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          Practicality needed with early offers

          • Tom LuginbillMay 24, 2013, 03:00 AM ET
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            • Senior National Recruiting Analyst for ESPN.com
            • Coached in four professional football leagues
            • Graduated from Eastern Kentucky and Marshall
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          I think the process for everyone involved would be much healthier if there were. I truly believe that if coaches had their way, they would do all they could to gear down and slow the process. The world of recruiting has become so fast-paced and advanced that it is hard for coaches and prospects to keep up and make the right moves.

          If it were possible, ideally players could receive offers in July heading into their senior year of high school. It would allow underclassmen to develop physically, mentally and academically. It would keep players from getting caught up in the hype and allow them to keep priorities, knowing that if they did things right as underclassmen that their time will come on the recruiting front. This isn't reality, though, and the problem with an age limit is how to police it. This would muddy the waters even more with an NCAA rulebook that is already out of control with so many rules that already need to be interpreted and deciphered as they are now. The most important thing that needs to happen is implementing some common sense into the rules. Until that happens, there will always be ambiguity and unpoliceable rules.

          The answer is no, and it is not so much a reflection of Will Grier, but rather a reflection of the QB class as a whole. While we don't believe he is the No. 1 guy, we also don't believe there is a top-10 caliber player at the position at this time. On pure skill and ability level, David Cornwell is probably the most talented. If there is a QB in this class who could inch close to the top 10 between now and national signing day, it might be Keller Chryst -- and if he was more of a dynamic athlete I would call him a lock, but he is pure pocket guy. This would leave Deshaun Watson as probably the closest thing to a top-10 player when you consider athleticism, arm talent, aptitude and intangibles.

          Grier is a fine prospect, but he might be more of a late bloomer who's best football is ahead of him. He does not have an elite arm or physical stature yet and does not play against overly stiff competition. We like his upside and ceiling for development and a redshirt year could do him wonders. If you've noticed, we don't have many QBs in the 150 and most are near the back end. I would expect an entry or two with our next release as well, which will drop some other QBs out.

          Actually it reinforced what we thought when we first completed Brad Kaaya's his film evaluation in March. I believe he had just two offers at that time and wasn't on anybody's radar then. We gave him a four-star grade before anyone knew who he was. He is a prime example of why the Internet can be a deceiving window into who is supposed to be a great player and who isn't, because the evaluation period is a process. While you might know about some guys earlier than others, if you continue to dig and evaluate, great players will turn up and just because people didn't know about them early doesn't mean they aren't worthy of recognition. Kaaya reflects this process well. Now that he has gone to camps and combines and the coaches are on the road recruiting, all of a sudden he is a known commodity. As always, it's a marathon, not a sprint.

          This is not only a question that relates to Joe Mixon, but should be applied to all prospects. Simply put, offers have virtually no bearing on rankings. The reality of an "offer" differs drastically from the public perception of one. Offers come in various forms -- in writing, verbal, with stipulations, with head coach approval, pending camp attendance, etc. -- but the big thing to remember is that the offer does NOT equate to or reflect a player's position on the board.

          Take Mixon for example. He might have 40-plus offers and some of those schools might accept the commit now, while others might not right yet even though he has an offer. He might be the third-ranked RB on one school's board, but the eighth-ranked RB on another school's board. Some schools might have offered him to buy time and make further evaluations. Offers are much more grey than black and white. Just because a player has an offer doesn't mean he's the school's top target or highest-ranked guy. In some instances, like a Robert Nkemdiche, there are unanimous no-brainers on everybody's board, but that is the exception, not the norm.

          Also, when comparing rankings, you should focus more on position ranks as opposed to overall rankings, as each position has different value and a different set of critical factors that carry more weight than others. I have seen many schools' boards over the years and you would be quite surprised how different staffs value the same player.

          As mentioned earlier, we consider 2014 to be a down year at QB, and when picking the top one it would likely come down to Cornwell, Watson or Chryst -- Chryst is the most polished pure passer, Cornwell likely has the best overall tools and Watson combines polish, intangibles and athleticism.

          As far as the top player in the Class of 2015, that is almost impossible to answer without thoroughly scrutinizing the class as a whole. We do like DT Daylon Mack, QB Josh Rosen and ATH George Campbell and would expect them to be up there on the board. Our group will be spending June and July evaluating sophomore film of the 2015 class for about 300-plus prospects nationally.