quote:
He was better at evaluating, recruiting and developing EVERY offensive position, not just OL. Sumlin and McKinney have done a terrible job at RB recruiting, and WR development is not close either. Look at Swope or EZ in their 2nd years, better than what we have now - though some of that is scheme related also. Evans played HS ball in Galveston, Sumlin didn't recruit him to UH, but Sherman knew what he could be.
I think that is a big problem right now, too much recruiting based on who dominates in HS, which is fine for Mack/Kirk/Garrett, but not for OL and RBs and WRs. That is how a spread team ends up with just 3 good WR and no RBs and a bad OL. As they weren't recruited based on what they could be developed into, IMHO.
Sherman never got enough depth on D but he built the 2012 defense with 3* recruits, and didn't get a good DC early on though Deruyter was a good get.
He inherited a trash pile with a screwed up roster but worked his a** of for us and built something, and the RC Slocum nutrition center, football performance center/weight room, and Bright expansion (though not in swag mode) were all his ideas.
EVERY starting OL on the 2012 team plays in the NFL, that is unheard of, much less 3 first round picks.
His 3rd and 4th year teams would beat the s*** out of Sumlins 3rd and 4th year teams.
I do think Sumlin is a better fit for college and recruits well at least on paper, player development and scheme are lacking.
I don't necessarily think Sherman was our guy, THE guy, not our Stoops or Saban or Meyer, but be damned sure was the right guy at the right time.
Although I don't think he should have been let go, I understand it. But the way it happened and the way he found out was totally and completely SHAMEFUL and DISGRACEFUL for our program. And yet Mike was man enough to stop walk into Matt Davis's (?) living room and close the deal to convince him and his parents that A&M was the best place for him.
His post-mortem presser, which is unusual and he didn't have to do, was epic and the mark of a good man. His graduation speech in the summer of 2011 was great.
We will never have a better man and leader of young men as our coach.
And he sure as s*** wouldn't have hired a 29 year old kid who had never been an OC and called plays to be an OC in the SEC, 3 years removed from being a graduate assistant!
I don't mean to play the role of contrarian, because this is a great post and everyone seems to be eating it up, but there's some hyperbole and revisionist history in this one.
In year 4, Shermans teams didn't appear to develop that well, either. It wasn't until what would have been his 5th year that everything came together. we were miserable on the field for years 1, 2, half of year 3, and half of year 4. Next year is Sumlins 5th year, so what happens if our offense is really good again? Along with only this time having a better defense to go along with it?
I'm not so sure it's so much WR development as it is scheme. Our problem isn't based on who dominates in high school. Big time programs who win a lot more than Sherman ever did wanted most of the guys on our offense. You don't stop recruiting the most talented players just because you had some success with a couple of three stars in Manziel and Evans.
I'm a firm believer that while Sherman didn't inherit a great roster, he certainly took it down even further than it was. That was not a 4-8, 6-7 type rebuild job. It was probably a 6-6, 8-4 type rebuild job with a better coach.
I also don't agree that his 3rd and 4th year teams would be the s*** out of Sumlins 3rd and 4th year teams. talk about revisionist history. The same 3rd and 4th year teams that went 15-10 in the big 12? I get that everyone is down on Sumlin right now, I am too, but we don't need to make s*** up.
Also saying we will never have a better man and leader of young men? Well maybe we won't have one better, but from everything I've heard Sumlin is a good man too. They obviously have different styles, but it doesn't make one better than the other.
