sinceredawg
Member
So let me unpack the logic here:
1.) Washington can develop players, but A&M can't. Which is to say A&M just rolls the best athlete out on the field. This is why Martin can suck there but be good here, so we should want him.
2.) We want Martin with two years of "development" time remaining over some 18 year old MWC kid with five years to develop.
I'm now going to hold my breath until one of you guys figures out why these two arguments are logically contradictory.
Ah, fuck it, I don't want to die: If Martin is so physically talented that we should want him over the "MWC guy," why is he third on the depth (sounds like it was going to get worse with the younger guys coming in, too) on a team that doesn't develop and just rolls out the most talented guy at each position?
And if Washington's relative development prowess is their advantage, why take a guy who has little time left to develop vs. a guy with five years of potential?
Including the '21 class, there are eight scholarship OLB and nine ILB (some with flexibility) on the roster. In '22 the OLB will drop by at least two, but add whoever they bring in that class. Those numbers are juuuust fine. I'll take a '22 OLB with five years to play over a '22 senior who hasn't done shit.
And I don't mind at all giving that scholarship to a walk-on. Typically, walk-ons get scholarships when they earn it on the field. Eleven times out of ten, I take Ulofoshio or Bowman or the starting field goal kicker over A&M's third string junior.
This kind of TBS ball-gargling has 8-5 written all over it. Earn it on the fucking field. This guy didn't; an under-the-radar '22 kid (if that's what it would end up being) at least might[/i].
First of all, to clarify, Martin should have three years of eligibility left given the covid freebie.
Also your take here is just dumb.
1) No one is making this assumption. No one is making any assumptions. What has been borne out time and time again is that some players simply excel with a change of scenery. Amandre Williams and Bryce Sterk are actually good examples of that as they went on and had good careers at MSU. Or look at Milo Eifler if you want a P5 example. There's plenty of precedent of high-ceiling players sucking at their first school and going on to find success elsewhere.
2) We don't want Martin "over" any one player. Your "I take Ulofoshio/Bowman over Martin" example is exceedingly stupid since that's not the tradeoff. I'd also take Jeremiah Martin over Draco Bynum. Which is an equally stupid comparison because it's also not the tradeoff. What matters is that we have the room so fucking get him in. Worry about the numbers later. Not to mention that the numbers appear to be even less of a concern in Jimmy Lake's program since we seemingly don't ever hit the 85 limit anyways without gifting a scholarship to a walk-on.
To answer both of your points, I was responding directly to posts in this thread. Don't make me go back and quote. Somebody said A&M sucks at development, somebody else said the scholarship will just go to a walk-on (with a negative connotation), many pointed to it being good for "depth" in a position room with eight scholarship players for two spots on the field.
Martin has three years to play two. He has two years of eligibility left. He played in '18, '19, and the '20 freebie. Didn't do shit. Balls being gargled because he was a BDTW.com legend. You'd take him over Draco Bynum even though they have an identical resume? Interesting.
There are open scholarships now, but there won't be the next two years if you want anywhere near full classes. The COVID freebie is going to fuck every team in the country with the 85 man limit. Bringing in a depth player now at a pretty stocked position is a horrible tradeoff for future class size.
Nobody is gargling his balls. Your entire argument is built around that and the assumption that taking Martin = not taking someone else. Not even the case at all. Not in the portal era. He's coming to UW to try out. If he's good enough he'll keep a spot.
You cannot revoke a scholarship in the P12. He's here for two years if he wants, like it or not. So, yes, for two years, he's taking a spot. That's one player you could theoretically take in the '22 or '23 class (or, hell, '21) and develop into being a starter down the road.
Which would feel outrageous except we weren't really planning on recruiting anymore anyway.