Many times a high school coach will call a college coach and tell him about a kid. It may start early in the 8, 9th or 10 grade, but they know.
Obviously LSU knew about MC because of course LSU has by far the best coaching connections in the state of LA. But if I remember correctly, LSU was MC's only major offer. BTW, I ultimately saw a crude, short video of Claiborne's highlights as he was playing his main position of QB...maybe like 3 minutes? I believe what ultimately occured late in the process is Fair Park borrowed some video equipment and made some highlights of MC. But add in lack of video, playing in NW LA, not exactly a hot bed of tons of recruits, and playing for a school that hadn't made the playoffs in literally 15 years to that point, well, you get the drit.
I agree that kickers are not rated properly. Long snappers are probably rated as offensive linemen and may not be a 3-star blocker, but some credit for snapping could be added. The problem for special team players is that they play so few downs per game that many coaches feel that a scholarship is wasted on them. They'd rather rely on walk-on kickers and snappers. Les thinks differently and we have had some very good kickers and snappers to show for it. I also thinks he does it to get some white faces on his increasingly black team.
He has to. All LSU departments have diversity policies to attend to. Have you noticed that scholarship athletes are 90% black and walk-on's are 90% white? You think there might be a reason for that?
I tell parents all the time, your kid loves football, loves to play the game, wants to be on the field, etc. Get them into a camp. Google Chris Sailor kicking. He rates the players this year, the Gonsoulin kid is highly rated at both kicking (#2, a 5* player) and punting. And by Chris and Rubio Long Snapping we signed the #1 LS. Most LS in the NFL play 10 years or more. Everyone remembers Brian Kinchens story , retired from the NFL, then called up to tryout for the job, plays in the Super Bowl. Google Chris Sailor Kicking, there are great write-ups on both players. Chris does a great job, he is well respected in the business.
I agree that camps are extremely important although there are just lots of kids who aren't near one or who can't afford them. Sailer has "open" camps that range from $100-$600 but he does offer "scholarships". Just like skill position camps, his upper tier camps require an invitation and are much more expensive. Results however, are still mixed. We currently have 3 Sailer products on our roster and 2 of them mostly suck. I am also aware that politics and personality exists among some of these camp owners and communities/parents. Sailer has been accused of playing favorites and if you cross him, he'll knock a kid way down his own rating list.
Commenting on race issues is not exactly productive. I am making a JOKING response to your question. Uh, maybe all the black guys already had schlolarships?
