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What makes LSU so good at finding diamonds in the rough?
Posted on 4/25/13 at 1:21 pm
Posted on 4/25/13 at 1:21 pm
Is our scouting department just that top flight? M Claiborne, T Mathieu, K Sheppard, Lavar Edwards, Lamin Barrow. The list goes on and on of 3 star guys who end up being great players. Are they just under the radar or is LSU just that good at developing talent?
17
Posted on 4/25/13 at 1:22 pm to Mattwells90
The state is loaded with talent. Especially in small towns where kids are not seen, you'll find diamonds in the rough.
This post was edited on 4/25/13 at 1:25 pm
Posted on 4/25/13 at 1:26 pm to Mattwells90
Micah Eugene was a diamond in the rough too.
Our under rated recruits, 3* or below, are better than majority of other 3* or below recruits. Plus, there are a lot of areas around LA that doesn't get a lot of media publicity that is loaded with talent. River parishes, Acadiana / Breaux Bridge area.
Our under rated recruits, 3* or below, are better than majority of other 3* or below recruits. Plus, there are a lot of areas around LA that doesn't get a lot of media publicity that is loaded with talent. River parishes, Acadiana / Breaux Bridge area.
Posted on 4/25/13 at 1:30 pm to Mattwells90
We just have certain intrinsic advantages to turning up talent in La. Couple reasons being that it's easier for kids to get to LSU's camp vs other schools, there's a network of HS coaches that can easily get in touch with LSU, word of mouth, etc.
The only out of state guy you mentioned was Sheppard - he was underrated by the services but not necessarily a diamond in the rough. He had some big SEC offers, so it was the ranking services that dropped the ball there, but schools knew he was talented.
Not to discredit our scouting department because we also turn up some talent from out of state, but I think just being the school in Louisiana and having that network gives LSU a huge upperhand on local diamonds in the rough.
The only out of state guy you mentioned was Sheppard - he was underrated by the services but not necessarily a diamond in the rough. He had some big SEC offers, so it was the ranking services that dropped the ball there, but schools knew he was talented.
Not to discredit our scouting department because we also turn up some talent from out of state, but I think just being the school in Louisiana and having that network gives LSU a huge upperhand on local diamonds in the rough.
Posted on 4/25/13 at 1:54 pm to Mattwells90
I'll echo what others said about Louisiana and add that Miles has done a great job in building relations around the state so they are able to thoroughly evaluate players in the state with accurate information.
Long story short, they don't get bullshyted by Louisiana high school coaches, because these coaches have too much respect for them. If certain coaches tell LSU they need to look at player X, LSU will know they aren't being sold a scam story.
Long story short, they don't get bullshyted by Louisiana high school coaches, because these coaches have too much respect for them. If certain coaches tell LSU they need to look at player X, LSU will know they aren't being sold a scam story.
This post was edited on 4/25/13 at 1:55 pm
Posted on 4/25/13 at 2:06 pm to Mattwells90
Our staff does a good job of evaluating the state. Rivals/scout high school evaluators are HORRIBLE in our region so these kids are not popular to the public but our staff at LSU certainly knows the talent. When they commit, the websites see an LSU commit and slap a 3 star by the name. Not a case of underrated, more under evaluated by recruiting websites.
Posted on 4/25/13 at 2:12 pm to Mattwells90
I think it's a product of how little exposure players get outside of one or two power schools and the great amount of talent the state has.
Posted on 4/25/13 at 2:28 pm to Mattwells90
A combination of scouting, and our players being underrated due to our state not producing a ton of recruiting site $$$$. Our scouting director left recently if I remember correctly though.
Posted on 4/25/13 at 2:31 pm to Mattwells90
Notice that all the guys being mentioned in this thread are on defense.
Which leads me to believe that finding talented players is the easy part, but it's all about how they are coached and developed.
We've always been able to develop our defensive players leading back to when Saban got here.
We also find talented players on offense, but for whatever reason have trouble coaching them to full potential. The statistics over the last 5 years or so show this.
Hopefully with Cameron on board, the offense can catch up with our defense with player development.
Which leads me to believe that finding talented players is the easy part, but it's all about how they are coached and developed.
We've always been able to develop our defensive players leading back to when Saban got here.
We also find talented players on offense, but for whatever reason have trouble coaching them to full potential. The statistics over the last 5 years or so show this.
Hopefully with Cameron on board, the offense can catch up with our defense with player development.
Posted on 4/25/13 at 2:35 pm to Mattwells90
very talented area
very talented, highly compensated evaluators
very talented, highly compensated evaluators
Posted on 4/25/13 at 2:52 pm to Mattwells90
quote:T. Mathieu was a 4 star recruited heavily by Tennessee, he was not in the rough. Barrow was a 4 star for most of the recruiting cycle but got bumped down to a 3 star during the final rankings. He was from the Nola area and was well know. Also not in the rough. Lavar Edwards was a Katrina displacement I believe who had talent but no real position, and Miles took a chance on him that worked out. Claiborne and Sheppard certainly were underrated by the services, but Sheppard also had a Tennessee offer as Chavis liked his talent since HS.
M Claiborne, T Mathieu, K Sheppard, Lavar Edwards, Lamin Barrow
I think it's a misconception to say these guys were diamonds in the rough. All big programs take chances on 3 stars that they believe have the potential to either contribute or completely outplay what they show in HS and recruiting camps. the ones you listed all happened to work out, while numerous others with similar ratings that signed with big programs fizzled out or never saw the field outside of special teams.
Posted on 4/25/13 at 6:16 pm to Mattwells90
They are excellent at both the recruiting and developing of players. Recently they have been as good as anybody in recruiting. They definetely know what they are doing in building a complete team with depth.
Posted on 4/25/13 at 9:37 pm to Mattwells90
UHHHH, we awesome, thats why! 
Posted on 4/26/13 at 12:42 am to Mattwells90
One of the biggest reasons for LSU's recruiting success with lower profile players is
SAM NADER
Sam's been around LSU for a LONG time. He has developed his system for spotting talent at an early age. He probally has an indepth list for the '16 signing class.
As for the players specifically. Look no farther than the river region and the west bank. That area probally produces a couple dozen Corey Websters, Jarvis Landrys and Laron Landrys every year. Guys that are 5'10" to 6'1" and weigh 175 to 190 lbs. LSU has been able to spot and sign the better ones.
These kids are just great athletes and can play multiple rolls on a team, WR and DB with a few RBs sprinkled in. Some fillout to be LBs. The big ones turn into D-linemen.
SAM NADER
Sam's been around LSU for a LONG time. He has developed his system for spotting talent at an early age. He probally has an indepth list for the '16 signing class.
As for the players specifically. Look no farther than the river region and the west bank. That area probally produces a couple dozen Corey Websters, Jarvis Landrys and Laron Landrys every year. Guys that are 5'10" to 6'1" and weigh 175 to 190 lbs. LSU has been able to spot and sign the better ones.
These kids are just great athletes and can play multiple rolls on a team, WR and DB with a few RBs sprinkled in. Some fillout to be LBs. The big ones turn into D-linemen.
Posted on 4/26/13 at 10:35 am to Mattwells90
quote:
Mattwells90
Our coaching staff is better at evaluating talent than rivals or 247 scouts. That's a good thing.
Posted on 4/26/13 at 3:46 pm to Mattwells90
quote:
What makes LSU so good at finding diamonds in the rough
because unlike the Urban Myers of the world we don't rely on the internet for our recruiting leads.
Posted on 4/28/13 at 11:20 am to Mattwells90
It's not Les Miles and staff. Lucky for us we found an old notebook of little nicki's that listed top recruits aged 3 to 18 and we're using that.
Posted on 4/28/13 at 4:52 pm to Mattwells90
A lot of kids out there aren't really diamonds in the rough , they just don't get the pub from the recruiting gurus for whatever reason. The ratings in the recruiting game are of dubious value, because as you guys know most of these so called experts have never seen most of the kids who are out there play.
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