The Insanity They Call College Recruiting
Recruiting is sick and twisted. Those who've been regulars at Track'em Tigers over the years know that I'm somewhat skeptical when it comes to ranking high school football players and assigning stars beside their names.
There's no need to rehash past columns other than to say I believe it's impossible to take the top 50 prep athletes across the country and put them in any meaningful order.
So with that logic in mind, why did I feel like I'd lost my best friend Wednesday afternoon when a kid named Cyrus Kouandjio decommitted from Auburn after pledging his allegiance to them only hours earlier?
Damn ESPN.
The Worldwide Leader and other specialty web sites have taken a process that got virtually no attention 15 years ago and made people like me care too much. So what if I'd only seen grainy YouTube like clips of Koundjio on the internet. I wanted him in orange-and-blue and I wanted him that Wednesday.
The gurus told me he had five stars and was the nation's top offensive tackle and by damned I expected him to fax in his letter of intent. And when Auburn didn't get it that day, I moped around the house like my wife had just run off with my best friend.
What the hell is wrong with me?
I found myself sitting in front of a television and computer most of the day, watching my mood change as a bunch of unproven 18 year-old kids made their college choices.
How silly.
There's something not quite right about a middle-aged man sitting glued to a television watching kids pull bulldogs, hats and God knows what else from under the table to reveal their college destinations.
I don't blame the athletes. They're just gifted kids. I blame myself and the talking heads that make the whole darn process so incredibly intriguing. Even though I'm somewhat ashamed of the whole production and my role in it, I must admit that I've already taken a peak at the class of 2012.
I know. I'm like a dog to trash.
When word came late Saturday afternoon that Koundijo had chosen (or rather his family had chosen) Alabama, I'd already rationalized the snub.
Does Auburn really want a kid who's not bought into the program? After all, Auburn is about being All In. Besides, he could end up like all these other five-star prep players who never make it. Right?
I feel better already.
Cyrus, I hardly knew you. Best of luck!
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I felt like the kid was stuck in a family that already had one son at Alabama. If his parents wanted to attend games, it would have been problematical to see both sons play. And they might also want the brothers together to watch each others’ back.
What I never understood was his interest in New Mexico. That was off the charts.
Totally agree with your view of the recruiting process today.
I would like to point out the irony of marketing the program as a family, yet running down a kid because he considers his REAL family when making a huge decision that will affect you the rest of your life. College is 3-4 years for this kid. He will have his family forever.
That white stuff on the top of chickencrap...... is chickencrap.
I missed something....
How much “running down” of CK has there been on this site?
Oh, and for added fun, go back to the Signing Day comments about him on RBR, right around the time of his press conference.
You REALLY want to play that angle?
I don't believe his character was attacked like it has been here.
There have been jabs at Calloway and CK both on here. This article even has one, which is why I brought it up. A lot of ppl on RBR were pissed, sure. But I thought it was all fairly healthy expression of disgust. I may have missed some attacks on him personally, I dunno.
That white stuff on the top of chickencrap...... is chickencrap.
example:
Agreed No spine. No character. Not wanted.
Auburn Tigers: The 2011 BCS National Champions!
by War Eagle Atlanta on Feb 6, 2011 11:17 AM EST
That white stuff on the top of chickencrap...... is chickencrap.
so, this is your example of an attack? seems like an incredibly accurate account.
and any reasonable fan reaction. get off the high horse mind your own.
the boy picked Auburn and has now flipped. what do you expect from a rival fan?
settle yourself, you’re being irrational.
i for one am finally done with this… players will settle it on the field.
unfortunate for CK, he might not be on the field in 2011.
you do it and you wipe it up.
So out of all of the quotes, you pick WEA's?
Really? Why don’t you leave the dirty work to Todd or kleph.
Plus, that wasn’t a very good example of how hard us barners were taking the news. See Buddy’s comment above (you might need to reread it for comprehension’s-sake).
by Tiger on the mountain on Feb 7, 2011 12:24 PM CST up reply actions
Context
WEA made that comment regarding how CK handeld the “final” announcement for where he would commit. It had nothing to do with
running down a kid because he considers his REAL family when making a huge decision that will affect you the rest of your life.
I would say that letting your brother tweet it instead of manning up and announcing yourself is gutless. The comment had nothing to do with which school he picked, but rather everything to do with how he handled his wavering indecision. I guess he not only considered his immediate family in his final decision, he also let them spread the word. CK’s inaction shows a lack of maturity at best. Some may see it as spineless.
That was in agreement with what I said, I too thought it was a spineless move.
It's Auburn against the world. Good luck world.
Yes
I was just commenting on the way he changed his mind, not the changing itself. He decided to go to Alabama instead of Auburn. Fine. First, call the Auburn coaches and explain it to them—YOU, not your proxies; then release a statement explaining it to everyone else.
Posting someone on Facebook and/or Twitter or having your brother make the annnouncement is pure juvenile, which, well, see Jay’s article above.
Auburn Tigers: The 2011 BCS National Champions!
by War Eagle Atlanta on Feb 7, 2011 3:00 PM CST up reply actions
Question trashcan?
I see by your profile that you are in the Army. If you told your CO in front of his CO,you were going to reinlist and then, without telling him, changed your mind and filed papers to be discharged, what would your CO say and what would it say about you?
I just hope they erect the Saban statue/altar/shrine before he leaves
Hypotheticals are usually a waste of time.
Then again, so is our whole conversation to be honest. So to address that: Reenlistment is a private matter that your CO or chain-of-command has no say or sway in, because again, it is a private matter that involves your family. No one has authority over that but you. Every family situation is different and no one can jusdge it. It is something that you deal with privately with the retention officer, then once it is done it is then made public with a formal ceremony that tends to me very special the to the smallest level of the unit. It really is a cool thing to experience.
But myauburn, that does bring up a great point that this original post is so rightly getting to. This process is all backwards IMO. Maybe it should be handled more like the model I just described. But we the fans are the ones that are driving the mess. If we didn’t make such a fuss over it (yeah, me too), then the press would not cover it the way that it does and the stress we put these kids and families through would at least somewhat relieved.
That white stuff on the top of chickencrap...... is chickencrap.
You kind of missed my point
What I was getting at what would the CO think of you by handling the situation like that. My guess is not very well. My hypothetical was a direct parrellel to the CK incident. Not the fact whether you reenlist or not but how you handle the logistics of it.
I have never faulted the kid for signing whereever he wanted, just the fact that he told the world one thing (commit/reenlist) and then backed out (decomitt/discharge)
I agree with you that the process is sensationalized by the media and should be changed, just like the oversigning problem should be addressed and changed.
I just hope they erect the Saban statue/altar/shrine before he leaves
I didn't miss your point, it was a fair one.
I was trying to let you know that it is set up so that that should not happen. And maybe the recruiting process should be set up a better way. But, if it did, and he had something to say about it, he would be in the wrong. He knows nothing of my family situation, or how it should be handled, or what may have changed to force me to change my mind. Neither do we in regard to CK and his family. So to call him spineless, or to say he has no character is flat out wrong. Now are is the Bama side better, or would we have handled it differtly? I dunno. I we didn’t we’d be wrong too. Another hypothetical; I’m done with those today.
That white stuff on the top of chickencrap...... is chickencrap.
You are right thrashcan, we here at TET are trashy, filth talking, take hits at 18 year
old- fans, while all the posters at RBR are saintly and righteous and NEVER take cheap shots at players. LMAO
heh, not my words.
never meant to imply that one.
That white stuff on the top of chickencrap...... is chickencrap.
Implication is far more subtle than your post above. You stated, implicitly,
that folks here were “running down a kid” and folks at RBR, were, (incredibly), expressing a “fairly healthy expression of disgust.” I have read posts at RBR. I wouldn’t characterize even 5% of them as “healthy”. What sophistic nonsense.
okay, whatever
the mood does seem much lighter most of the time on RBR. There are a lot of wisecracks and the like. But I think it is pretty well-rounded. I definitely think neither group (UA or AU) is in a position to look down on the other. We all have some doozies.
That white stuff on the top of chickencrap...... is chickencrap.
Well, I don't agree that the posts over there are lighter, and guests
get bashed over there pretty hard, so I would say we are better hosts, but I will agree that both fan bases have some a-holes. We can agree on that! Btw, thanks for your service; I’m a military grand-daughter, daughter and wife, so really, my thanks comes from the heart.
You need to go back and look at the comments on rbr....
when Calloway changed his commitment from Bama to AU….then you can com here and be critical…..until then you are viewed as a hypocrite.
I don't troll so I reserve the right to berate trolls as I see fit.
Just so you know I won't forget.....LSU Jonno predicted we would finish 5th in the west in '11.
I also seem to remember a few death threats hurled toward Calloway when he decommited from bama. You can always count on those light hearted and even tempered bama fans to lead the way in showing class and sportsmanship.
by Jumpn_JackFlash on Feb 7, 2011 5:10 PM CST up reply actions
blah, blah... come on man...that is a bunch of crap.
“huge decision that will affect the rest of your life”… did you go to school? did you make a decision? i did. i consulted with my folks a bunch, but in the end… i made the decision. it was my decision… i was 18. i have a twin brother, i went to Auburn and he went to UCF in orlando.
i wasn’t closer to anyone in my life than i was to my twin bro. still, i made the decision.
and now we live in the same town and i can see him anytime i want.
since when have you cared about the family of the players? be realistic, be serious. we’re football fans first. since when have the families behind the players been such a source of conversation? well, since the families are deciding the college that is best for their kids- like cyrus. i think that is a bunch of BS… i suggest that fans don’t really care one way or the other (if a family is involved in the decision)… just so long as they get the guys they want…. and/or they think their team needs. fans can’t assume any amount of authority on the player’s parents… but we can speak to how well they might fit on the team.
the Auburn Family is not a marketing slogan,… if that were the case, there wouldn’t be any truth to it. the Auburn Family is not trying to replace the student’s “REAL family”…don’t be ridiculous. if it were only a slogan, it would be a fishing lure…only. you clearly don’t understand the Auburn Family and what it means to fans, the university, the community, the students, players, … everything Auburn. we enjoy the LUXURY of a relatively small but enthusiastic community and so all of it is Auburn Family.
if a 6’7, 325lb Cyrus needs to have a brother get his back…then maybe he isn’t made as stout as his stats present. the fact that he didn’t ball up and stick with his pick shows a lack of confidence for me. good luck cyrus.
you do it and you wipe it up.
This too, shall pass.
It isn’t so much that he signed with Bama, it’s that he announced for Auburn and then changed his mind. Take all the time you want, but when you make a decision and you announce it to the world, it needs to be a consistent one. I recognize that they are kids, but 18 year old’s are old enough to make a decision they’ve had more than a year to consider. I think I, like most Auburn fans, are more disappointed in the handling of the announcement more so than the actual decision to go to Bama. After all, we’ve watched 5 start after 5 star parade to Bama, it doesn’t change how competitive we have been. Also, Cyrus just gave our incoming D-line all the motivation they’ll need for the next 4 years.
He's a kid that changed his mind...
I’m certain our D-line has bigger motivations than that.
And so as not to sound like a complete troll, I’ll say this: I liked the “Nick Who?” hat, later that day. It’s a silly thing, but kinda’ nice to see Wright putting it out there like that.
Another great article and ...
… it reveals just another reason why we call Jay Coulter “The Editor.” He always puts everything succinctly in to perspective.
AubTigerman
"The reason you come to Auburn is because of Auburn people.This is a special place, from the coaches all the way to the fans" - Andrew McCain OT
Name origin
Evidently Kouandjio is Swahili for waffle.
I keed, I keed.
I won’t use that axiom so popular amongst the unwashed bama fans, “we didn’t want him anyway.” Obviously we wanted him, but the truth is, with his lack of resolve to stand up for what he really wanted, we don’t need him.
Wouldn’t it be great if we could use that free spot to sneak in and nab Clowney? I know it is highly unlikely, but it would be sweet.
"Gabe got a tiger!"
by Foy Onion on Feb 7, 2011 9:45 AM CST reply actions 1 recs
Hahahaha!
Rec’d!
Auburn Tigers: The 2011 BCS National Champions!
by War Eagle Atlanta on Feb 7, 2011 3:07 PM CST up reply actions
I felt bad for CK at the start and I am glad he is with his family. I am sure we'll
do just fine without him and hopefully, he can enjoy his family with him at Bama.
I am NOT trashing him.
I am just saying if he doesn’t want to be at Auburn because his family pressured him to go to Bama, then let him go. Let it ALL go about him. Eventually, it will play out whether he made a good decision.
I am very happy with our WHOLE recruiting class. Our coaches did another AUsome job.
WAR EAGLE!
I actually don't think that any of ever trashed CK.
I suspect strongly that thrashcan is trying to stir the pot for shear entertainment. I don’t think that questioning someone’s character for commiting to Auburn on NSD on TV, then days later, sending his LOI into Bama and allowing the announcement to come from older bro is out of bounds. We were mild and rationale. Imagine, oh imagine the ‘We lost Cyrus-implosion thread’ on RBR if the situation was the exact opposite. It would be truly illuminating.
I am truly amazed (maybe even disappointed) about how wrapped up I got in NSD. Will I have more self control next year? No, probably not. Just ask the chocolate chip cookies that I devoured over the sink in a moment of weakness Saturday night…oh, I have really said too much….
by Tiger on the mountain on Feb 7, 2011 12:21 PM CST reply actions
Not stirring, i promise.
I did want a dialogue I guess. I just wasn’t at all ready for y’all to get as defensive as some did. I usually take that as perhaps I struck a nerve, but I too have already said too much. I have heard that the ban hammer falls swiftly over here, and I really don’t want that.
That white stuff on the top of chickencrap...... is chickencrap.
I don't think that the hammer falls as swiftly over here as it does over at RBR....
seriously, Jasands (or whatever his name is) drove us crazy for weeks!! WEEKS! WallaceWade stirs the pot, but I think that he is funny, and he is not a true troll (although myauburn would beg to differ), so he stays. What happens is that we see a bammer ‘criticizing’ us, expecting a typical bammer response, we rally and pile on. I am actually shocked that no one went over the RBR to pull up some gems, but I digress. We are all throwing stones in the same pond and then wondering why in the hell there is an island emerging in the middle……..
Speaking of WW, he had an pretty funny post over on RBR about what he learned from NSD. I would have loved to comment, but alas I am banned from RBR. What have you guys done with Pete Holliday anyway?
by Tiger on the mountain on Feb 7, 2011 3:42 PM CST up reply actions
No doubt about the ban hammer at rbr.
Comparing the 2 sites, it doesn’t even appear to be close. There have been several trolls go on here for months at a time before something is done.
I was banned from rbr and I had not posted anything there in over a year. I just went to the site one day and it said I was banned. A few people from my office were banned there too, and one of those guys is a former bama and MN Vikings player. It didn’t bother me but it pissed off my co-worker.
by Jumpn_JackFlash on Feb 7, 2011 4:02 PM CST up reply actions
You're banned really? Wow.
I’d like to hear that story. Pete is still around. He and OTS had a spat over the (ahem) stuff that OTS was writing (about some Auburn recruits, no less). I don’t know what went on behind the scenes, but Pete is no longer on the authors’ list, not that he authored much anyway. He still comments, but not as much as I would like.
That white stuff on the top of chickencrap...... is chickencrap.
Pete
doesn’t comment over here as much as I would like. Strangely, I follow his logic on some things, his defiance to fellow Bammers over the gist of the Cam Newton controversy being primary, but his Achilles heel is that he’s too big a homer to venture outside the friendly confines of RBR to take on any Auburn argument. Actually, he doesn’t belong to this site and thus can’t comment.
I, on the other hand, used to go to RBR and catch spears before I got banned for reasons not my fault.
OTS carries that blog. Maybe Todd ought to hand over the keys and keep doing his gospel hour and Rachel Bilson worship on the side.
Auburn Tigers: The 2011 BCS National Champions!
by War Eagle Atlanta on Feb 7, 2011 4:25 PM CST up reply actions
you won't be able to comment obviously..sorry
but you should check out what OTS has up right now about the recruiting services. It is really good stuff. Talk about Gospel hour.
That white stuff on the top of chickencrap...... is chickencrap.
Indeed,
I was in a conversation with Pete, although my banishment was not Pete’s fault. I was getting a little cheeky and blatantly disagreed with Todd’s BCS poll after the 24-23 T-town showdown. It was wonky thinking in my book and I made the mistake of saying as much. You don’t get banned from TET for expressing the same sort of sentiments.
I’m with WEA in thinking that Pete often makes good points, mostly unbiased, but overall, intelligent points. I don’t think that I have same size of mancrush on Pete as WEA, but to each his own. But I can honestly say that I respect Pete’s comments.
by Tiger on the mountain on Feb 7, 2011 5:17 PM CST up reply actions
Shhhhh!
It’s a lure….
Auburn Tigers: The 2011 BCS National Champions!
by War Eagle Atlanta on Feb 7, 2011 5:28 PM CST up reply actions
very few people...
bammers or not have ever been banned here….much to my chagrin.
I don't troll so I reserve the right to berate trolls as I see fit.
Just so you know I won't forget.....LSU Jonno predicted we would finish 5th in the west in '11.
well, it appears there is quite a list on both ends.
I don’t know. Just going by what ppl claim. The stories seem to be the some either direction. Just swap the names type stuff.
That white stuff on the top of chickencrap...... is chickencrap.
BTW, that was meant to be a light jab/joke.
But, I guess I was being “sophmoric”.
That white stuff on the top of chickencrap...... is chickencrap.
I DESPISE
the trifecta of hats sitting on the table, like some juvenile version of three-card Monty. Yes, even with the kid above.
Auburn Tigers: The 2011 BCS National Champions!
by War Eagle Atlanta on Feb 7, 2011 3:03 PM CST reply actions
Check out the posts between me and trashcan above
Turns out he is a rational Bammer. Like we both said, the process needs changing. The media has sensationalized NSD to the point where an 18 year old kid is provided a stage and meant to entertain. Most teenagers today would jump at the chance for their 10 seconds of fame.
I just hope they erect the Saban statue/altar/shrine before he leaves
$500K donation to dematha from anonymous donor
I can’t find a non-paysite link, but google it. We know it wasn’t us. We find better deals than that :)
"I have come here to chew bubblegum and kick ass...and I'm all out of bubblegum."
Demantha is private with some wealthy alumni including NBA players
But 500k earmarked for the athletic dept. Come on now!!
I just hope they erect the Saban statue/altar/shrine before he leaves
it had to be anonymous
bama wasn’t playing in a bowl game near there stadium so they could practice there and do it “legally”.
I’m sure there are a multitude of wealthy donors, but most wealthy donors like recognition. not all, but most. We fight back by complaining to slive about the fax girl!
"I have come here to chew bubblegum and kick ass...and I'm all out of bubblegum."

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