought so. UGA’s big rivalries: Auburn and Georgia Tech. Which is, you know, nice and everything, but not exactly the implications of Florida-FSU or Danny Wuerrfel-Peyton Manning in the 90s or of Florida-LSU today.
Georgia can send a QB #1 overall and have the first RB drafted, and people still spent all summer talking about Tim Tebow. Florida: national program. Georgia: regional program. If it wasn’t for the game against Oklahoma State, the second biggest game this weekend, no one would even pay attention to Georgia this season unless they were to upset Florida. But beat Oklahoma State and Arizona State and UGA is guaranteed a top 10 finish and a shot at a BCS bowl if they go 10-2.
And yes, it does help recruiting. Not recruiting in Arizona and Oklahoma (where there are few recruits to be had to begin with) but the added exposure gets them a leg up on SEC area talent.
Herschel
September 4th, 2009
5:58 pm
Chip -
You are right. We need to go back to playing those powerhouses like William and Mary. What were they thinking?
Rabid Dog Catcher
September 5th, 2009
8:39 am
Today is the last day UGA stays unbeaten in 2009!!!
Look Alive---There are buzzards overhead
September 5th, 2009
10:23 am
by late this evening the cowpokes will be suffering from the Dawg flu. They will have aches and pains all thru their defeated bodies. UGA will rock their stadium with an earthquake from the running game that will measure a 10 or better on the Richter scale.
AdMan
September 5th, 2009
10:43 am
Hey Gerald, Its obvious that you have never been to a game at Florida. If you like to swat bugs and nats you’ll love going to their games. As far as comparing campus’es. Georgia’s campus which is far more beautiful than Floridas and the campus proxsimity to down town Athens is three times as nice as Floridas.Georgia has much prettier coeds, and their alumni base as well as their students don’t walk around with mullet haircuts and cut off jean shorts all year long.I laugh at people like you. Its clear you have a man love for Florida and Tebow.Tebow is truely a special player and deserves all the attention he has received to this point. If you’ve watched their games over the past few years without him they would have lost many of them. He truely carries that team on his back and makes his coach look better than he is, much like Herschel Walker did when he was in school at Georgia. But ..please don’t come on this blog and try and tell everyone that Florida has more to offer athletes than other schools because of their beaches etc. That dawg won’t hunt! Students get a great education at Georgia and a degree fron UGA is every bit as good, and in some cases better, as one from Florida.Winning football teams and seasons come and go, i.e, N.Dame, Pittsburgh, Michigan,Florida State,Nebraska etc….Floridas time will come and I think sooner than later after Tebow leaves. Long before Spurrier started coaching at Florida your state was full of athletes and your team sucked every year. That’s why Georgia has a ten game lead on Florida in the over all series (just think how big it was before Spurrier). Mark Richt, I believe has righted the ship on Florida winning every year. You might have won last year and might win this year but you won’t win five, six, seven or ten years in a row any more….ain’t gonna happen! So please you keep patting yourself on the back and telling everyone how great you are because that way when Georiga beats you it will hurt you so bad you won’t be able to live with all the crap you and other Florida fans like you are gonna get. (the 2007 win ws a beautiful thing to watch..Florida fans not being able to trash talk as they leave the stadium)I also enjoyed the Ole Miss win last year. I laughed at all the excuses you guys came up with for the loss….you pointed fingers at everyone except yourself! Have fun this year…it will probably be your last season for a while to gloat. Meyers true coaching ability will really show through in 2010.
Adman needs a life
September 5th, 2009
9:16 pm
Hey Adman, you have way too much time on your hands! You too have obviously never been to Gainesville or UF. I had most of my schooling at UF and did a residency at UGA. UF has a nicer campus, not to mention it is a better school. Also, I love it when someone from Georgia calls people from Florida rednecks (I guess that’s what the jorts and mullet cut references are). I can assure you, there are more rednecks in Georgia than in Florida. Also, I can assure you there is no shortage of beautiful women on the UF campus. It sounds to me like someone has a bad case of jealousy. Keep hoping for UF to fall off when Tebow graduates. You are sure to be disappointed.
By the way, nice game today!
gatorman770
September 5th, 2009
11:34 pm
I’d rather wear jorts than those 1970-80s undersize striped Dophin Richard Simmons running shorts curdawg fans continue to wear out in public and at the gym!
I regard to “Georgia AD Damon Evans, in discussing his philosophy of ramping up the Bulldogs’ non-conference schedule, always talks about his desire to “build Georgia’s brand” nationally.” I don’t know how much “Georgia’s brand” was built today.
Oklahoma State Football Radio
September 6th, 2009
3:20 am
[...] and Baylor on Saturday in showdown games against teams from other BCS conferences … Recruiting impact unclear of playing out of region games9 Oklahoma State (quarterback Joe Cox will indeed be there, as our beat writer Tim Tucker reports). [...]
FDawg
September 7th, 2009
9:38 am
I wonder how that performance helped build the Georgia brand?
SatchelBuzz
September 7th, 2009
6:43 pm
Gerald,…ugag isn’t going to a BCS Bowl this year. You can debate the pros and cons of playing out of the region all you want. That said, you scheduled OK State when they were year in year out a .500 squad. Damon Evans would have never scheduled them knowing that they could actually play. Fact is,….ugag caught a break early on CMR’s reign,..UT and UF were in down cycles and you had a nice little run. Your now reaping the results as order has been restored. Urban Meyer is competiting for and winning national championships,..all ugag can do is ride their coat-tails while screaming at the top of thier collective lungs about the “SEC”. Your days are over,..heck Ole Miss has now even passed you by,…deal with what you are,…a mid-level team in conference.
THWG!
Dawg Drool (BaseballVol13)
September 8th, 2009
1:51 pm
Marsalis Teague outperformed any of the players mentioned here! Just exactly where was Marlon (Grandma’s baby boy) Brown this past Saturday???
Re: I missed the shot at Marlon Brown Reply
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he said that recruits look at former top players to see if they are sitting on the bench the whole game with no receptions or if they are the teams leading receiver.