re: Realistic=Optimistic

What I consider disappointing is the way LSU played for the last two years in a row. Recruiting rankings are just dreams. What counts is what happens on the field. LSU has looked increasingly lost, like the whole team fabric is unraveling, right before our very eyes. The Tigers looked like their old dominant selves a total of one whole game last season, versus Auburn. Otherwise, it just came and went in flashes.
_____________________

I wouldn't say that recruiting rankings are totally immaterial: they do say a lot about the overall talent level of a team and the health of a program. But your point is well taken. Ultimately what matters is how the talent translates to the field. I agree that the last two seasons have been disappointing. At this point, however, I still look on them as an inevitable down period in the wake of the Perrilloux mess and the loss of Pellini. The next year or two will tell whether that is the case or if there are deeper problems.