I can assure you I am not wanting Mario to fail at anything. I am in the dark and 100% outside looking just like 98% of the posters on here. That doesnt mean we cant view things through what we see and comment, kinda the point of a site like this. I guess making any comments that aren't rainbows and unicorn ***** is viewed upon as wanting Mario to fail though. What we do know is that we needed/need an RT. We do know that Mims was a major target for us there and it didn't work out. It was reported that we were looking at Tyler Steen as an option. We do know that the portal has been closed for anybody that wants to jump in and play this year since the beginning of the month. We also have a huge thread that follows who has or hasn't entered. I once again, dont doubt Mario won't leave any stone unturned and he just may and I hope he does find the piece we need, but saying things are going swimmingly there seems a stretch at best. Still, for the 100th time my point isn't to attack Mario or some sort of perceived mistake made, its underlining that relying on the portal as a primary source of talent is a dangerous game.
Look, man, I'm not going to fight with you. I'm just going to point out the logical/argumentative failing that you are alluding to.
No. No no no no no. "Comments that aren't rainbows and unicorn ****s is viewed upon as wanting Mario to fail". No no no no no.
If we are true Hurricane fans, we MUST STOP with this non-sensical extremism. Not everything in life revolves around the "slurpers vs. mopers" dynamic, and we have got to stop with the defensive "create an extreme straw-man" argument to fight with people with whom we disagree. There are posters on this board who try to provide some insight. And there are other posters who act like if some ******* sports writer hasn't confirmed a story in print, it didn't happen.
So this is a perfect example of how things play out:
Mopey group comes on the board to complain and bemoan the fact that we have not (yet) signed more Portal kids at certain positions (OT, WR, LB).
Another group comes on the board to point out that the Portal is still open, grad transfers will still enter the Portal (and EASILY get waivers to play immediatedly), that we have 3 more months to enroll guys, and that there are multiple Portal guys that are being actively recruited by UM.
Unfortunately, when some people provide accurate inside information of what is happening beyond the news articles, they are attacked, since inside information is invariably less-than-100%-perfect-and-accurate. And the cycle goes on and on and on.
The fact remains...those who judge our recruiting or development or coaching or roster management based solely on Barry Jackson/Gaby Urrutia articles are only seeing the tip of the iceberg. And those who provide inside information are not "sunshine pumpers" or "slurpers".
Mario is still working. He is not "relying on the Portal as a primary source of talent". He is using the Portal to address years of negligence on Manny's part. In an ideal world, I believe Mario would love to sign full classes of high school recruits and develop them all for 3 to 5 years. But that's not where we stand today.
Let's just be patient. It's hard. It sucks. It's no fun. But we are not Alabama yet, we cannot snap our fingers and get to 85 contributing scholarship players whenever we want. Let's let Mario do what he does best, and let's wait to evaluate his recruiting cycle until mid-August.