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Post by Cousin Eddie on Dec 16, 2015 10:42:31 GMT -6
Took a REALLY quick look on Rivals.com to see the list of recruits holding offers from WIU. A TON of them were also holding offers from USD already. That doesn't mean anything concrete, but it does indicate that an existing relationship exists and that we won't need to "start over" or turn over new stones. I am sure many new names will surface, but I am happy to hear that there will be some consistency in place already.
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Post by Yote 53 on Dec 16, 2015 10:52:04 GMT -6
I'd say that USD is holding a decided advantage with every one of those recruits holding dual offers. I mean, given what has come to light about WIU through this whole process any recruit has to be asking themselves if WIU will even be FCS much longer and it goes so far as if the school is going to even be viable in the long term. Some of the things I have read give me the feeling that WIU could go the way of USD-Springfield. If I'm 18 years old I'm not chancing it.
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Post by Yote 53 on Dec 16, 2015 10:54:37 GMT -6
I am now wondering how many USD verbals we will hold onto through this transition. I'm sure we'll lose some but pick up others. I think we will end up just fine. Recent events should be very encouraging to any recruit as it is a sign that USD is a place to be, there is a commitment here, and this program is going places. Exciting times for sure.
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Post by nccyote on Dec 16, 2015 11:16:49 GMT -6
I really hope Coach "Moose" Mohnsen comes to the U with Coach Neilson. With his history at the University of Nebraska and knowing the state well, he would be huge in gaining more ground in recruiting the state of Nebraska, especially the Omaha Metro and Lincoln areas. The state universities have been cleaning house in these areas lately and I think we could do a much better job of recruiting the talent in this area. I think having Coach Mohnsen recruiting those areas would put us back into the fold with a lot of those kids in the Omaha area. Both of the XDSUs have several starters and key contributors form the Omaha Metro. With USD being closer, and with the facilities upgrades to the dome on the horizon, we could be an enticing school for these recruits but we haven't had a strong presence in Omaha for years.
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Post by Yote 53 on Dec 16, 2015 11:33:02 GMT -6
Not understanding how we haven't had a strong presence in the Omaha area. Didn't we just pull an all-everything running back out of Omaha last year as well as arguably the best QB in the state of Iowa out of Council Bluffs? This year we have Dontrell Ducker's kid signing out of Bellevue West. I get that we want to hit the Omaha/Lincoln area hard but it's not like we haven't been pulling some gems out of Omaha the last few years.
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Post by nccyote on Dec 16, 2015 11:46:49 GMT -6
Not understanding how we haven't had a strong presence in the Omaha area. Didn't we just pull an all-everything running back out of Omaha last year as well as arguably the best QB in the state of Iowa out of Council Bluffs? This year we have Dontrell Ducker's kid signing out of Bellevue West. I get that we want to hit the Omaha/Lincoln area hard but it's not like we haven't been pulling some gems out of Omaha the last few years. You're right...the past 2 years we have gotten 3-4 players who have yet to make an impact. My gripe goes back 3-4 years and beyond. Letting players like DeLuca, Urzendowski, Stick, Forsythe, Trey Carr, and numerous kids outside of the Metro go to XDSU without even being on their radar, and everyone of those kids has started as a true or RS freshman. These are difference makers, just like the kids that we have on our roster right now will hopefully be difference makers. We have done a better job in Omaha since Middleton took over recruiting the area last year, but historically, USD has not had the presence of the XDSUs in the Metro area. Some of that is more than likely due to success on the field, but to me I also think that the Omaha area has been an after thought to our previous staffs in the past decade. |
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Post by fightsd on Dec 16, 2015 13:22:01 GMT -6
Not understanding how we haven't had a strong presence in the Omaha area. Didn't we just pull an all-everything running back out of Omaha last year as well as arguably the best QB in the state of Iowa out of Council Bluffs? This year we have Dontrell Ducker's kid signing out of Bellevue West. I get that we want to hit the Omaha/Lincoln area hard but it's not like we haven't been pulling some gems out of Omaha the last few years. You're right...the past 2 years we have gotten 3-4 players who have yet to make an impact. My gripe goes back 3-4 years and beyond. Letting players like DeLuca, Urzendowski, Stick, Forsythe, Trey Carr, and numerous kids outside of the Metro go to XDSU without even being on their radar, and everyone of those kids has started as a true or RS freshman. These are difference makers, just like the kids that we have on our roster right now will hopefully be difference makers. We have done a better job in Omaha since Middleton took over recruiting the area last year, but historically, USD has not had the presence of the XDSUs in the Metro area. Some of that is more than likely due to success on the field, but to me I also think that the Omaha area has been an after thought to our previous staffs in the past decade. We actually recruit the Omaha area fairly heavy, but so do other schools in the MVFC. We've had a notable disadvantage recruiting in areas that the XDSUs hit hard. Just the nature of having a losing record and fewer resources to offer recruits. I'm hoping the new landscape of Coyote Football changes that. But I wouldn't say we've failed recruiting that area by any means. |
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Post by nccyote on Dec 16, 2015 13:56:06 GMT -6
You're right...the past 2 years we have gotten 3-4 players who have yet to make an impact. My gripe goes back 3-4 years and beyond. Letting players like DeLuca, Urzendowski, Stick, Forsythe, Trey Carr, and numerous kids outside of the Metro go to XDSU without even being on their radar, and everyone of those kids has started as a true or RS freshman. These are difference makers, just like the kids that we have on our roster right now will hopefully be difference makers. We have done a better job in Omaha since Middleton took over recruiting the area last year, but historically, USD has not had the presence of the XDSUs in the Metro area. Some of that is more than likely due to success on the field, but to me I also think that the Omaha area has been an after thought to our previous staffs in the past decade. We actually recruit the Omaha area fairly heavy, but so do other schools in the MVFC. We've had a notable disadvantage recruiting in areas that the XDSUs hit hard. Just the nature of having a losing record and fewer resources to offer recruits. I'm hoping the new landscape of Coyote Football changes that. But I wouldn't say we've failed recruiting that area by any means. Both you and Yote 53 have good points, but i still believe from what I have seen and experienced, USD has under recruited in the Omaha metro area for a long time. I guess we will have to agree to disagree. I just see that NDSU and SDSU seem to have 4-5 each commits per year while USD may get 1-2. Its especially frustrating to see a kid like Jaylen Allison, a RS freshman who plays CB from the metro, commit to NDSU and I don't even think USD offered the kid. Same can be said this year with kids that are committed to SDSU that don't have a USD offer. I know there are reasons that certain kids may get offered by one school and not another, but to constantly miss prospects because other schools are recruiting them harder and earlier in the process is a problem. Dan Jackson, an SDSU coach, who I cannot stand, absolutely cleans house in the Omaha area because he is committed to finding talent down here and building relationships with them. Same with Connor Riley from NDSU. You haven't seen USD coaches do that in the past, Middleton has started to build some relationships down here, hopefully he or whoever recruits this area in the future will continue to follow what the XDSUs have started in the metro area. Its hard to get a recruit when coaches from other programs have been speaking with him for 2 years and we come in to see him in August of his senior year. |
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Post by Cousin Eddie on Dec 16, 2015 14:35:38 GMT -6
SDSU now owns the state of Nebraska. We got a couple kids from the Omaha Metro area, but almost all had unique circumstances or connections. Dan Jackson coached at Burke HS in Omaha and is already well known in the state. Even the Omaha and Lincoln papers have written about the job he has done and the impact he has made. There was speculation that Dan might be called on to run the walk-on program at UNL. I don't want to have a quitter's mentality, but without a true insider similar to Jackson, I would almost rather see our staff focus their attention on other areas - Iowa, KS, OK, MO, etc.
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Post by Yote 53 on Dec 16, 2015 14:38:21 GMT -6
Interesting since I think about half the team I played on at USD was from the Omaha Metro area.
There are a TON of USD connections down there. It's just a matter of reaching out to them.
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Post by Cousin Eddie on Dec 16, 2015 14:54:29 GMT -6
Interesting since I think about half the team I played on at USD was from the Omaha Metro area. There are a TON of USD connections down there. It's just a matter of reaching out to them. I can't disagree with you there. With Dan Jackson, I just think he is so established with the High School head coaches, there is a trust there and they feel comfortable sending their kids to him. |
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Post by nccyote on Dec 16, 2015 15:36:09 GMT -6
With the kids that USD has gotten from Omaha lately, there is definitely a connection to the U. Ducker is a legacy this year, so that really plays a big factor one would think. With the Omaha North kids last year, the USD coaches were very close to that staff and I think that was a big factor in getting those kids. I know that Wesley was recruiting Simmons the QB out of CB Lewis Central from very early on in the process. These things matter in the recruiting process. I think if we had a coach designated to this area, that would spend time getting to know the coaches and players in the metro, that we could definitely have the same success with recruiting as Jackson has had. Jackson does have an inside track on a lot of these Omaha kids right now because he knew them all when he recruited them in youth sports to come to Burke High before he took the SDSU job. That generation is almost all gone now and it would be the perfect time for USD to come in an establish themselves as the new sheriff in town for recruiting. From my previous interactions with "Moose" I think he would be excellent at getting USDs foot in the door in the Omaha/Metro area and gaining ground on the XDSUs. He worked for the UNL football program for many years and I would think that he would have a lot of connections and relationships with coaches not only in Omaha, but throughout the state.
From talking with a few high school coaches that I know in the area, not many have too many good things to say about Jackson. They kind of just go along with his BS because they want whats best for their players.
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Post by nccyote on Dec 16, 2015 15:48:49 GMT -6
Pulled from the bio of Mohnsen on the WIU website: "For 12 years, Mohnsen worked at his alma mater of Nebraska with the defense in the scouting department as the director of video scouting. He lettered for the Cornhuskers during his collegiate playing days. Working with legendary coach Tom Osborne, Mohnsen was part of three National Championships (1994, 1995, 1997). In his collegiate career he has been a part of 13 conference championships." www.goleathernecks.com/coaches.aspx?rc=879&path=football |
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Post by Cousin Eddie on Dec 16, 2015 19:03:12 GMT -6
From talking with a few high school coaches that I know in the area, not many have too many good things to say about Jackson. They kind of just go along with his BS because they want whats best for their players. This something I have not heard. VERY interesting! |
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Post by azsod73 on Dec 17, 2015 8:53:37 GMT -6
It has been reported that Nielson has already hit the regional recruiting trail. Trying to make as many contacts as possible before the holiday recruiting dead zone starts saturday night.
Staff is pretty well set with maybe a couple of current coaches retained.
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