Thought this deserves it’s own thread, so as to not muddy the player recruitment thread. Doc. Sinclair (aka Cinco) threw a lot out and down on Basilio yesterday, insofar as ‘cruiting. I’ll list these in bullet form, just as I heard / can recall them, and not necessarily in linear order. I will try to be as close to verbatim as possible, but even if not, the gist will hopefully be an accurate representation. You can listen to it yourself, either on Basilio’s app, or on the interwebz (click on the 11/6/19 podcast), here: http://tonybasilio.com/index.php?page=mp3_archives&which_shows=tony#archive_player Overall Recruiting Only Pruitt and Moose are taking recruiting seriously. The rest are coasting. This is known to many, both inside the program and beyond, particularly around the league, and has been for awhile, since many stepped on campus. “They have one great recruiter over there other than Pruitt (Moose), and the rest are “going through the motions”. The one coach is doing well in Memphis this year, but hasn’t done shit else. Some assistant coaches haven’t done shit, don’t intend to do shit, and seemingly don’t care to hide that fact. Hinted that some coaches know that they won’t be back next year, and have basically shut it down on the recruiting trail, as a result. He didn’t mention specific names. Sherrer is only here under the “friends and family plan” (no idea what that means) and hasn’t signed anyone of note in two years. This on top of being demoted from DC spot last year. Says Pruitt is spread too thin, and has been too trusting of assistant coaches to keep up with recruiting momentum while he focuses on the season, and particularly on keeping close ties on committed recruits. They are failing him, and he’s failing in thinking the head coach can be as removed from the process as Pruitt has been. In-State Recruiting Pruitt has [uck fay]ed up in recruiting the state for a host of reasons, including: Making in-state kids wait longer on offers, and Not being open and available to TN high school coaches, and Not regularly being out and about in the state, and Basically not allowing or being more accessible around the state has really hurt him in building relationships with the very people around the state who should be feeders to the program, but now aren’t. The consequences of these choices have resulted in TN losing in-state kids to other equivalent / better programs, including (I am well aware that I’m butchering these names - recall, I only heard them all) Zion Load Joe Anderson Bill Norton Ripka Tyler Baron in Knoxville (says watch out for OSU) Cinco hinted that Pruitt’s lack of accessibility extends even to his assistant coaches, and that perhaps some don’t feel like they can go to him to ask for help when a recruitment turns squirrelly. Tosh Lapoi Both the hosts seemed - strongly inferred? implicitly stated? - to think that Lapoi is coming to TN next year, ostensibly, as Rocker’s replacement. As you’ll see below, as to Hardy, Basilio’s recruiting guy (“X”) seems to agree, and treats Lapoi’s arrival as being a foregone conclusion, already predicting what he’ll do, once here. Hardy Noted that we were ghosted by Hardy yesterday, and were "blindsided" by Barn commit today. Says Pruitt is livid - “f’ing pissed”. Also says he can’t understand how the staff were “blindsided” because it's been widely known for weeks that Garner and Auburn were bending the kid's ear and gaining traction. Says that Auburn simply beat our offer, and added that if you think Tennessee isn’t engaged in the same, that you’re “naive”. Wondered why in the hell someone didn't get in the car and get their ass down there to Hardy’s house 1.5 hours away (which seems to be a fair question). Sherrer was Hardy’s lead recruiter - not Rocker - and says Gardner “absolutely smoked” him on Hardy, plain and simple. Basilio’s recruiting guy (“X”) says that Hardy won’t sign until February, and that “he could see Lapoi getting on campus (as an assistant) and recruiting him hard enough to swing him back to TN”. TN Optics Beyond TN Says everyone over there and around the league knows that TN isn't taking recruiting seriously, are coasting and that they basically see us as the kid to steal off of. Says some schools simply let us go find the kids off the radar and then they swoop in and snag them, once they hear we’ve given them a committable offer. GA ST & BYU Losses Says failing to prepare for GA ST and losing to BYU has absolutely killed us on the trail this year. Much more than most realize. He says that many wonder how we’re losing commits now, and while we’re playing great, but explains that those first two games are why most of these commits started looking around, particularly the higher rated. Worse, it was chum in the water for other schools, who saw a gigantic weakness emerge and which signaled them to start going hard after our guys as a result, and with a fantastic piece of negative recruiting to use against us. He said that the blooms of these defections are merely the seeds planted by those two terrible losses. Basically said that these two losses doubly-hurt by not only rendering our sizable efforts toward some elite talent essentially meaningless, but also left us struggling just to try to get in with the next downward tier of players. We were not only late to the party on many, but those who we sort of slow-played while chasing the bigger fish, and who were being busily and hotly recruited by and building relationships with other schools who wanted them more. That’s a tough row to hoe. VOL CALLS I accidentally caught Pruitt’s spot on Vol Calls last night, and just as he was lamenting the limited time he has with recruits. He said that recruits used to take OV’s for 48hrs, but that many now want to come in on Saturday morning, catch a game and fly out on Sunday morning....but he’s busy coaching the team, keeping up with our guys, and that he doesn’t get to spend a lot of time with them....while they are on campus on an OV....ostensibly, to spend time with the coaches....especially the head coach. Just a quick and random aside. Surely, he isn’t the only coach who also face the same, and have somehow managed to make it work. Cinco tends to be a pretty reliable insider and a measured source as to what’s going on over there, generally speaking, but take it with a grain of salt, reject it all, offer your own theories, etc.
Pruitt doesn't go out much during the season unless there's a bye week. That's not really any different from other coaches. He's had no problem getting with high schools until fall camp starts because he's coaching, something that every other head coach does. There is dead weight recruiting wise on this staff. Pruitt has no problem replacing guys. Johnson was hired to recruit Memphis, so he's doing his job. Tee has been a let down recruiting wise. Weinke and Sherrer bring nothing of value. Rumph hasn't recruited well, but he's a good coach. Rocker isn't and has never been a recruiter, his value is coaching. Lupoi is a good coach and great recruiter, though. You've got to balance great on the field coaches with great recruiters, Pruitt is still trying to find it.
There will be changes, I could see Bryan McClendon coming in to coach an offensive position while either Johnson or Tee leaves, or Tee goes to QBs, Johnson back to WRs and McClendon to RBs. Tosh is a guy every college wants and Cleveland seems to want to get rid of, so that will be a bidding war. Pittman taking over for Friend is still out there.
Tee doesn't want to be here as soon as he saw how dysfunctional and disorganized recruiting is. He's looking to leave and will jump on any comparable offer. It's very true the assistants that know they're gone haven't recruited and some have treated this as a retirement job since they got here. There will be a good amount of turnover. If Champ uses McClendon as a scapegoat, he will be here. Tosh is pretty much a certainty. Chaney and Pruitt still working Pittman. Pruitt's done what he can in-state. It's been the assistants lack of recruiting that has caused a lot of them to go elsewhere. Example: Ty Simpson, 2022 top 50 overall QB recruit out in Martin, TN has wanted to commit to UT for awhile but his dad has made him hold off. He constantly tries to connect w/ Weinke and other assistants to stay in touch, but they won't return his texts or DMs. UTMartin president personally told Fulmer all of this, who then had to let Pruitt know. Basically every SEC school, and all of the big national schools, are recruiting him and have seen him practice except UT.
I don't see Tee getting much if a better gig. He's untouchable here by the fans and Fulmer wants to groom him to be a head coach
Just for clarity, who is Moose? Because it says Pruitt and Moose and then next to Pruitt's name Moose is in parenthesis, which I'm to imply that's his nickname. Also, I didn't see any mention of Niedemeyer. I thought he was one of our ace recruiters. If he's the other guy other than Pruitt, then nevermind. He was just never mentioned specifically. On the subject of recruiting, I hope we finish strong. We need more help everywhere.
Thanks for posting. Zion Load made me laugh, though. A lot of that seems like exaggeration, but the lack of recruiting from asst coaches feels spot on.
Also the late offers to UT kids is so overblown. They like to use that excuse in TN for some reason, but you never hear that from Georgia, Florida, Texas or Bama kids.
Correct - sorry for the confusion. I’d say if Meyer gets the SC job, that Moose goes back home to the West Coast.
These articles always seem to come up after bad news and never written as predictors. As of the SC game, recruits were raving about the visit, time with coaches and atmosphere, which included a Madden game vs Pruitt. Regardless, they better pick it up. I just dont buy a lot of stuff that comes up in opportunistic times. Hardy lied to the coaches and team. He committed in June and wore freaking UT gloves last Friday night.
I think it's somewhere in the middle. Tenny always gives the most extreme rendering of everything, so I don't entirely buy the massive malfunctions, either. They are, clearly, doing some good things over there. However, this isn't the first time I've heard there are some dead weight folks in regards to the coaching staff and recruiting is a big part of this problem with those coaches. We are looking a little pedestrian on the recruiting front.
This can't be allowed to happen. He doesn't need to be given a blank check, rather the whole check book to do as he pleases. He needs to stay in Knoxville by whatever means necessary.
For the record, X believes that Hardy's recruitment will go to February and seems to like UT's chances if Lupoi comes here.
