CollegeBowlProjections.com

Does top recruiting add up to victories? CollegeBowlProjections.com has put together a list of the top 25 recruiting classes and the top 25 best teams from 2002 to 2008. We’ve added up all the results with Rivals top recruiting list and the final AP polls for the last seven years.

The USC Trojans were the champions of both lists.  Their recruiting has definitely turned into wins on the football field.  The 2008 top ranked Florida Gators might not be as high in the football poll as expected. You must remember besides the two national championships in the last couple of years the Gators haven’t ranked high in the polls.

Virginia Tech’s Frank Beamer and his coaching staff  ranks as the top team not on the top 25 recruiting class.  The Hokies ranked 10th on our football poll.  Blacksburg, Virginia might not be the favorite spot for top recruits in high school but Beamer and his staff appear to coach their players to their very best once they reach college.

You be the judge if these rankings have any relation to success on the football field.

Popularity: 25% [?]

Boston College Head Coach, Jeff Jagodzinski is heading to New York to interview for their vacant position even though doing so could cost him his job at BC.  Athletic director, Gene DeFlippo made it clear on Monday that jags will be out as BC head man whether he lands the job with the Jets or not.  DeFilippo claims that he and Jags had a verbal agreement that Jagodzinski would remain with the club through the 2009 season (his contract is through 2011).  

Jagodzinski took over the BC program 2 years ago and has finished first in the division both years before losing consecutive conference championships.  Previously he was in the NFL as a coordinator with the Green Bay Packers.

Popularity: 4% [?]

Head Coach Randy Shannon fired Patrick Nix as the offensive coordinator for the Miami Hurricanes this week.  Nix was cordial to Shannon on the way out but also said he wanted to play a more wide-open, no-huddle type of offense and Shannon wasn’t willing to do play that style.

Isn’t that what most football fans like to hear?  A more exciting offense?  A way to isolate the Hurricanes athletes against their opponents?  Nix’s offensive philosophy sounded like a better solution for the team.  Is Shannon going to hire a offensive coordinator who wants to run the ball and eat up time on the clock?  Do the fans want to see such an offense? Don’t the Hurricanes want to excite players to come to Miami because they play a wide-open, no-huddle type offense?  The type of offense the Hurricanes played during their glory years.

CollegeBowlProjections.com decided to take a look at the numbers to see if they warranted a dismissal of Nix.

2008 ACC Offensive Statistic Rankings

Points per game: Miami 2nd
Offensive yards per game: Miami 5th

These don’t look like horrible numbers.  Especially if you consider Nix was working with two freshman quarterbacks as the starter.  We decided to look at the defensive statistics to see if how they compared to the offensive side of the ball.

2008 ACC Defensive Statistic Rankings

Points allowed: Miami 11th
Yards allowed per game: Miami 7th

Are we missing something?  Since Randy Shannon fired the defensive coordinator last year he had to lay the blame on the offense?

The most alarming stat was the amount of interceptions the Hurricanes created this season.  The defense was only able to pick off opposing quarterbacks four times this season.  Compare that number to 26 times for the Boston College Eagles and you can see why the Eagles won their ACC division and the Hurricanes didn’t.  If the Hurricanes had half the interceptions of Boston College they would of easily won three more games.

Apparently Shannon is laying the blame on the offense this season.  Next year, Shannnon won’t have any place to look but at himself if the Hurricanes don’t turn it around.

Popularity: 4% [?]