Sometimes having 5 star players results in 5 star problems too. Don't get me wrong I would love to start landing more 4 and 5 star recruits with our success but just ask Iowa how that turned out for them not long ago when Kirk had that program at it's peak. Some of these guys have huge egos and off-field problems to manage too. I'll gladly take 3 star guys that this staff can develop into All American caliber players than guys that sometimes come in with baggage and can be cancer in the locker room.
I look at this current roster and see how this staff saw something in guys like Purdy, Hall, Rose, and Kolar that a lot of other big name schools did not and turned them into the best players at their position in the Big 12 and in the conversation as one of the best at their position nationally. These are the kind of players you want to build a program around who fit Campbell's system both on and off the field and I will gladly take guys that want to get after it and earn every snap they are on the field and perform at a high level than some hyped up recruit that doesn't put in the work those guys will.
Looking at this roster Easton Dean and DeShawn Hanika are 2 guys at TE that don't have impressive offer lists but have the potential to be the next big impact player at TE that plays with a chip on their shoulder like Kolar. Tyler Moore is another TE in the 2021 class that fits this mold too. One thing this staff has done well since they hit the ground running with recruiting the day they were hired are finding guys that they believed in and fit the system. They have built depth in the trenches which is something we always had a problem with too.
I will take results over rankings and this senior class was ranked 55th nationally and 8th in the Big 12 back in 2016 and if you look at the guys they signed they didn't miss on a lot of guys:
https://247sports.com/college/iowa-state/Season/2016-Football/Commits/