Further evidence for me of the importance of camps is Drew Barker. Honestly, he has done very little yet passing the ball in high school that impresses me. Yet he is in the top 100 juniors. He has size. He definitely has athleticism. I am very impressed with him running the ball. I haven't seen it yet passing the ball. In my limited viewing of both, Pike made more impressive throws at QB in high school than I have seen to date from Barker. But I know the passing talent is there in Barker because he is doing something in these camps that impresses the people who know. I think he will take some big steps forward passing the ball this year in high school action.

 

My guess is your limited scouting of Drew was early in his sophomore year. I saw from the beginning to the end and it improved greatly. What you should have seen even in a limited number of games is the arm strength to throw the quick slant and the out. That's been there since his frosh year. Where he struggled early last season but got better was accuracy and touch. My guess is the coaches who have offered saw a lot more than we saw last year.

 

We should also assume he will continue to improve which is why we have to remember that college coaches are projecting him out to 20 years old (he will not be 17 until next spring) . He won't look like he can start at South Carolina today.

 

I will say that it seems like it's hard to get a D1 scholly if you don't have offers by early senior year.

Not many college programs will offer a scholarship without seeing a kid in person. Thus, assistants showing up at combines. I believe a younger player(frosh, soph) needs to get concrete test results at a combine(independant from the coach's numbers). When they reach their Junior year they need to attend camps that are offered by the Universities that they are interested in attending. The recruiting process really heats up during their Junior year. Of course highlight films will also be reviewed.

Coaches can not show up at the combines but can get the results of the combine from the recruiting sources.

Camps and combines weigh heavily in recruiting decisions.

 

Whatever a coach can see with his own eyes, he will trust more than film. The environment is controlled at a camp or combine as well, so I can get a good read on a player's ability at these events.

 

So many factors go into high school games that coaches may not have accurate information on, that it can be hard to trust the film. Many players make position switches when they get to college, coaches may be ignorant to level of competition and game film may not showcase all of a players talents.

 

Game film is a significant factor as well, but I think combine and camp performances weigh more heavily in the mind of coaches. As a player, I never received a scholarship offer after a game, but I did get several at camps.

 

JMO.

Camps and combines weigh heavily in recruiting decisions.

 

Whatever a coach can see with his own eyes, he will trust more than film. The environment is controlled at a camp or combine as well, so I can get a good read on a player's ability at these events.

 

So many factors go into high school games that coaches may not have accurate information on, that it can be hard to trust the film. Many players make position switches when they get to college, coaches may be ignorant to level of competition and game film may not showcase all of a players talents.

 

Game film is a significant factor as well, but I think combine and camp performances weigh more heavily in the mind of coaches. As a player, I never received a scholarship offer after a game, but I did get several at camps.

 

JMO.

 

exactly

Also slightly building on Clyde's point, a lot of division one schools offer off of potential. There are many kids who I have played against at my days at Fern Creek who didn't exactly play like D1 material but were so physically gifted that they could be molded into players. Like Clyde said they are projecting them to what they could be at 20 after a few years in a college weight program and proper coaching.

Edited August 16, 201214 yr by Ram
Rule 13

A perfect example of why coaches can't always trust game film; I am watching Gilman play Moeller. Gilman has an Elite 11 QB, but their coach runs a single wing. I can not get a great read of what he projects as a QB from this film. I can see his abilities at a camp like Elite 11. This kid is going to Maryland next year because of camps, not game film, IMO.

A perfect example of why coaches can't always trust game film; I am watching Gilman play Moeller. Gilman has an Elite 11 QB, but their coach runs a single wing. I can not get a great read of what he projects as a QB from this film. I can see his abilities at a camp like Elite 11. This kid is going to Maryland next year because of camps, not game film, IMO.

 

Is this a case of a coach sticking to a familiar offense without considering the talents of the players he has?

Is this a case of a coach sticking to a familiar offense without considering the talents of the players he has?

Do you know any single wing coaches? If so, you know the answer. If not, they are very fanatical. Fanatical about what? Fanatical about the single wing.