Bryan Brokop...

This will more than likely grow the competitive divide in college athletics (football specifically). If your athletic program has the capital to put the "non-contributors" on scholarship but not count against the 85-scholarship limit, some schools will be able to pay for 100-120 (or whatever number) scholarships and some will struggle just to get to the 85 limit. Thus, you can "cut" players off your 85 roster (while not affecting their academic standing) and just keep the contributors. This will create a disparity in the quality of depth between programs.

This may be a new way for Nebraska to get an edge. I hope Frost and Moos are willing to take advantage of these new NCAA rules.
One caveat I wonder about to this is how many kids you could convince to take part in that, though. People who aren't on the 85-man or a walk-on can't (or, at least, shouldn't) take part in team meetings, workouts, activities, etc. I don't know if you'd be able to have an abundance of capable athletes hiding in the wings. Maybe there are some loop holes and workarounds. It also sounds like this rule mainly applies to kids who get there first and then decide to quit. You'd have to convince a lot of kids to quit I would think to really make it a valuable loophole.

 
One caveat I wonder about to this is how many kids you could convince to take part in that, though. People who aren't on the 85-man or a walk-on can't (or, at least, shouldn't) take part in team meetings, workouts, activities, etc. I don't know if you'd be able to have an abundance of capable athletes hiding in the wings. Maybe there are some loop holes and workarounds. It also sounds like this rule mainly applies to kids who get there first and then decide to quit. You'd have to convince a lot of kids to quit I would think to really make it a valuable loophole.
Convince one senior-to-be 4th string TE to "quit" to make room for a graduate transfer of a shutdown CB sounds pretty valuable.

 
Yep, it sounds like the rules for medical hardships are being relaxed, and this will allow schools to keep kids on a scholarship to allow them to finish school, but not count against the 85-scholarship limit.

This is smart for kids who lose the drive/ability to play football, but want to finish their education.
Maybe he was buyin what Cav was sellin but not the new staff... :rollin

But seriously for players who aren't completely bought in to a new coaching staff/scheme but are hesitant to quit bc they don't want to lose the scholly, this makes things a whole lot easier and is for the best for all parties.  

 
No one in particular.  Just a comment in general regarding if this would ever be a valuable loophole.
No question it could be a valuable loophole in a one off situation, but I was more referencing Tom's point about applying it at a large scale. On the surface, I don't think the latter would be feasible.

 
One caveat I wonder about to this is how many kids you could convince to take part in that, though. People who aren't on the 85-man or a walk-on can't (or, at least, shouldn't) take part in team meetings, workouts, activities, etc. I don't know if you'd be able to have an abundance of capable athletes hiding in the wings. Maybe there are some loop holes and workarounds. It also sounds like this rule mainly applies to kids who get there first and then decide to quit. You'd have to convince a lot of kids to quit I would think to really make it a valuable loophole.
To the first point, programs can do what Alabama and others do (including Frost in the last cycle) and over recruit with anticipation of roster attrition. If you typically take 17-22 recruits per year to fill your 85-man roster (assuming  4-5 yr from matriculation to graduation), you could bump that up by 5 or so per year. Now, you have a larger pool of quality prospects. The second issue would definitely be individual-specific, but I am sure you will get some takers each year (e.g., Decker and Brokop) who are willing to step away from the program while having their college paid for.

If this is only for coaching changes, I guess that would nullify making it a major recruiting advantage.

 
Last edited by a moderator:
Are they really "good 4 star recruits" if they come here and can't contribute?  Asking for a friend.
There are players that are good 4 star recruits out of highschool. But, when they get to the next level, they don’t realize their potential due to a number of reasons ranging from effort, attitude, coaching, injury....etc. 

 
BlitzFirst said:
Think of Adam Taylor.  Coming out of high school, he was the best running back many of us had ever seen at the high school level.  He was injured in his senior year and he never made a dent here at Nebraska.  Not his fault, was the injury as he supposedly never got back to that player we saw on film.

Happens all the time.

Then you have 2 and 3 star players who get to the next level and just explode into 4 and 5 star talent (think Ameer).

It goes both ways...but it seems Nebraska has been on the losing end of this type of thing for a while now.  If HCSF is the same as he was at UCF...we'll be on the winning edge of this from this point forward.


That is certainly the hope.

 
I feel like it has more to do with a staff knowing what they want and finding it on their own.  Not all star players are equal.  Adam Taylor looked like he was 25 when he was in high school -  guys like that have possibly already peaked physically which doesn't leave much room for improvement.  The next guy might be a mid 3 star that hasn't shaved and hasn't filled into his frame - 3 years from now that player explodes and looks like great development by the coaching staff.

TO used to look for nebraska farm boys with big feet and room to grow - those kids were way underrated, however became the core of what NU football became.

 
Back
Top