@yothn I just looked and it is the internet, so not to be taken as gospel, but it said that Smith had over 1300 yards his freshman year whereas Tate, Egbuka and Harrison Jr were all in the 200 yd range. Henry is supposed to be a big contributor and was also the top rated receiver in his class, but doubtful it will near Smith's level, partially because he's still there to soak up most of the yardage. They also have a deep room with another freshman garnering lots of praise, Innis returning, and their transfer signees. Might be part of the reason OSU seemed to fall out of the Sales sweepstakes. Moore had 500 yards receiving last year, so also not in the same area code as Smith. Sales may be the next Smith, but I still think he was pretty unique in terms of first year impact. I'd say the opportunity at IU is unique among his finalists in that not only does he likely have a starting spot, but also likely won't have the competition for targets we would at TX.
@jackskip23 If QB play is on his factors list... then he'll have to "guess" what it'll be like. Neither Hoover or Manning will likely be in college when Sales is playing. So Sales would have to judge the program and coaches track records, more than anything on the likely QB style and overall play. I would have to think IU/Cig/Shanahan/Sunseri would get the edge in a Texas/Sark etc... comparison.
My bad - forgot this kid has another year of high school. Doesn’t help us that UT’s QB situation for the Fall of 2026 is more certain that ours is, though.
@jackskip23 How so? Honestly don't know who they have in their QB room? Its almost a certainty, at this point, that Manning will leave for the NFL after this year. IU seems to have a decent young room behind Hoover... Cherry is a solid young prospect for IU. Is Bell still on the roster? Purcell is fairly highly regarded as a 27 kid. And then... you kinda just have to assume that Cig and company will be a player for a top 5 level portal QB as well, basically all of their offseasons.
Sarkisian obviously has a very robust history with quarterback coaching and development. But his recent history, at Texas, hasn't been nearly as good. Quinn Ewers and Arch Manning have been very inconsistent, despite their pedigrees as elite talents.
Depends on what he's looking at, and looking for... but its hard to think many schools out there have any better quarterback vibes, right now, than IU.
Hope Monshun and his camp follow Sam!
@iunorth your response aligns with the variable that I think could be the difference maker in his decision. What team is going to give him the best opportunity for production and earl on his career? Rosters turn over so much, really hard to know.
- Sales has a pic of himself in Texas gear on his IG tonight. He will probably have IU tomorrow but I don’t like it.
@zeke4ahs Think this is just the game for these elite recruits, unfortunately. It's been one of my concerns, as thorough as Cig has been, this is really the first time we've gotten to the final round on a 5*, whereas TX recruits multiple guys like this every year. My other concern is just the impression that TX facilities and campus present. At the end of the day, we're still talking about a17/18 yo, so it's got to be more exciting and a wow factor to get on a plane and fly to Austin and seeing their facilities and campus, vs driving down 37 to Bloomington. When you step back and look at the bigger picture, the development, results and opportunity at IU are better, but those surface emotions are still real for most people. At the end of the day, the thing I've been most impressed with from IU players and recruits is the maturity and quality they show as people. I don't think Cig and staff will bend on that with 5*s so if Sales is that type of person (and I don't believe we'd be after him so hard if he wasn't), he's going to see the bigger picture... I hope! Hope Cuban et al are lending a helping hand here!
If we don’t get him there is always the portal.
We went 16-0 without a 5* WR.
Despite the reports of "chatter" nothing has actually changed. 95% of the signs point to IU (McAfee Show, Wiltfong is still on IU). The "chatter" seems to have stirred up some panic in the fanbase, though.
Thank you for reading Hoosier Huddle
@thehoosierhuddle yeah, it's actually been pretty much as they laid out. He's taken his visits and has tweeted pics of himself in everyone's gear to keep things stoked. I feel great about our chances, but as I said, he is a 5 star and we are competing against the elites, so... anything could happen. I guess the way things play out now, we aren't even guaranteed anything if he does put on an IU hat, but it sure would feel good! The ultimate would be if Kiffin subsequently does flip TX 5 star receiver and they end up with nada!
PS. If only we had a meaningless bball game in July to distract us!
I am sure the Texas football facilities are impressive, I have not been able to see them, but I have been to UT several times and the campus in Austin is nothing special and in my opinion does not compare with the Bloomington campus.@zeke4ahs Think this is just the game for these elite recruits, unfortunately. It's been one of my concerns, as thorough as Cig has been, this is really the first time we've gotten to the final round on a 5*, whereas TX recruits multiple guys like this every year. My other concern is just the impression that TX facilities and campus present. At the end of the day, we're still talking about a17/18 yo, so it's got to be more exciting and a wow factor to get on a plane and fly to Austin and seeing their facilities and campus, vs driving down 37 to Bloomington. When you step back and look at the bigger picture, the development, results and opportunity at IU are better, but those surface emotions are still real for most people. At the end of the day, the thing I've been most impressed with from IU players and recruits is the maturity and quality they show as people. I don't think Cig and staff will bend on that with 5*s so if Sales is that type of person (and I don't believe we'd be after him so hard if he wasn't), he's going to see the bigger picture... I hope! Hope Cuban et al are lending a helping hand here!
@walt542 But the football facilities are where the magic happens if you're a 5* prospect with NFL aspirations! From the sounds of it, I doubt Fernando or most of the senior transfer players spend any time on campus. Sounds like all online classes and football. I don't think a pretty campus is ever going to hurt your chances, but not sure it's much of a factor to most high level prospects. OSU for instance, wasn't an attractive campus to me, but they still do OK with recruiting. Guess we'll know tomorrow!
Question: I've never watched the Pat McAfee show. Is it broadcast on a network, livestreamed on Youtube, or what? Just wondering how I can watch it. Has anyone heard what time Sales is doing his announcement, and how long is a "typical" PM show? I know, I know, google it.... but just wondering how a somewhat technology challenged OG can watch?