http://www.saturdaydownsouth.com/2014/four-lsu-players-leave-the-program/ Four more to leave the program. With this and NFL departs, attrition is really starting to build up.
LSU losing more players
- Thread starter Rocknrolltide
- Start date
Its a good year to be a walk-on at LSU. Micah Eugene and Phillips leaving will hurt the most. I guess that English 101 class is a real stickler for those Cajuns.
Somebody said Miles was having as much trouble with Roster Management 101 as he has with Time Management 101. As a Louisiana resident, this news makes me smile a tiny bit.
Unfortunately..We feel their pain about losing so many players..I truly wish the NFL would put an end to allowing underclassmen forgoing their senior year by jumping to the NFL..Some folks will disagree & argue otherwise, but, by allowing this to happen, it has truly hurt college football tremendously..It's particularly has hurt football programs like Bama & other big-time college football programs..
I don't think that it hurts the Alabamas of the world, as it creates space for a full recruiting class each year and actually encourages more top recruits to come to Alabama. It does hurt the middle tiered teams, who need to keep their best players as long as possible because they are so hard to replace in those programs.
Maybe it hurts the sport because it hurts those other teams which deteriorates parity, but I think that it helps my two favorite teams.
Sadly, I feel that football is going the way of basketball. Basketball is one and done, football is three and done.
I think they need to change the rule to allow only those who have graduated or have finished 4 years out of high school. I also believe it should not be universal. I believe a player should have to grade out as a first or second rounder to be accepted in the draft. That sounds crazy but the NFL is just like every other employer. Try walking in off the street and get a job at the place I work, it doesn't work like that. You have to have the right work history and education. The NFL should be able to set whatever standard they see fit.
This season an unpresidented number of early entrants are NOT going to make a team. The vast majority of those players will never make a team. How many of them would have done so had they taken another year of college. It's not a matter of speculation, it's numbers. The roster limits of the NFL are static and the players coming into the draft are going up. It's just a matter of numbers.
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I'm not so sure about that. We've had some underclassmen leave that if they would have come back would more than likely have
Last year DJ Fluker, Eddie Lacy and Dee Milliner left early. How much different would our OL had performed if Fluker had come back? Lacy was a beast and there's no doubt in my mind Dee would have made a big difference as well.
From a recruiting standpoint it may have some impact but seeing how recruiting stars and rankings don't always translate into players panning out on the field. I think its hard to hold that aspect of it up against losing players that have proven what they can do on the field.
My point is that it allows a more continuous flow of great players through a system like Alabama's. Instead of seeing peaks and valleys in talent, Alabama almost always has great players on the field at almost every position - with quality depth in development. Sure, it might hurt you in a season in which you have a weakness behind your players leaving, but it probably helps more years than it hurts.
Consider that Alabama has had 12 recruits leave early under Saban - that number hits 17 this year. That amounts to 17 fewer recruits signing with Alabama over that time. Even if all 17 only play 3 years, that is 51 seasons of potential playing time traded for 17 - and that number is probably closer to 60. You certainly wouldn't have the type of quality depth at every position without those incoming 17 players. Even if you assume that 6 of the 17 is a "miss", you still trade 17 seasons of play for 40+. The odds are still in your favor.
Even if it doesn't help you, it doesn't hurt. But it does hurt the weaker teams, and that does help you. That is why I see it as a net plus for teams like Alabama.
I don't think it's a coincidence that Alabama's greatest period of dominance has coincided with an all time high in the number of juniors declaring early. Saban himself has said he encourages his players to leave early if they receive a high round grade because it opens up spots for younger players. I don't really see what the issue is.
Both stances come with some form of a price tag. But I don't see how we wouldn't still be able to have good quality of depth. Sure you have some recruits who have issues with immediate playing time but there are still a lot of talented four star recruits who will still come to Alabama to play.
If we've got five players choosing to stay for their senior year rather than leaving early it's not like we're not going to be able to recruit the same quality of player the year after they leave. We're just replacing those five schollies a year later and more than likely replacing with equal talent. If you're scenario played that much toward the good then why is Saban being quoted in articles preaching against it? And trust me, though his public reasoning is the "good of the kid" the other reason is because of the good of his team. Much like his argument of "safety" against the HUNH. We all knew why he was really arguing against it. His defensive scheme was compromised by them. If it was about safety we would not be going to a more HUNH look this year.
I think Saban knows the benefit of more senior laden teams. I'm sure he's thought through every scenario before he started preaching against the early departures.
Two things:
1) We are able to get a full class by guys going pro early. Otherwise, the number crunch would be pretty difficult.
2) Say the guys didn't leave this year. Do we get all the guys we are getting? Probably not. That means they go elsewhere, most likely to a team in the SEC. The more quality players available, the easier for other teams to compete with Alabama on a regular basis. It's a trickle down effect. Bama can't take 5* Recruit X, so he goes to Auburn. Therefore, Auburn can't take 4* Recruit W, so he goes to Mississippi State. It would lead to more parity in college football.
These other teams would have the same "problem". Auburn, Miss. St, LSU etc. would be in the same boat as Alabama if underclassman weren't allowed to leave early. They would be in the same number crunch.
Having kids stay their senior year would put a better product on the field and it would also allow those players who need another year of development to get that without being forced into action before they are truly ready. Parity is already here. It came busting through the door when the 85 schollie limit hit.
Even if it did push some more talent to lower tiered schools I very seriously doubt it would be enough to threaten Alabama's success.
Two things:
First, I am not saying that you are wrong. I am just offering a different perspective and opinion.
Second, my responses in this thread are only taking into account what is better for the schools, not the players. I believe that Saban is opposed to this because he thinks that it is hurting the players who are getting and taking bad career advice from agents. He fully supports almost every Alabama player who has followed his model for making this decision. Of the 17 who will have left early, he fully supported at least 15.
Oh I know. Just participating in the debate.
I agree, Saban probably is taking a stance from the player's well being standpoint. But I'd venture to bet it's not the only reason. Again, I point to the HUNH offense issue from Saban as a reference.
Personally, I think the net result would not be a closure in the gap of success between Alabama and lower tiered schools. I think the biggest difference we'd see is the quality of play on the field get better.
Attrition, and I'm leaving it just that general, is going to come to ultra successful programs. LSU has been bitten hard with the junior exodus the last few years and personally, I think, to some degree, reflex on the perception of where the players feel the next year's team is heading. Position coaches and of course the head coach contribute to each ones personal assessment as well.
At Bama a lot of our attrition has been occurring after spring ball. Frankly, I'm thrilled when it does. I honestly hope the players and coaches continue to take spring practice to evaluate if they can compete and how they continue to fit into the program.
At Bama a lot of our attrition has been occurring after spring ball. Frankly, I'm thrilled when it does. I honestly hope the players and coaches continue to take spring practice to evaluate if they can compete and how they continue to fit into the program.
Sure we've been able to overcome because of the level of recruiting Coach Saban recruits at..Imagine how good we could've been had our players had stayed at Bama..I have no doubts we would have fielded perhaps some of the best teams ever in the college level..
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