The House of Blue

I think posts that express great disappointment and intolerance of poor play do not hurt recruiting and in fact may help it. It demonstrates fans here are unaccepting of mediocrity. OTOH apathy would turn me off if I were a recruit.

Posts that attack the coaching staff and advocate coaching changes however are potentially harmful IMO. However people should not put too much importance on internet posts. All programs have complainers and no fan base is accepting of subpar performance.

The recruits visit this site. It can't help.

Actually we have recieved two of our higher rated commitments this week. Both said they love the atmosphere and the fan intensity. BBN is doing it's job. Anyone who says the BBN has a negative impact on recruiting is really misguided.

I am sick and tired of the fans being blamed for a poor product!!! They are supporting the team and buying tickets. We have a piss poor product on the field with piss poor support from the UKAA- the fans deserve much more! The fans continue to be used by the UKAA.

I believe that it may actually help from one standpoint. Recruits that are affected by some of the immaturity of posters on web sites say up front they have no interest which means we don't have to offer and sit and wait on them. Most recruits understand that winning and losing is part of football and only one team wins each game played. They also understand that rabid fans will never take losing with out venting their frustrations somewhere. The kids want playing time and good facilities and will go where they can get these and be comfortable with the coaches and players they are going to spend 4-5 years of their lives with. We want players who look at the facilities and the atmosphere of college life and team play, and those who follow boards and decide they don't want to come because of a handful of disgruntled fans are probably not a good fit because they probably tend to have negative personalities which only brings future problems to the team. That being said it still is quite bothersome to read some posts and how brutal people can be. I only hope most are treated the way they treat others.

Kids that are being recruited don't generally visit the fan boards. They are to busy talking to coaches, taking visits, practice of their own and oh yea, studies to graduate from high school. Their social life is already cut short with the commitment it takes being recruited and finding the right fit. There is no way they spend what little bit of time they do have left surfing fan boards.

It depends on the individual we are recruiting. You know the old saying of beauty is in the eye of the beholder?

recruit A may view it as a passionate fanbase who wants to see the program go to the next level.

recruit B may vie it as a crazy fanbase who just gripes and complains.

Ultimately it's up to the coaches to sell the kids on the program, their vision, the school, education, the fans, etc...

You guys are right. Producing posts every week where you call for the heads of the HC and AD can be nothing but good for the program. And, when we question a recruit's worth based on their supposed academic standing or offers, it is also a positive. Yes, the staff has done an outstanding job on the recruiting front in the last two weeks, as well as with the class as a whole. But, the negative tenor infecting this board, and others, is not a positive and never will be.

are you suggesting we shut it down?

do you not understand that this goes on everywhere?

There's a difference between negativity for negativity's sake and constructive criticism. There is far too much negativity and too little constructive discussion, IMO.

No recruit worth his own salt is going to decide whether to go to UK or not based on the fans being pissed and voicing their thoughts on an internet message board after bad performances.

In fact, while they would likely respond to the question in a formal interview by Matt or Jeff with something along the lines of "I like that the fans are trying to hold the program to a higher standard," if they were asked "off the record" what they think about the fans being pissed and voicing it on the boards, they would likely respond more along the lines of "I don't blame them. I'd be pissed too if I was a fan, after watching how they've played lately."

mj, I did not mean to imply that I think a recruit would base their commitment to a program based on negative comments from the fanbase. I understand those comments will be made and that other programs, especially traditional powers, have fanbases that do it as well.

My only point was to say that the negativity for negativity's sake is pointless and ridiculous. Coming on the boards as soon as UK loses to say fire Joker and fire Barnhart makes little sense to me. But, that's just me. Also, while I see the the validity in questioning the offers a prospect may have, writing that player off as a result is short-sighted. As UK fans, we've seen far more of those players pan out than not. Again, just my opinion.

Obviously, the staff is doing quite well of late on the recruiting trail despite the results on the field and the vitriol they read on the message boards currently. You can do nothing but commend Joker and Co. for that.