While watching the Oklahoma game on Saturday, the announcers were mentioning how ISU recruits in TX, FL and CA and due to the longer distance, it's harder to get the better recruits to come to Ames from those 3 states. Looking at our last 2 recruiting classes and looking at next years, I don't see a single one from the Chicago area or much coming out of the rest of the Midwest outside of Iowa. I know it's Big 10 country, but I would think ISU would have some appeal to good recruits from the Midwest due to closer proximity and being able to play national powers like Texas and Oklahoma every year. Anyone know why we don't get many recruits from the Midwest outside of Iowa?
Recruiting in Midwest (Outside Iowa)
- Thread starter ChiTownCYalum
- Start date
Pulling quality recruits from surrounding North states where talent is already thin is way more difficult than southern states. Not to mention it's B10 country. That is why playing so many games in Texas is important. Getting a more solid recruiting base in Florida and Cali is huge too.
(a) Quality of midwest recruits < Texas recruits
(b) Why go into B1G territory and try to compete with Nebby, ND, Mich, OSU, etc.
I am fine recruiting Texas, Texas, Texas, Iowa, Florida, Texas, California, Texas, Wisconsin, Texas.:smile:
I remember those remarks from CPR, too.
I wonder, other than Texas, Florida, and California (all with high school spring football, correct?), I wonder how many other high school recruits are offered scholarships who do not participate in ISU summer camps where up front evaluations can be made.
That is, do most all of our football recruiting offers come from Texas, Florida, California, and ISU summer camps?
Remember that some of our coaches have a history of recruiting the south too. Both Burnhams, Douglas, Wells, and Pope have all coached in the south and understand how to recruit down there.
According to Rivals, Bleil has spent some time recruiting in Illinois. This makes sense since he has coached a lot in the Midwest.
According to Rivals, Bleil has spent some time recruiting in Illinois. This makes sense since he has coached a lot in the Midwest.
I've wondered this myself. As I see it, no matter how many games we win and how much we upgrade our facilities, we are still going to be well down the pecking order going into the state of Texas. I don't ever see us beating UT, aTm, or OU for recruits down there, and more often then not I don't see us beating TT, Baylor, TCU, or OSU either. And who knows what sort of inroads some neighboring SEC powers may start to make.
I agree that Texas produces better recruits than the Midwest in general, but what if we start comparing top prospects in the Midwest to sixth or seventh tier Texas recruits.
KU and Illinois are awful right now. Mizzou looks like they are in trouble as well. Minnesota has been mediocre at best. Nebby is a shadow of their former self. Iowa and Wisconsin seem to be taking a few steps back as well. The Dakotas don't have a single BCS school between them. Given that, if we can keep winning games and dumping money into our facilities, why can't we compete for and win some of the top recruits in these state? Outside of maybe the Chicago area, I don't think Ohio State, Michigan, and ND really recruit the Midwest all that much, so I really don't think the competition here would be as fierce as what we face trying to move up the chain in Texas.
I'm not saying that we shouldn't keep recruiting the southern states and trying to improve our position there. But I do think with some of the programs in our region really falling off while we seem to have some momentum, it would seem like a good time to start wrapping up some of the top tier talent available closer to home.
I agree that Texas produces better recruits than the Midwest in general, but what if we start comparing top prospects in the Midwest to sixth or seventh tier Texas recruits.
KU and Illinois are awful right now. Mizzou looks like they are in trouble as well. Minnesota has been mediocre at best. Nebby is a shadow of their former self. Iowa and Wisconsin seem to be taking a few steps back as well. The Dakotas don't have a single BCS school between them. Given that, if we can keep winning games and dumping money into our facilities, why can't we compete for and win some of the top recruits in these state? Outside of maybe the Chicago area, I don't think Ohio State, Michigan, and ND really recruit the Midwest all that much, so I really don't think the competition here would be as fierce as what we face trying to move up the chain in Texas.
I'm not saying that we shouldn't keep recruiting the southern states and trying to improve our position there. But I do think with some of the programs in our region really falling off while we seem to have some momentum, it would seem like a good time to start wrapping up some of the top tier talent available closer to home.
We need to hit KC hard. Kansas sucks and Mizzou is off to SEC land so that may open a door for us there. I think it is hard to go North or East in general with it being Big 10 country.
I agree with the posters about our coaches having ties to the south as well.
I agree with the posters about our coaches having ties to the south as well.
Weren't they recruiting two kids from Chicago for this class? I think they were D-lineman. Also, they're recruiting the JUCO from Glen Ellyn, Illinois. I went to the CC he's from for two year, not really known for their football.
ISU football game results can be found on Page 4 of the Sunday sports page in the Quad City Times.
ISU can't be found in the Chicago Tribune or Daily Herald, without the use of a magnifying glass. Illini fans get disgusted by the over-reaching ND coverage in the Tribune.
These, despite the fact that ISU has large alumni bases in both areas. I've heard that more ISU grads live in the QC and Chicago areas than do Iowa grads. Others can offer supporting facts if available.
It's been this way for a long time. I know from first hand comments that ISU coaches are well aware of these situations and focus elsewhere.
ISU can't be found in the Chicago Tribune or Daily Herald, without the use of a magnifying glass. Illini fans get disgusted by the over-reaching ND coverage in the Tribune.
These, despite the fact that ISU has large alumni bases in both areas. I've heard that more ISU grads live in the QC and Chicago areas than do Iowa grads. Others can offer supporting facts if available.
It's been this way for a long time. I know from first hand comments that ISU coaches are well aware of these situations and focus elsewhere.
There are more ISU alumni than Iowa alumni in Iowa. But I'd be amazed if there were more ISU grads than Iowa grads in Chicago. Do you have a source for that?
Yes. The comment was made at an ISU Foundation meeting in a West Suburban Chicago location about 8 years ago.
In MN ISU is not mentioned at all. Anywhere. My HS had a ton of recruits go to Notre Dame because that is cream of the crop in the media up there. Ive said before I had never heard of Iowa State until I was 16. Iowa state is the closest d1 football school to the Twin Cities so it's a pipeline that we should use a lot more. There are some great lineman coming out of the western suburb high schools and great talent players from cretin derham hall.
I feel we will start to see more recruits from the midwest with more "air time" on TV and winning more games. The new football facility is a huge recruiting tool and it will pay off, but will take time. Recruits have to make it here first and take time to see what we offer academics wise and football wise. Like the OP has said we have coaches that have coached in the south.
