Recruiting Observations

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Lane Kiffin said during his Signing Day press conference that USC never had a chance with DT Ellis McCarthy because his father liked UCLA. That said, USC privately thought it could land McCarthy up until a couple weeks before Signing Day.
Another interesting comment was that USC lost offensive linemen to Stanford because the Cardinal play between 6-8 linemen per game instead of 5.
Maybe USC should adopt a similar policy. Few of last year’s starters exactly locked down spots to the point where they need not share time. So why not rotate a series or two a game? I wouldn’t have minded seeing Aundrey Walker a series a game last season.

30 thoughts on “Recruiting Observations”

  1. Look out everbody, coach Wolf is here! With ground breaking thoughts and deep football knowledge like his, we can never lose!

  2. I hate to admit it, but Wolf might be partially right. Where it makes sense, I think he should allow for more playing time for the second unit. It should help with the potential injury issue. How many second stringers played against the little gutties after it was really over? Of course, we all loved 50-0. Play second stringers against every one but ND and the little gutties…

  3. Peat was a silent verbal, and his mother said he was coming to USC. Obviously, that didn’t materialize.
    Would still like to know the real story with Carlisle and whether burning a redshirt year but hardly playing was a factor.

  4. And this is why Wolf is little more than a monkey with a keyboard, and Lane Kiffin is the head coach. One of them knows football.

  5. McCarthy made his own choice… Like the kid from Louisiana who picked Alabama this year over his mom’s objections. There is another reason why McCarthy chose UCLA…

  6. Well if you remember before last season everyone thought the O line would suck and had no depth. I agree going forward this would be a good thing.

  7. USC NEVER had a chance with McCarthy, it was McCarthy’s dream to one day be a Bruin…the only reason he ever committed to Cal is because RN and his staff didn’t recruit him hard like Cal did…there are many pictures of Ellis in UCLA gear when he was 12 or 13 years old and as a high school student.

  8. Offensive line play depends on coordinating all 5 blockers’ actions; therefore, they act more as a unit than as individual players. Thus, it is difficult to plug in back-ups and expect the same communication standards.

  9. I’ve just renamed this site, instead of “Inside USC”, I’m changing the name to “Same Old Tired BS”
    Great reporting starts with my own very tired opinion of how things should be run.

  10. BruinRob may well be correct. After all, there are many pictures of BruinRob as a kid dressed as the Hamburglar.

    You do the math.

  11. The fact that Stanford plays that many lineman doesn’t have to do so much with substituting 2nd string guys in for starters, but more about them bringing in lineman to play the tight end spots in goal line formations (which they use everywhere on the field)…anyone who watches a Stanford game can see that…

  12. Last week I asked Wolf if USC had any silent commits and he stated that he knew two (one offensive and one defensive), I am assuming that they were the FL recruits, Nelson A. and Leonard W. I don’t recall reading information that Peat was a silent commit or that he was serious about attending USC. I always thought that he was going to Neb to play alongside his brother. Can anyone confirm who the silent commits were? I am curious if it was a recruit that didn’t sign with USC. Thanks.

  13. USC NEVER had a chance with McCarthy, it was McCarthy’s dream to one day throw his college football career town the toilet at fucla…the only reason he ever committed to Cal is because RN and his staff were a complete laughing stock, and even McCarthy could see that…there are many embarrassing pictures of Ellis in UCLA gear when he was 12 or 13 years old and as a high school student. He thought he looked good in powder blue.

  15. i happen to know that mccarthy did want to come to USC and told the USC coaches that on several ocassions. his father was a huge bruin fan and ultimately that’s the reason he ended up there. i’m not dencouncing parents’ fan interest nor am i suggesting that mccarthy didn’t think ucla was a fine choice. but that is what happened. it goes that way at times: USC has been the beneficiary of parents wishes over kids wishes as well.

  16. Stop obsessing about Peat and Murphy! Stuff happens.

    Peat was admitted to Stanford right before signing day. He may well have intended to choose USC before that happened, and then he reconsidered.

    I have read criticisms of sending Pat Haden to see the Peat family and the Murphy family. That’s ridiculous! Both kids were considering Stanford for the academics. Pat Haden was a Rhodes Scholar, played a little in the NFL, was very successful outside of football. Besides being athletic director, he is/was a trustee of USC. Which other member of the athletic department could discuss academics at USC with Haden’s credibility? Or, by his willingness to travel to the family home, deliver the message that USC put a really high value on bringing the recruit there? Anyone who thinks that Pat Haden can’t sell USC knows nothing about business. If Kiffin really thought that Haden, his boss, lost those recruits, don’t think he’d be dumb enough to joke about it.

    It seemed from fall camp onward that Kiffin liked Carlisle a lot, and wanted him to get regular playing time as a freshman. Carlisle got hurt and couldn’t play for a few weeks, during which Curtis McNeal enjoyed a series of excellent games. By the time Carlisle could play, the most challenging games of the season had arrived. Kiffin would have been foolish not to stick with McNeal. Tyler, too, had diminished playing time during that part of the season.

    This relates to the notion of playing 6-8 different OLs. Who are the starters, and who are the substitutes, and how much does the performance drop off? Kiffin is a smart guy, and can appreciate the value of resting his starters for a series or two, if the #2 can perform well. As someone above wrote, USC was scrambling to assemble an adequate OL for the first half of the season, and finally found a combination that was working. Playing 6-8 OLs would have been silly.

    USC lost Prater and Butler in large part because of lack of playing time. But as Kiffin remarked, the only way to provide them more playing time was to bench Woods or Lee. Be serious! That would have been a dumb move.

    I have read several suggestions for two-tight-end formations next year, because USC has a lot of capable tight ends, and the NFL is doing it, along with Stanford. Again, be serious! How much better can the offensive possibilities get than Woods and Lee playing together against college-level defensive backs and defensive strategies? Stanford and Luck would have traded places with USC and Barkley in a second. Now, if Woods or Lee gets hurt, and the back-up is not great, then a two-tight-end approach might become really appealing.

    Coaches must weigh a lot of factors into strategy, including substitution patterns. Which rotation would enhance recruiting or deter transferring seems like a pretty unimportant factor.

  19. Oh wow, I’m getting more attention from you queens than than all the chicks on my dating site…I love it!! But, I hate to break it to you, I am not gay…so WEB go find Tyrone on Santa Monica Blvd…Jethro, “numbers” club is where I recommend you go seek some gay action…NOBS, you so fat and ugly not even a desperate kweer would even look at your ass…Karillo, WEB is feeling horny, how about you suck his 2-inch erected dyck…I will send a bushel of African Cucumbers for your gay orgy tonight, you bunch of flaming queenies…did I miss anybody??

  21. BruinRob, you’re the one constantly posting messages about homosexuality on an internet message board. What does that say?

    Your insults look like you invented them by using some sort of gay mad libs book. Just look at your two previous posts, talking about “gay action” and cucumbers and mopping the floor with used condoms (nice image). The other day you wrote that UCLA had “tapped condom ass” or some such gay-sounding nonsense.

    I think the REAL BruinRob is trying to emerge from the closet… not that there is anything wrong with that, as they used to say on “Seinfeld”.

    And hey, not everyone on this blog is a right-winger. I support your right to marry a dude.

  22. WEB “Your insults look like you invented them by using some sort of gay mad libs book”

    Insults? why would you be insulted when my statements about your homosexuality are factual? you know you spend your nights at “numbers” in West Hollywood with Jethro, SUC Owns, NOBS, and a couple others that will probably get upset when they see I forgot to mention their names..

  23. @bRuinSLOB: shut the hell up already! why the hell would SC need a running back when they’re returning Curtis McNeal (who rushed for over 1,000 yards)… and DJ Morgan who gained plenty of game experience last season? This isn’t Kevin Princess we’re talking about; our players don’t bitch n moan like fucla’s pansies.
    and a DT? uhhhhh….
    SC’s leading tacklers were 2 freshman linebackers, they return all-conference Nickell Robey, All-American TJ McDonald etc etc etc. LOL
    No, no, no, you’re right, SC will definitely suck… according to SCOUT.COM……
    bahahahahahaha

    mediocre on though, ucla
    FIGHT ON!!

  26. WEB, you gay boys wouldn’t make it out of your car, you’d be taking turns blowing each other.

    @Edward, STFU already, you’re starting to piss me off.

    @SUC owes, go have nobs tongue your ass.

  27. WEB, you gay boys wouldn’t make it out of your car, you’d be taking turns blowing each other.

    @Edward, STFU already, you’re starting to piss me off.

    @SUC owes, go have nobs tongue your ass.

  28. @BruinRobin: “UCLA got everyone they wanted”? Lost 4-star OL commit Lutui, but signed four 2-star commits. Actually, a good move by the Bruins new staff, eight stars for four. Helps the scout.com ratings.

  29. SUC, you missed it. SlobDusky’s old lady was had her tongue up my @$$ just before the SMACK and she died. It was OUTSTANDING.

  30. it wasn’t her tongue in your ass, it was your favorite toy, a 16 inch long, 3inch in diameter dildo she had up your ass.

    UCLA wiped the floor with the condoms in this recruiting class UCLA #11 SUC #20 Blight On!!

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