LSU could sign the most talented class ever in 2009
How strong will LSU’s 2009 signing class be? It’s obviously a long way off from next year’s February signing day but the latest trend in college football is to lock up recruits early. LSU broke out of the gates on the inside pole and is running strong toward the finish line.
Having picked up five star quarterback, Russell Shepard, with running back, Michael Ford believed to end up being a five star player after further evaluation, LSU is projected with two already, which is what we normally consider a good finish. Reuben Randal from Bastrop. is another five star wide receiver who many are comparing to Julio Jones and he’s expected to stay in-State. Chris Davenport, defensive tackle from Mansfield, is sitting on a four star rating and also expected to be bumped up upon further evaluation.
While, without a doubt it could be our strongest recruiting class, according to Rivals and Scout services anyway, LSU still may not finish as the number one ranked class in the Nation due to the fact that, at least currently, LSU has a very limited amount of scholarships to give out.
LSU was sitting on 14 senior scholarships but with the recent departures of freshman tight end JD Lott and freshman tackle Mark Snyder, two more scholarships could be made available for the 2009 recruiting class, bringing the total to 16.
The number of recruits a coach can sign can get a little tricky to follow at times because of the numbers they must operate within. For Division I schools, the NCAA allows coaches to give out a maximum of 25 scholarships a year as long as the scholarship players don’t total more than 85. The jargon the NCAA uses in referring to the number of players on scholarship is “Counters.” Counters refer to any athlete receiving financial aid for that sport.
To understand recruiting class rankings, it’s important to keep some things in mind. A program doesn’t begin the recruiting process for any given year, with knowledge of a specific number of scholarships to be able to offer- within the predetermined regulations established by the NCAA. Seniors who will be leaving is a starting point; however, sometimes juniors declare early for the NFL draft and scholarships also become available through attrition, players quitting, players dismissed for disciplinary reasons, career-ending injuries, academic casualties, etc. When these scholarships become available during the year, the coach has the option to use them in the upcoming class, provided he doesn’t exceed the established number allowed.
Another option, which is a common practice, is to sometimes offer these scholarships to walk-ons who’ve, in the coach’s estimation, have earned them. Fans who follow recruiting often get very agitated in wanting to know just how many scholarships any given program has to extend; however, it’s a moving target. Being LSU has so much interest from some very high profile prospects, it would be no surprise to see Coach Miles add them to the next class’ total.
With a lot of time still left in the recruiting process, things will invariably change from where they are; however, a lot of indicators are pointing towards LSU having a banner year.