3-Star Offensive Lineman Plazz Commits to Miami Hurricanes' 2024 Recruiting Class

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Oline recruiting is much different than recruiting other positions. They always take longer to develop. And there is a complete difference between the 3stars we are recruiting on the OLine under Mario than we have in the past. These "kids" are all like 6'5 320lbs and athletic as ****. And sure while highly rated guys hit more often, after you get two 5 star top 15 players in the previous class at OT, how many top ranked OTs in the following class will want to come? Plus tbh, 5star or high 4star guys are really reserved only for OT. The other 3 OLine positions just are never that highly rated it seems.

I mean if we average 1 5star OT per class (last year 2, this year 0), and then get a handful of 3 and 4 star guys that are giants and athletic, then I don't see the problem.
 
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I heard hes raw but has the measurable and the staff thinks they can develop him. He's not necessarily a project but hes more raw than others we signed last year.

if he's the kind of guy you know wont play early, and you dont, and you RS him(and trust me, Ive been told that with certain recruits you can't even say 'redshirt' or certain people go crazy) and everyone on board knows that it really wont be till the 3rd year that he gets significant downs, then this is exactly the type of recruit you need to surround the Pancakes and Mags of the world.
 
The stars thing should be a dead issue by now, especially with O Line. How many highly-rated guys have we gotten that didn't pan out? Even Seantrel, who is one of the highest-rated guys we've ever had at any position, didn't really reach his potential here. Instead, let's look at coaching and if you're looking for some assurance, look at the other two programs that recruited him hardest - Pedo and NC State - they have consistently put O linemen in the draft.

Derryc might be a 3 star but so what? Other top programs also wanted him, he's going to a proven O Line coach, will be surrounded and influenced by last year's monster O Line class and the veterans, and he's a big-time recruit despite playing in a bad HS program. We should be happy as **** he's coming here!
I think all fanbases don't really understand recruiting. Everyone looks at the star rating as the end all be all. Kids that play at small schools and/or don't got to camps get overlooked and not evaluated properly. Also, kids develop at different times.

I trust the staff. Especially when it comes to offensive linemen. They know the traits they are looking for. We have OL players that will be cemented as starter for the next 2-3 years. Its an opportunity to develop players with traits.

I don't think anyone complained how for years Wisconsin developed 3-star OL into NFL talent. Our coaches know what they are doing. It's not the same as years past where they were just grabbing bodies. Mario, Mirabal, and Alonzo are identifying the players they want regardless of rating.
 
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Zo has signed off on every one of these kids. I trust his ability to identify and evaluate. They are clearly pursuing certain traits regardless of star rating. Having desirable traits like measurables, athleticism and the ability to play several positions should increase the odds to develop into producing players.
It's just crazy how our fanbase 2nd guesses professional expertise. I chalk it up to PTSD from years past, but our staff in not the same. They have a process and know what they want in the players they recruit.
 
I've questioned so much of what Cristobal has done and doubted his "super recruiter" rep that I've been accused of being a sleeper agent for the UC Santa Cruz Banana Slugs. But the one thing I feel good about is Cristobals ability to identify OL talent. As others have said, OL is the one area where stars and production are not that closely correlated. QB and WR is the exact opposite - 5 stars to have a higher hit rate. I dont think you need 5 stars across the OL, but mixing 3,4, and 5 stars to find the best starting combo is ok by me.

Bingo. This makes me think about that clemson oline that handled bama's vaunted dline in the title game. Iirc that oline, did not have a lot of highly rated recruits if any, and they handled bama that night. Coaching, development, & system is everything. Ie: M. Shananhans Denever Bronco's.
 
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In what alternate reality do we have some ppl low key disappointed about landing a 6'5 285+ tackle from Duval County of all places?.

First it was feeling sorry for Noles, now its star watching like gaytors.

This place is becoming infested with trolls.

I love the take. NC State has been on point with ol Evals..Penn State has to recruit legit ol in their conference and send guys to the league...yea I'm great with this pull.

Where were yall when we couldn't catch a crackhead with 5 rocks in our hand in jacksonville?.

Exactly. Waiting on the bandwagon probably.
 
Frame, frame, frame. You would be hard-pressed to find a better starter kit of tools for an OT.

His hands are huge. Grip strength potential. Long arms. Shoulders wide and high.

Flexibility is something that truly pops if you watch full games and focus on him. Can really move. Looks like a TE when he moves but then you see how big he is.

He’s not a microwave guy. This is a year away from being a year away guy. Absolutely zero technique. No idea what he’s doing with leverage, hand usage, foot patterns, or marrying strikes with his base.

I texted Danny that this kid needed to transfer because he’s getting zero coaching (I live in Missouri) and it turns out he did transfer. Glad to hear that.

If you have a year where you need to evaluate tools because there aren’t a lot of OT’s to get, this kid certainly has tools.

My comparison really is Michael McLaughlin, only with more flexibility and bigger hands. Both smooth movers with zero technique, not much pop on contact, stop their feet when they make contact, and tend to lean rather than bring their base and drive a defender.

The truth is some of those guys will hit and some will miss. You have to have sound process that identifies guys with the potential to hit and go from there. You’d rather have finished products who everyone offers and are 5* players, but if you’ve gotta go into 3* land, take the ones who look the part.

Miami is recruiting a bunch of them and being smart with it. Recruit ten of them that look and move like this and three or four will hit.
 
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Oline recruiting is much different than recruiting other positions. They always take longer to develop. And there is a complete difference between the 3stars we are recruiting on the OLine under Mario than we have in the past. These "kids" are all like 6'5 320lbs and athletic as ****. And sure while highly rated guys hit more often, after you get two 5 star top 15 players in the previous class at OT, how many top ranked OTs in the following class will want to come? Plus tbh, 5star or high 4star guys are really reserved only for OT. The other 3 OLine positions just are never that highly rated it seems.

I mean if we average 1 5star OT per class (last year 2, this year 0), and then get a handful of 3 and 4 star guys that are giants and athletic, then I don't see the problem.
The other positions aren’t highly rated because recruiting rankings are projecting to the NFL Draft and not college.

C/G don’t go first round (5*’s) so sites don’t rank them like that. As NFL draft changes, so do the rankings. NFL teams take QB, WR, OT, Edge in the 1st round and that’s where the 5*’s are nowadays.

If you plotted the positions that are 5*’s and overlaid it onto a plot of positions picked in 1st round, the curves would look extremely similar.
 
Frame, frame, frame. You would be hard-pressed to find a better starter kit of tools for an OT.

His hands are huge. Grip strength potential. Long arms. Shoulders wide and high.

Flexibility is something that truly pops if you watch full games and focus on him. Can really move. Looks like a TE when he moves but then you see how big he is.

He’s not a microwave guy. This is a year away from being a year away guy. Absolutely zero technique. No idea what he’s doing with leverage, hand usage, foot patterns, or marrying strikes with his base.

I texted Danny that this kid needed to transfer because he’s getting zero coaching (I live in Missouri) and it turns out he did transfer. Glad to hear that.

If you have a year where you need to evaluate tools because there aren’t a lot of OT’s to get, this kid certainly has tools.

My comparison really is Michael McLaughlin, only with more flexibility and bigger hands. Both smooth movers with zero technique, not much pop on contact, stop their feet when they make contact, and tend to lean rather than bring their base and drive a defender.

The truth is some of those guys will hit and some will miss. You have to have sound process that identifies guys with the potential to hit and go from there. You’d rather have finished products who everyone offers and are 5* players, but if you’ve gotta go into 3* land, take the ones who look the part.

Miami is recruiting a bunch of them and being smart with it. Recruit ten of them that look and move like this and three or four will hit.

Exactly what I saw as well. Agree on the percentages too. Mario’s hit rate needs to be closer to 1 in 2 than 1 in 4 or he’ll waste too many scholarships on unproductive OL. But I have no doubt he knows what he’s doing.
 
It's just crazy how our fanbase 2nd guesses professional expertise. I chalk it up to PTSD from years past, but our staff in not the same. They have a process and know what they want in the players they recruit.

I continue to ask this and not 1 person gives a response.

Seriously what did Zo prove with his “evaluating” in the NFL? What great rosters did he build? What championship teams Did he construct?

He wasn’t successful in Cleveland so why does everyone say every **** recruit is now a Zo eval?

This board is overstating what Zo is doing or maybe I just don’t get it but we won’t know for 3 years if this roster is built like the Patriots or ends up a **** like the Browns.

Btw I like that Zo has this position and I’m sure it helps but I think this board is putting a little too much stock in all these 3 stars as Zo evals like he is Jimmy Johnson or Butch Davis finding diamonds in the rough.

Butch is a better evaluator of talent than Zo is
 
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I continue to ask this and not 1 person gives a response.

Seriously what did Zo prove with his “evaluating” in the NFL? What great rosters did he build? What championship teams Did he construct?

He wasn’t successful in Cleveland so why does everyone say every **** recruit is now a Zo eval?

This board is overstating what Zo is doing or maybe I just don’t get it but we won’t know for 3 years if this roster is built like the Patriots or ends up a **** like the Browns.

Btw I like that Zo has this position and I’m sure it helps but I think this board is putting a little too much stock in all these 3 stars as Zo evals like he is Jimmy Johnson or Butch Davis finding diamonds in the rough.

Butch is a better evaluator of talent than Zo is

The balls you have to ask questions…

Some will think you are crapping on this get vs asking a question…
 
The balls you have to ask questions…

Some will think you are crapping on this get vs asking a question…

Yeah I’m legitimately asking because all I keep saying is Zo eval’s Zo eval’s Zo’s hands are on this one. I want someone with in-depth knowledge to explain why Zo eval’s are going to bring this team a championship because those eval’s in the NFL didn’t bring **** for winning
 
The balls you have to ask questions…

Some will think you are crapping on this get vs asking a question…

That **** needs to stop. Dudes have every right to be critical. I never understood why some posters get so offended when others aren't as confident or optimistic as they are about the state of the team.

Context is everything. If dudes are being mopes or straight flaming, I can see why people get upset. But if it is a legit concern / question? I can't cosign that. That's bush league behavior.

This isn't a CIS thing, btw. It's on all boards and has been going on for a long time.

Some people think they are classy by pumping nothing but sunshine, that they are the ultimate classy super fan. In reality, they are just pendejos.

My two cents.
 
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I continue to ask this and not 1 person gives a response.

Seriously what did Zo prove with his “evaluating” in the NFL? What great rosters did he build? What championship teams Did he construct?

He wasn’t successful in Cleveland so why does everyone say every **** recruit is now a Zo eval?

This board is overstating what Zo is doing or maybe I just don’t get it but we won’t know for 3 years if this roster is built like the Patriots or ends up a **** like the Browns.

Btw I like that Zo has this position and I’m sure it helps but I think this board is putting a little too much stock in all these 3 stars as Zo evals like he is Jimmy Johnson or Butch Davis finding diamonds in the rough.

Butch is a better evaluator of talent than Zo is


You have GOT to be kidding with this question on Alonzo. You realize he was only in Cleveland for 2 years, right?

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