The Nasty Business of Recruiting

I think recruiting must be a lot like changing a toddler’s diaper: the act ranges from distasteful to disgusting, but it’s got to be done.  There are some coaches out there who do it well, some who probably have figured out how to make a game of it that turns the experience into a more enjoyable one, some who leave it all up to someone else, some who’ve figured out questionable shortcuts—that’s a ton of types, but ultimately, they’re all just cleaning crap and trying to fend off diaper rash.  (Author’s note: In case you’re wondering, I wrote most of this before the Labornghini announcement.)

Even if someone waved a magic wand that “cleaned up” recruiting from the likes of bag men, self-interested advisers, Cost of Attendance, and other external factors, I still think we’d have the dichotomy of college coaches either being field coaches or recruiting coaches.  This is because the friendly salesmanship and ego buffing that’s needed to land top recruits usually contradicts the stern, reality-driven nature of actually coaching these guys and maintaining control of a program.  It’s a rare bird who excels at both.

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