Recruiting issue raised by a past Auburn football athelete

[Animal02]

I don't think of the small town / big city thing as a recruiting issue.
Small towns benifit as a whole from the additional fans in town each weekend vs say a big city
But I think recruits look more at NFL prospect vs education and then maybe the atmosphere

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The top issues with recruits from surveys is honesty of the coaches / recruiters and being made to feel like family.

 

[AlabamaBuzz]

Baton Rouge, Jacksonville, Tuscaloosa, etc. are fairly large, but they are small compared to the ATL......

Clemson and Auburn have the types of towns/campus environment that a lot of kids see as attractive. Not all, but a lot.

 

[TheFlyest]

Meh, most Atlanta area kids could care less. They just want a winning culture, exposure, playing time, and a decent degree. Oh, and fun. If you on a winning team and live in Atlanta, oh you most definitely gonna have some fun.

 

[DCSS]

Uhh, Baton Rouge is DEFINITELY a small town. Especially by ATL standards. All that is there is the state government and LSU. And LSU players are worshipped there. Football players in general. I just received the weekly mailer form a real estate agent down there, and it had this on it:

Uhh, then Knoxville, Columbus, and Austin are small towns by Atlanta standards, too.

Regarding Drew, are you saying New Orleans is a small town?

 

[boger2337]

As I've stated before and will always state this. GT will struggle to bring in those kids because they are young and want everything handed to them, like free drinks, getting into clubs, known to be under 21 but encourage them to "have fun" not by the staff but by local support. Off of campus GT had VERY LITTLE local Atlanta support. Every bar, store, and restaurant in athens knows Fromm, and about half the team. In Atlanta our guys can walk in anywhere and not be noticed.

Part of the SELL is being treated like a celebrity. The older groups may complain we don't want kids like that here, but I'd argue that is almost every young Male athlete.

The one encouraging thing I noticed was walking to the citadel game there were significantly more young lady's walking around campus and that's a big selling point for recruit.

We need an on campus bars, and hangout spots. Designated for young adults to mingle and enjoy down time. Call it the Hive? But if you want recruits you have to CHANGE the game. Give then somewhere to get a drink, mingle with coeds, and enjoy a weekend off or night off. Athens is LOADED with bars that love their players for FREE. Atlanta has a ton of bars but no one knows these guys.

Ohio university has on campus bars and students FLOOD them on weekends. Place to see and be seen.

 

[Vespidae]

I live and teach in Auburn. The campus is nice and the athletic facilities are first class. And everyone knows everyone.

But there is zero to do. A handful of crappy bars. Weekends, so many students drive to Atlanta or home.

Tech is far more entertaining today than when I was in school. No Marta then. And the only places to go we’re PJ Haley’s, Jack’s, M J Pippins and that’s it.

I have a lot of athletes in my classes and they are there because it’s SEC and it’s home. I asked one if he ever thought about Tech. No ... zero interest in the ACC.

 

[Ibeeballin]

The small fish/big pond is something that only occurred in the past decade(no this is not a bash CPJ post) i was actually talking to some of the players on the team now about this. I can’t remember one time paying to get in club or not being in VIP. We felt the love on other campuses as well. Idk what changed

 

[ibeattetris]

I live and teach in Auburn. The campus is nice and the athletic facilities are first class. And everyone knows everyone.

But there is zero to do. A handful of crappy bars. Weekends, so many students drive to Atlanta or home.

Tech is far more entertaining today than when I was in school. No Marta then. And the only places to go we’re PJ Haley’s, Jack’s, M J Pippins and that’s it.

I have a lot of athletes in my classes and they are there because it’s SEC and it’s home. I asked one if he ever thought about Tech. No ... zero interest in the ACC.

My sister recently started at Auburn as a chemical engineer, and she wouldn't consider GT for almost the opposite of everything you said. She grew up gong to GT games, and my dad and I couldn't even get her to consider applying.

I agree a lot with what you say, but younger people don't seem to agree (I had a lot of friends in high school that would make the drive to Auburn to go to those crappy bars you speak of). I think the city vs town thing is going to vary person to person and we should try to make sure we aren't losing out on the players who like the idea of playing with a sky line backdrop.

 

[Vespidae]

My sister recently started at Auburn as a chemical engineer, and she wouldn't consider GT for almost the opposite of everything you said. She grew up gong to GT games, and my dad and I couldn't even get her to consider applying.

I agree a lot with what you say, but younger people don't seem to agree (I had a lot of friends in high school that would make the drive to Auburn to go to those crappy bars you speak of). I think the city vs town thing is going to vary person to person and we should try to make sure we aren't losing out on the players who like the idea of playing with a sky line backdrop.

I get it. To each his own. Students here LOVE Auburn. And Sky Bar (what a dump) is the highest volume bar in the state. Bars are open until 3 ... I walk my dog at 5 and the Budweiser trucks are lined up making deliveries. I don’t think I’ve seen so much beer in my life and it turns over daily.

College ...

 

[Longestday]

@Ibeeballin are you saying that in the past GT people got the VIP treatment around town, but that has since disappeared?

That is a shame... I remember basketball players driving around in some nice wheels in the mid 90s.

 

[Ibeeballin]

@Ibeeballin are you saying that in the past GT people got the VIP treatment around town, but that has since disappeared?

That is a shame... I remember basketball players driving around in some nice wheels in the mid 90s.

From the current players and a few from the past 5yrs, yes that VIP treatment is no longer there. We were a fixture in the surrounding clubs and the gentleman club that former GTFB owned.

 

[bobongo]

I think this is what triggers many people, myself included. A better term may be transition.

What I really meant (sort of) was that Alabama or Auburn being in the top-10 is a dog-bites-man story. Happens most every year.
When we're in the top-10 it's a man-bites-dog story, which is infinitely more interesting because of its relative rarity.

 

[AlabamaBuzz]

@Ibeeballin are you saying that in the past GT people got the VIP treatment around town, but that has since disappeared?

That is a shame... I remember basketball players driving around in some nice wheels in the mid 90s.

Salley and several in the 80's drove black Peugeots

 

[Vespidae]

What I really meant (sort of) was that Alabama or Auburn being in the top-10 is a dog-bites-man story. Happens most every year.
When we're in the top-10 it's a man-bites-dog story, which is infinitely more interesting because of its relative rarity.

I grew up in Alabama. One had to choose by Kindergarten who to support. COFH is nothing compared to Auburn-Alabama. It divides families, business connections, and more.

But ... both schools excel at sports because the alumni demand it. In a state with little to be proud of, it was. And is. Social life still revolves around Game Day.

Tech had that. BDS was the largest stadium in the South. Tech was internationally famous.

Personally, I miss drown proofing. And laughing at the Uber geeks.

 

[SteamWhistle]

Atlanta is not a negative to Tech’s recruiting. I’m not gonna let yall spin that BS. It’s one of the biggest things we have going. Go read interviews with guys that come here. They’ve all “Fell in Love with Atlanta.” I get the argument about the Big Pond small fish but if you’re good enough you’ll get the attention. You think Calvin and Tashard hanging with Andre 3k wasn’t enough attention for them? Also at the end of the day, who gets that attention in Atlanta? Not even the pros do, Atlanta just isn’t a sports town, it has way too much to over. And other then the Braves Atlanta teams have pretty weak attendance.

 

[SteamWhistle]

The small fish/big pond is something that only occurred in the past decade(no this is not a bash CPJ post) i was actually talking to some of the players on the team now about this. I can’t remember one time paying to get in club or not being in VIP. We felt the love on other campuses as well. Idk what changed

Tech players are more welcomed in Athens now then Atlanta probably. I see 5-10 Tech players in Athens every weekend.

 

[ibeattetris]

Atlanta is not a negative to Tech’s recruiting. I’m not gonna let yall spin that BS. It’s one of the biggest things we have going. Go read interviews with guys that come here.

Saying that the recruits that chose to come to the city like being in the city doesn't prove that the majority of all recruits think being in ATL is a positive.

I am not going to comment on it, because I honestly don't know what 18 year olds think, but the whole premise of the original post was an anecdote where a player chose not to come to Tech due to Atlanta.

 

[Vespidae]

Saying that the recruits that chose to come to the city like being in the city doesn't prove that the majority of all recruits think being in ATL is a positive.

I am not going to comment on it, because I honestly don't know what 18 year olds think, but the whole premise of the original post was an anecdote where a player chose not to come to Tech due to Atlanta.

Interviewing current customers is the ultimate form of confirmation bias. Interview those who didn’t come to Tech.

 

[SteamWhistle]

Also the City not only attracts countless recruits but right now it’s the life blood for our 2020 class. Multiple local commits.

 

[Vespidae]

Also the City not only attracts countless recruits but right now it’s the life blood for our 2020 class. Multiple local commits.

Which was true 60 years ago. Tech recruits best when it recruits locally.