ONE OF OUR MOST DEBATABLE LISTINGS, The Fire 79 prospect rankings will be released today. Here are a few factors that fans should know prior to the rankings being released:
BCP AREA
The players have been chosen from 92 football teams in Hillsborough, Pasco, Pinellas, Polk County and out of area prospects who attended BCP Camps in 2015. Players are ranked at either their high school position or projected college position. TOP 49 PLAYERS IN THE CLASS OF 2016 AND THE TOP 30 PLAYERS IN THE CLASS OF 2017.
PLAYER VS PROSPECT
We can assume there are really good to great players at every school, in every county, in every state. However, good players do not necessarily determine a good to great prospect. Measurables (Height, weight, length), skill set, explosiveness, speed, impact a prospects’ demand. Unfortunately many good players will not get much attention because there is a large gap between the number of high school seniors and scholarships available. THERE IS NOT EXACT SCIENCE TO RECRUITING AND COLLEGE COACHES DON’T ALWAYS GET IT RIGHT. However, competitiveness, Measurables (Height, weight, length), skill set, explosiveness and speed are the start.
DEFENDING WITH STATS
The most used defense for player not ranked or lower than expected, stats. Fans, friends and family will attempt to use season stats as the primary factor for a player to be ranked or ranked higher. The hard fact is, stats really only validate a prospect. They don’t “predict” potential. College coaches recruit “potential” more than anything else. These players demonstrate rare abilities and can create mismatches that have a glaring impact on the game. These players have all the skills to dominate a game and could make a possible impact as true freshmen. If a player rushes for 2,000 yards in a high school season and plays versus average and below average competition, is a step slow, inches smaller or etc. he will not be a highly recruited prospect. Even though he is a highly productive high school player.
YOUR BEST GUY VS ALL THE BEST GUYS
Fans of high school football are usually limited to see the competition on their own team and the teams they compete against. Rarely will players, coaches and spectators have the opportunity to see players from other counties and rare, high caliber, benchmark college football prospects. Players will naturally defend the best player on their team. But, every team does not have a Ray-Ray McCloud, Ryan Davis or Derwin James. And until you see these type of prospects in person, your opinion will not change.
DEFENDING WITH OFFERS
Oral offers are great. They basically mean a college football coach thinks a player is talented enough to play at their university. 30 oral offers as an underclassman translates to 10-15 as a senior. College coaches issue early offers because of “potential.” Not necessarily what you are able to do now. For example, an underclassman defensive lineman with several verbal offers with size and good strength, but with limit pass rush moves and speed could easily be rivaled by another defensive lineman with speed, hands, tools and fewer offers. College coaches have different ways of determining how many verbal offers they will issue: position, location, academics, quantity are a few. Because a prospect does not have a bunch of EARLY offers, does not mean his recruitment will end that way. A few other factors will determine how fast his recruitment picks up. Because a prospects has a bunch of early offers does not mean his recruitment will end that way.
UPDATED
Rankings are updated four times a year; After each BCP individual showcase throughout the offseason. Many prospects will move down only because other prospects emerge. When the rankings are released, you will be able see the players current and past ranking. Many times a prospect will move down, not due to a lower evaluation/rating, but because additional prospects have been evaluated and inserted. Freshman rankings are not available for public view.
CRITERIA
Game film evaluation: All prospects are evaluated using as much film as possible.
Live game evaluation: While it is pretty much impossible for us to see every potential prospect in person, just about every highly ranked prospect will be seen at least one time.
Combines and camps: Our Ignite Elite Showcase and E7 Training Camps gives us an opportunity to get accurate measurements on height, weight, speed, vertical, etc on potential prospects. It also provides us a chance to how these prospects compete against other top prospects.
Right Now: We evaluate how good a player is currently. It is very hard projecting how good a player is going to perform at college level based on his current measurables and skill set.
We are evaluating players as potential college prospects. Not good high school football players. Measurables, skill set, explosiveness, speed, impact. Not necessarily because his previous season statistics.
We do not use any other publications rankings as a resource for ours. A players ranking in another publication has no influence on whether a players is ranked in our ranked below. The amount of verbal offers has no effect AT ALL on a players ranking.