|
Who is he, Tom Haverford? Ever wonder which teams spend in waves on the recruiting trail and which teams take a more frugal approach? Bleacher Report has an interesting look at the recruiting expenses for men's teams at FBS schools. The story reveals that no Big 12 is among the top 10 spenders and Oklahoma State gets the most bang for its buck. It isn't a major surprise that the Cowboys are able to combine wise spending with landing well-regarded recruiting classes. With the facilities at OSU, if they can get a recruit on campus, that is half the battle. Kansas added another Texan to its commitment list with a pledge from cornerback Shola Ayinde of Richmond, Texas. The Jayhawks were already starting to stick their foot into the state of Texas before David Beaty was named head coach and it continued with Ayinde's decision. KU's class has a strong Texas slant with 15 of its 23 current commits from Texas. Tommy Hicks of Al.com took a Senior Bowl player poll asking 20 players if they would have included TCU in the College Football Playoff. The players seemed just as split as the general public with 11 saying the committee got it right and nine saying TCU should have been included. It's good to know college football players are just as uncertain as the rest of us. Although I should note they were kind of busy on Saturdays this fall so it would have been hard for them to see all the teams in action as much as the rest of us. It's an interesting poll nonetheless. It's never too early for 2015 predictions and Athlon comes through with its ranking of the Big 12 from top to bottom. They had a couple of teams a little low but West Virginia at No. 7 strikes me as particularly low. I wouldn't be surprised to see the Mountaineers rise towards the top of the standings in 2015 and even possibly force their way into the Big 12 title race. They were on that road this year and played TCU and Baylor as well as anyone in the conference. TCU and Baylor are the clear favorites but WVU could surprise. Baylor's Bryce Petty is one of the players with the most to gain  at the Senior Bowl, writes ESPN Insider's Todd McShay. Petty could play his way into the conversation as a first-round pick with a strong showing at the Senior Bowl. I was asked about Petty's pro prospects in Tuesday's mailbag and I think he will have a solid NFL career. There are a lot of things to like about Petty but, most importantly, he's a winner. It's a big week for several former Big 12 stars with Kansas State's Tyler Lockett and TCU's Kevin White already creating some buzz early in the week. It should be fun to keep track of these guys after watching them excel in the Big 12 the past few weeks.
|
