A Sea Of Red

As we all know, this year we had numerous I-A transfers that helped us reach our goal of Big South champs. We will all agree this was very good for a quick shot of talent and depth which was much needed to get where we are today. The question remains though, will we continue to turn to I-A transfers, or will Rocco & co. begin to move solely to the high school ranks?

I personally hope we continue to accept talented transfers. But certainly don't let that stop you from hitting the recruiting trail hard.

Coach has said before in interviews that he thinks that the successful programs come from great recruiting and the occasional transfer. I guess it all depends on each individual situation.

jcmanson wrote:The question remains though, will we continue to turn to I-A transfers, or will Rocco & co. begin to move solely to the high school ranks?

I'm sure Danny Rocco has the answer to that question, and based on his work so far, I'm fine with letting him answer it. Whatever he decides to do doesn't concern me as much as the results he produces after he makes the choice.

Who can either verify or discredit this rumor for me -

I have heard that 1-A transfers will no longer receive instant eligibility and will have to sit a year.

If this rumor is true - it will be difficult getting transfers anymore.

Haven't heard that... I did hear that athletes that have already graduated from a school will not be eligible to transfer (e.g., Noah)

Yeah, I think they rescinded that one almost as soon as they allowed it after a bunch of guys tried to take advantage going into the 07 season

prototype wrote:Who can either verify or discredit this rumor for me -

I have heard that 1-A transfers will no longer receive instant eligibility and will have to sit a year.

If this rumor is true - it will be difficult getting transfers anymore.

Yup i also heard this....someone needs to find the story because i know i read it somewhere.

SJ is right about what rocco said. in one interview he talked about how he studied in particular UMass and App. they have a mix of transfers. it is a good formula and a must for success at this level IMO.

El Scorcho wrote:

jcmanson wrote:The question remains though, will we continue to turn to I-A transfers, or will Rocco & co. begin to move solely to the high school ranks?

I'm sure Danny Rocco has the answer to that question, and based on his work so far, I'm fine with letting him answer it. Whatever he decides to do doesn't concern me as much as the results he produces after he makes the choice.

I agree. I just wanted to see everyone's opinions. I'm sure Rocco will do what is best for the team in each individual case. Personally, I think he will slowly move more and more towards primarily his recruits, with just a couple of transfers each year.

We are going to need some 1A transfers to fill the voids at the OL position for next year. If we don't get any transfers for next year production at that position will drop off unless something unexpected happens in the offseason. For instance when Eddie Pinigus went down for the first 2 games there seemed to be a big dropoff. OL like Eddie don't come around very often at the 1AA level. You really can't expect some of Coach Rocco's recruits to fill that void immediately. The Karcher holdovers aren't all that good.

I agree with most of the above postings that we should depend less on transfers as Coach Rocco's keeps bringing in talented high school recruits.

Stevev wrote:We are going to need some 1A transfers to fill the voids at the OL position for next year. If we don't get any transfers for next year production at that position will drop off unless something unexpected happens in the offseason. For instance when Eddie Pinigus went down for the first 2 games there seemed to be a big dropoff. OL like Eddie don't come around very often at the 1AA level. You really can't expect some of Coach Rocco's recruits to fill that void immediately. The Karcher holdovers aren't all that good.

I agree with most of the above postings that we should depend less on transfers as Coach Rocco's keeps bringing in talented high school recruits.

I don't think you can make a statement like that, yet. Some of these guys were highly recruited, and they have all had at least 2 years with Gillespie. That is priceless. There will definitely be some drop-off there, and it will be our biggest question mark going into next year. But I think these guys will still be good and will only get better as the season progresses.

I would still like to see us pull in one solid 1A transfer. Zach Davis is probably good enough to start. Hopefully the rest of them can pick it up and make an impact. Replacing Eddie Pinigus is certainly a top priority. Is Spencer Hodges good enough to start next year?

Spencer very well could start. He will be battling out this spring and summer for the right to start.

If Spencer Hodges is 100% healthy after rehabbing his HS knee injury, I believe the plan is to install him as Sene's replacement at left tackle and keep him there for 4 years.

Stevev wrote:We are going to need some 1A transfers to fill the voids at the OL position for next year. If we don't get any transfers for next year production at that position will drop off unless something unexpected happens in the offseason.

You're an idiot. That's all I'm saying.

Jon, you're always so quick to jump on him, and many times rightly so, but our OL will be our biggest question mark going into the season next year. I don't think we HAVE to have at least one transfer to be able to compete for the Big South, but his concern is just.

The O LIne is definately a question mark for next season based on what we lost. Next season I would like to see us competing for the playoffs and not just the Big South.

Stevev wrote:The O LIne is definately a question mark for next season based on what we lost. Next season I would like to see us competing for the playoffs and not just the Big South.

I want to do that as well, but you have to start by winning the conference.

If he'd watched a game this year, he would have a basis for that claim. Everyone coming back has gotten significant playing time this year.

To say that the production dropped because Eddie was hurt is a half-truth. The OL had practiced together all summer and throwing in Josh Weaver was different. The production dropped not because Josh wasn't good, but because there was no cohesion. This group is going to have spring ball and training camp to gel together.

He also said we needed a transfer at quarterback to be successful and look where that got us.

SuperJon wrote:He also said we needed a transfer at quarterback to be successful and look where that got us.

Have to admit I had my doubts @ Brock- thankfully he really came thru in the conf half of the season.

Part of that may have been the level of competition- but I truly think Coach standing behind him and allowing Brock to keep his confidence made all the difference. You have to admit he was a different player the 2nd half.

I think we will see continuous improvement at ALL positions on and on all teams as the Rocco era progresses and the entire team transitions to Rocco-recruits. Also, Coach's willingness to put ANY position on the table shows his committment to excellence- remember midway thru the season when the whole O-line was re-evaluated? And during the by-week when he put the defense on notice and held internal recuitment? Certainly had the desired effect- as both lines really stepped up.

I think we'll be just FINE next season- and STEVEV is gonna car-pool down with me for some FB action (provided we can both get out of the house for a weekend)

GO FLAMES

That Elon game looks very tempting for me to want to come down next year. This year too many family related issues.

O line will need work this year. FYI, Weaver was a IA recruit. He chose Liberty. Sometime will write more about the process in the thread started by 4everfsu. Weaver graded out the highest on Oline for first two games.

Go Flames. Big South Conference Champs!!!

I wonder how guys like Vargas and Tassara will figure in the picture. Tassara hardly played at all last year but was rumored to have been recruited by 1A teams and is 320. Maybe some true freshmen could enter in the picture if they are good enough.

Stevev wrote:I wonder how guys like Vargas and Tassara will figure in the picture. Tassara hardly played at all last year but was rumored to have been recruited by 1A teams and is 320. Maybe some true freshmen could enter in the picture if they are good enough.

True freshman will not enter the picture. Any OL we get will be redshirted next year. Both Vargas and Tassara will compete for starting jobs. I believe Tassara will get one of the tackle positions, but that is pure speculation.