@Anwar Richardson started a really good thread with his question to Coach Sarkisian about weighing high school recruiting vs. the transfer portal in terms of emphasis/importance. @Ketchum makes some really good points that Texas should bring in more transfers in lieu of HS recruits based on the low hit rate of HS players rated 5.7 or worse.
The thread got me to thinking how this debate applies to the big 3 sports. Here is how I would rank the 3 sports, broken into 5 groups, from those that should most prioritize the transfer portal in lieu of HS recruiting to those that should still prioritize HS recruiting:
1. Basketball - There is no doubt that hoops should be #1. And look no further than our own team and the NCAA Tournament. Texas plays 9 players in its rotation. 6 of them are experienced transfers. The 3 that are not are two freshmen blue chippers and a 5th year senior that is the ultimate glue guy/assistant coach/stat filler/role player.
2. Baseball (Position Players) - College baseball recruiting has always been difficult, weird, and unpredictable all at the same time because of the early signing period, the MLB draft, and the 11.7 scholarship cap. But the biggest thing is the lack of substitution in baseball. If you are a non-starting position player, you are sitting on the bench for 80% of the time. That is a year of a lack of development at the plate and in the field. Texas has young stars that aren’t getting much playing time (e.g. Max Beyleu and Rylan Galvan) and it has to hindering their development. I would get my hitters and position players from the transfer portal.
3. Football (QB/RB/WR/DB) - QB is super tricky because of the nature of the position and only one can play. But getting experienced transfers at the skill positions would be my priority as a football coach if I can’t get the elite high school RBs, WRs, and DBs. Fortunately, this is not a problem for Texas right now.
4. Baseball (Pitchers) - If I was the head baseball coach I would focus more on HS pitchers than transfers because young pitchers will get opportunities to develop long-term whether out of the bullpen or as mid-week starters/long relievers. But I would still bring in 2-3 big time transfer pitchers every year.
(Huge Gap)
5. Football (OL/TE/DL/LB) - Here is where I definitely would focus on HS recruiting of the 4-stars and 3-stars and long-term development of those players. There is just so much that goes into playing in the trenches that a plug-and-play approach won’t work. (Ironically, QB could also be in this group too.)
Bonus
Women’s Sports:
1. Basketball
2. Softball
3. Soccer
4. Volleyball
The thread got me to thinking how this debate applies to the big 3 sports. Here is how I would rank the 3 sports, broken into 5 groups, from those that should most prioritize the transfer portal in lieu of HS recruiting to those that should still prioritize HS recruiting:
1. Basketball - There is no doubt that hoops should be #1. And look no further than our own team and the NCAA Tournament. Texas plays 9 players in its rotation. 6 of them are experienced transfers. The 3 that are not are two freshmen blue chippers and a 5th year senior that is the ultimate glue guy/assistant coach/stat filler/role player.
2. Baseball (Position Players) - College baseball recruiting has always been difficult, weird, and unpredictable all at the same time because of the early signing period, the MLB draft, and the 11.7 scholarship cap. But the biggest thing is the lack of substitution in baseball. If you are a non-starting position player, you are sitting on the bench for 80% of the time. That is a year of a lack of development at the plate and in the field. Texas has young stars that aren’t getting much playing time (e.g. Max Beyleu and Rylan Galvan) and it has to hindering their development. I would get my hitters and position players from the transfer portal.
3. Football (QB/RB/WR/DB) - QB is super tricky because of the nature of the position and only one can play. But getting experienced transfers at the skill positions would be my priority as a football coach if I can’t get the elite high school RBs, WRs, and DBs. Fortunately, this is not a problem for Texas right now.
4. Baseball (Pitchers) - If I was the head baseball coach I would focus more on HS pitchers than transfers because young pitchers will get opportunities to develop long-term whether out of the bullpen or as mid-week starters/long relievers. But I would still bring in 2-3 big time transfer pitchers every year.
(Huge Gap)
5. Football (OL/TE/DL/LB) - Here is where I definitely would focus on HS recruiting of the 4-stars and 3-stars and long-term development of those players. There is just so much that goes into playing in the trenches that a plug-and-play approach won’t work. (Ironically, QB could also be in this group too.)
Bonus
Women’s Sports:
1. Basketball
2. Softball
3. Soccer
4. Volleyball
