Sizing up the ACC’s 2013 signing classes
Now that National Signing Day is over, it’s time to take a look at the scoreboard in the ACC for the 2013 class.
The usual disclaimers apply. Rankings only matter so much, plenty of top recruits are busts, coaches recruit to their system, etc., etc. While these rankings aren’t a perfect indicator of what will happen down the line, acquiring top-level talent always helps. There’s a reason Alabama, which wins the recruiting title every year, is also doing so with the BCS title.
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The Hokies’ signing class, though smaller than last year, ranks about the same nationally. I’ve included the rankings from Rivals, 247Sports and ESPN on this post.
A few things of note: junior college or prep players don’t count in the top 100, 247, 250 or 300 columns. Those sites have a different set of rankings for players not coming directly from high school. The JC and prep players are accounted for in the star rankings, though.
There’s also different accounting methods for each. Rivals counts 19 signees for the Hokies, 247Sports 20 (it includes Fork Union’s Jerome Wright) and ESPN 22 (it includes Drew Harris and three ’12 holdovers, Wright, Seth Dooley and Woody Baron).
Here’s a look at the ACC’s recruiting rankings. I’ve thrown Pittsburgh and Syracuse into the mix, since they’ll be full members of the league come summer. National rankings, where applicable, are listed on the far left:
(UPDATE: Little mix up earlier. I did not realize the 247Sports rankings default to the composite rankings that the site does, which factors in the rankings from all recruiting sites. I’ve updated that now to just have the 247Sports rankings, which have the Hokies a little higher, at 14th nationally and second in the ACC.)
Rivals
Team Total 100 250 5* 4* 3* Avg. Pts. 9. Florida State 21 5 7 2 9 9 3.57 2352 14. Clemson 23 1 8 0 10 10 3.30 2131 22. Virginia Tech 19 3 4 1 3 15 3.26 1758 26. Virginia 22 1 2 1 2 15 3.00 1660 30. Maryland 22 1 3 0 4 10 2.95 1589 33. Pittsburgh 27 1 2 1 2 15 2.81 1568 39. North Carolina 17 1 1 0 2 15 3.12 1460 44. Miami 15 1 6 0 7 7 3.40 1440 46. N.C. State 23 0 0 0 0 19 2.83 1425 58. Wake Forest 23 0 0 0 0 16 2.70 1245 67. Duke 20 0 0 0 0 11 2.55 1095 72. Syracuse 19 0 0 0 0 11 2.58 1035 84. Georgia Tech 14 0 0 0 0 10 2.71 885 97. Boston College 15 0 0 0 0 8 2.53 855
Top-ranked Virginia Tech signees: CB Kendall Fuller (No. 9), DE Wyatt Teller (No. 59), FS Holland Fisher (No. 83), QB Bucky Hodges (No. 171)
247Sports
Team Total 100 247 5* 4* 3* Avg. Pts. 9. Florida State 22 4 6 1 10 10 89.78 755.58 14. Virginia Tech 20 2 5 1 6 13 88.85 741.92 15. Clemson 23 2 5 0 10 11 88.04 737.77 19. Miami 17 5 6 0 6 11 89.00 734.14 28. North Carolina 17 0 1 0 6 11 87.69 726.74 29. Virginia 22 1 2 0 7 13 86.55 725.04 31. Maryland 23 1 1 0 3 14 83.87 719.45 32. Pittsburgh 27 1 2 1 1 20 83.81 716.37 60. N.C. State 22 0 0 0 1 15 82.00 685.84 69. Syracuse 19 0 0 0 0 11 80.95 678.36 77. Duke 20 0 0 0 0 11 80.70 671.43 78. Georgia Tech 14 0 1 0 1 11 83.29 671.43 81. Wake Forest 25 0 0 0 0 12 79.20 666.91 94. Boston College 15 0 0 0 0 7 80.40 655.38
Top-ranked Virginia Tech signees: Fuller (No. 31), Fisher (No. 36), Teller (No. 110), Hodges (No. 114), RB D.J. Reid (No. 234)
ESPN
Team Total 150 300 5* 4* 3* 9. Florida State 22 7 12 1 13 7 13. Clemson 23 6 10 1 15 7 19. Virginia Tech 22 2 4 0 11 11 20. North Carolina 17 1 5 0 11 6 21. Miami 17 6 6 0 8 9 34. Virginia 22 1 1 0 5 16 41. Pittsburgh 28 1 2 0 2 23 45. Maryland 22 0 0 0 5 14 60. Wake Forest 25 0 0 0 1 19 64. Georgia Tech 14 0 0 0 0 11 65. Duke 20 0 0 0 0 18 66. N.C. State 26 0 0 0 1 19 -- Syracuse 19 0 0 0 0 15 -- Boston College 17 0 0 0 0 9
Top-ranked Virginia Tech signees: Fuller (No. 18), Fisher (No. 98), CB Cequan Jefferson (No. 229), OL Braxton Pfaff (No. 254)
February 7, 2013 - 11:49 AM
Is the a typo with Miami in the Rivals rankings? (6 five stars, but only one player in the top 100 and 0 in the top 250?). Thanks
Andy the info above indicates that ESPN does not consider ESPN 18 Fuller a 5 star athlete. Is that correct? Do you know where the 5 and 4 cut-off is? What ESPN ranks are the Clemson or FSU 5 stars? Thanks.
Sorry, some of the columns got messed up in formatting. They should be correct now. Obviously, Miami did not have six five-star guys. It should be fixed now.
Looking at ESPN’s rankings, there are only 11 five-star guys. That’s a much more exclusive group that the other sites.
I believe that if Drew Harris had signed we would be higher.
Interesting TSL article the other day about the star rating system. Nationally there are usually about 25 five star recruits and 250 four star. Say the number one four star recruit is ranked 26th nationally and the lowest rated four star recruit is #275. All things being equal, the #26 guy is likely, but not always, to prove to be the better player but when it comes to how the teams are compared i.e. averaging and/or totaling the star ratings, it can be somewhat misleading because they are considered equal. This of course adds to the perception that this is at best an inexact science. Perhaps another star is needed? I really have no quarrel with the system. People (we fans included) want to know how a certain school fared relative to others so they came up with this metric; the kids and coaches take it from there.
Andy if you’ve not already addressed it maybe you could talk about totaling the stars versus averaging. Miami for instance only had 17 recruits but they averaged higher than CU in 247 and if they went by that metric they would go from #8 to #2 in the Rivals ranking.
Here is a listing of ESPN’s rankings:
http://insider.espn.go.com/college-sports/football/recruiting/classrankings/_/class/2013/date/20130206
Did VT have any chance to get Cristin Hackenberg (Fort Union) or Jonathan Allen (Ashburn)
All right, I’ve messed this up horribly from the start. The 247Sports rankings I had previously were composite rankings that average all the recruiting sites’ rankings. (For some reason that’s the default at 247.)
The rankings up there now are the actual 247Sports rankings, which have VT a little higher.
In the end, it doesn’t matter. The recruits are the same, regardless of what they are ranked.
The coaches went after Hodges as their quarterback in this class pretty hard from the beginning, so I’m guessing no on Hackenberg.
VT never seemed to be on Allen’s radar. Not quite sure why. But I don’t think he seriously considered the Hokies from the start.
I think Alabama, Florida, FSU and even some distant schools like USC can come in to Virginia and grab our top 5 talent any time they want to. Look at this year, only 2 of top 5 stayed in state, the rest went to Alabama, Penn State and I can’t remember the third. It’s ashamed but it’s been going for a long time. The teams that take change over the years but the result is the same.
There’s only two ways to stop that; Win and put guys in the NFL for careers (not just fodder to be cut in week 2). Guys get the big eyes for Alabama and they’re possessed. Ask Phillip Sims how that worked out. Andy I would love to know how many of those top 10 Virginia talents that go out of state sink or swim. Alabama is an interesting place for a recruit. Doesn’t matter how many guys are in front of you, many of them will declare for the NFL and be out of your way before you’re a sophomore and if Alabama is recruiting you you’re a TV dinner (heat and eat) so you’ll be ready to go as soon as there’s room. They don’t miss much on recruits because the risk has been filtered. VT not so much. Frank Beamer is being asked who has a chance to not redshirt, Sabin’s recruits all fit that category of readiness. Look at there running backs – guys are 245 and built like Mack trucks and when one leaves early (as they always do) there’s another who looks just like him ready to take his place.
Andy besides my curiousity on how many of those guys going to the big boys from Virginia succeed I’m curious how those recruit rankings balance out over a recruiting cycle, 4-5 years. If your ranking is somewhat based on how many recruits you get, it’s also based on how many scholarships you have to give. So Miami moves down the list because they only have 15 scholly’s, but over the 4 year period they still recruit like crazy. Do I understand it correctly?
Pretty much. There’s no doubt that a bigger class makes it easier to rank higher in the rankings, which are used ranked on volume.
Look at Miami’s rank this year. It’s 44th on Rivals, since the ‘Canes only had 15 signees. But their average was 3.40, which was second in the ACC.
Some years, you just don’t have a lot of slots (especially in Miami’s case, which is in limbo with the NCAA stuff). So it’s going to vary from year to year.
#10 Which is why I think Miami’s class got slighted.
Wouldn’t worry too much about being out recruited by FSU. They have a higher percentage of recruits landing in jail.
#9 Good info. Couple fairly good QB sure left Va. Clemson/Florida State.
Para 2 – UVA to be losing annualy sure have a lot playing on Sunday (Not Practice Squad), Matt Schaub, Canty (cut yesterday but will resign for less millions, Rhonde/Tiki (Retired after grat career) Barber.3 offensive lineman, Albert, Ferguson 3??.
#9: Lets see:
Brandon Flowers, nope, not cut week 2. KC Chiefs.
Kam Chancellor, nope, not cut week 2. Seattle.
Mike Vick, nope, not cut week 2. Eagles (although he might move again).
Tyrod Taylor, nope, not cut week 2. Ravens. Ring.
Perliou. 16 seasons if I remeber right. Ring with the Saints.
Ryan Williams. nope, not cut week 2. Cardinals. Injury issues.
David Wilson, nope, not cut week 2. Giants. Looks good for #1 in the fall.
Jayron Hosley, nope, not cut week 2. Giants. Regular DB roatation.
DeAngelo Hall, nope, not cut week 2. Redskins. Starter.
Josh Morgan, nope, not cut week 2. Redskins. Starter (despite some serious goofs).
Jeff King, nope, not cut week 2. Cardinals. Starter.
Jarrett Boykin, nope, not cut week 2. Packers. Up for more time this fall with Driver retired.
Duane Brown, nope, not cut week 2. Houston. Starter.
Shane Graham, nope, not cut week 2. Houston. Long career as a K.
Jason Woirlds, nope, not cut week 2. Steelers.
James Anderson, nope. not cut week 2. KC Chiefs.
Roc Charmichael, nope not cut week 2. Houston.
Xavier Adibi, nope, not cut week 2. Tennessee.
Darryl Tapp, nope, not cut week 2. Eagles.
Will Montgomery, nope, not him either. Redskins
Now we do have some guys on Injured Reserve:
Cody Grimm
Ed Whitley
Eddie Royal
And a couple guys on the taxi squads:
Darren Evans
Danny Coale
And we have some guys who hung around a couple seasons:
Macho Harris comes to mind but there were a bunch of other guys like, oh, Cornell Brown. And, oh, Torrian Gray. And then there is Bruce Arians…
I am pretty sure I overlooked some others but I do believe that your comment about VT guys not doing well in the NFL is, well, not to be taken seriously. Try to write when you know what you are talking about, OK?
Oh, and I guess its so long ago no one cares but I do seem to remember someone named Strock. Then there was a Carroll Dale. And didn’t we have some Smith guy who was #1 in the NFL draft ……
Thanks for playing…. come back soon.
Zman, good response. Not sure if you intentionally put Flowers on the top of your list but IMHO he might be the best VT alum now playing in the NFL. Saw him only once this year (he plays for the Chiefs, need I say more?) but he played very well. Still has that incredible quick burst. Gruden gushed about him calling him one of the best CB’s in the NFL. It’s a shame no one gets to see him.
Isn’t it too bad we don’t have two college football seasons? One in the fall and the other when the NBA plays…
Virginia recruits will continue to leave for greener pastures until VT and UVA get their coaching issues resolved. I don’t see anyone in the VT 2013 recruit classes that will guarantee the Hokies will finish better than 7-5. The exception might be Hodges and you will probably see him playing sooner rather than later. Just not convinced Logan Thomas can consistently do a good job, not unless Coale and Boykin come back in disguise.
Wow, ESPN is helping to kill the ACC. I didn’t even know there was an ESPN 3, but that’s where Duke and NC State are playing, while Texas A & M vs Missouri and UCLA vs Washington are on ESPN 1 and 2. ESPNU is showing Belmont vs Murray State. What the $)!! is ESPN doing?
Go away Barry
#18: Dude! You have future shock. Do you really believe there is a kid in the country who can;t watch that game on their computer? Don;t you know that free tv is dead and cable is dying?
I pay and I still don’t get. I refuse to watch a game on this stupid computer, but I would appreciate an update.
Speaking of Hokies in the NFL. I know that it has been a long time since this guy played but remember Bruce Smith? That guy was terrific! Great career at VT and in the NFL.
Hey Barry, per Doug Doughty 18 of the states top 30 went to either UVA or VT.Does not look like they are all seeking greener pastures.60% stayed close to home. Try posting posting fact based logic in lieu of constantly going from the sublime to the ridiculous. Your GT bunch sure underwhelmed all with their less than stellar 2013 recruiting efforts.
GT 2013 Football-14 recruits and did not get any four or five star recruits-Paul Johnson needs to look for greener pastures Barry.
#21 Perch, for future reference – you can go to ESPN.com, the college hoops section and check out the box scores. They update every minute or so, and you can find out what’s going on there. Perhaps you already knew that, or were being facetious above. If not, that’s a good way to follow away games or games not televised for you locally. If nothing else, it allows you to see who’s playing well, etc. For the non-televised games, it’s nice to see the stats.