Which 4 programs do we historically recruit head to head against the most...

[dpwspringer 0]

UAT, UGA, FLA, & FSU?

[bootskii 268]

Miami has become a thorn in our side too now a days.

[AUBigCat 17]

Lately it seems like Clemson has become a worthy adversary.

[weagle weagle wde 0]

FSU is where 5 star talent goes to do nothing. but yes, other than uat, I think FSU is who we go up against the most.

[dpwspringer 0]

Thanks, I was trying to keep an eye out on how our key recruiting rivals were doing.

Recruiting has and is going through some big changes.  From using national recruiting services rankings to make across the board offers of some kind to all 5 and 4 star recruits, to making offers earlier and earlier, to how third parties are involved, to pr battles with commitment and de-commitment announcements, etc... it has become a spectator sport in its own right.

[TigerWar 82]

Georgia

Alabama

Florida

Florida State

I haven't even read the thread, but those four popped in my head immediately upon reading the question. We sure have gone head to head with FSU for a number of players over the years. Believe it or not, we've went head to head with "The U" for a quite a bit of blue chips too.

[AUwenMD 0]

Nobody has mentioned it, but we have gone head to head with LSU for recruits the past several years. Won some, and lost some. I would not say they are a "top four" recruiting foe, but I would certainly put them in a top six.

[AuburnArch13 185]

Nobody has mentioned it, but we have gone head to head with LSU for recruits the past several years. Won some, and lost some. I would not say they are a "top four" recruiting foe, but I would certainly put them in a top six.

Yeah, LSU and Clemson probably fall in line next just outside the top 4.

[Tiger Growlin 0]

Tennessee gets an honorable mention vote from me for a top 4 spot.

[Rednilla 5,449]

Historically, the top three are Alabama, Georgia, and Florida, no question. The fourth one is a toss up. 20 years ago, I would imagine that Georgia Tech would probably have been number 4. South Florida isn't a place we've been in a whole lot in the past, so Miami wouldn't be in that category.

With regard to present day, a case could be made for several schools just because of the number of top level prospects we're going after, but the top three are still Alabama, Georgia, and Florida, toss up between FSU and LSU (with the recent influx of Louisiana prospects) for fourth, and Arkansas, South Carolina and Clemson all deserve mention.

Going forward, expect Texas and Texas A&M to join that list. Combine the SEC's new reach into the Lone Star State with the recruiting prowess already shown by Chizik, Trooper, Luper, and Grimes in pulling talent from Texas and the Southwest in general, and I expect us to be in on a LOT of prospects from the most talent rich football environment in the country in short order.

[dpwspringer 0]

Historically, the top three are Alabama, Georgia, and Florida, no question. The fourth one is a toss up. 20 years ago, I would imagine that Georgia Tech would probably have been number 4. South Florida isn't a place we've been in a whole lot in the past, so Miami wouldn't be in that category.

With regard to present day, a case could be made for several schools just because of the number of top level prospects we're going after, but the top three are still Alabama, Georgia, and Florida, toss up between FSU and LSU (with the recent influx of Louisiana prospects) for fourth, and Arkansas, South Carolina and Clemson all deserve mention.

Going forward, expect Texas and Texas A&M to join that list. Combine the SEC's new reach into the Lone Star State with the recruiting prowess already shown by Chizik, Trooper, Luper, and Grimes in pulling talent from Texas and the Southwest in general, and I expect us to be in on a LOT of prospects from the most talent rich football environment in the country in short order.

Due to geography and where the larger number of better hs players are usually located, historically we recruited AL, GA, and FL the hardest and then MS.  Of course that put us up against our rivals that are located within that same geographic area.

"Going forward" is an interesting thought because of the way recruiting is changing.  IMO, we are branching out farther and farther from our traditional recruiting grounds.  It seems there is a fundamental shift in philosophy.  At one time we had a geographic boundary that we primarily operated within and tried to find the best available talent and 'coach it up'.  Now, I think we seek out more 'SEC ready' talent and branch out further to find it.  Obviously national recruiting services, their rankings, and camps play a bigger and bigger role in recruiting.

[Stripe 5]

Tennessee gets an honorable mention vote from me for a top 4 spot.

Na, Tenn. can't keep their in state players in state as most end up going somewhere else. It's been a huge struggle for them in recruiting for quite a few years now.

I think we are all in agreement that UGA, BAMA, and FLA are the top 3. With the 4th spot it's difficult to see without some research as we have been fighting it out for the best talent in the nation that fits our coaches’ desires.

This past recruiting class I would say it was FSU. I feel it changes quite frequently with the change in attitude as to go after the great HS players in the country vs. sitting in a geographical area. Clemson has been there for a few recruits over the past few years. I can see it changing quite frequently from now on.

It's been really interesting to watch and will continue to be interesting for years to come as our coaches go for the best talent in the country. It should change the way you watch recruiting as a whole. We are going to miss on some of these guys but we will pull our fair share as well. We lost lots of Defensive guys to FSU this year, but we cleaned up on O-line guys. This year should be another big year as we fight for the defensive side of the ball.

I’m excited to see who signs, but I can wait until after the season to get into it. It’s still many months away and I find it hard to get into until January timeframe. It just seems to get in the way of the season. I'll let the coaches do their thing and enjoy the season. I'll look at recruiting as we get cloaser to Feb.