1. South Florida (100 mile radius of Miami) The 100 mile radius sounds bad but the ocean and swamp land limit the recruitable real estate. So Fla averages 160 D1 prospects per year and 75 BCS signees per year. It is rich in speed, especially in DB, DE, LB and RB. Basically everything that Minnesota is lacking. You could recruit the entire area very well with two coaches. Coach Miller is said to have great contacts in So Fla and I know that one of Kill’s staff members recruited So Fla for NIU. Yes this area is recruited heavily by Florida, FSU and Miami as well as a helmet school here and there supplementing their class. But after that you’re competing against schools like North Carolina, West Virginia or Louisville as well as in-state schools South Florida, Central Florida, FAU and FIU which doesn’t seem as daunting.
2. Dallas / Ft Worth Metroplex (50 mile radius of Arlington, TX) The Metroplex is the richest hotbed in terms of recruits per mile. This 50 mile radius averages 150 D1 signees and 75 of those go to BCS schools. The QB’s are great and these players may not be as athletic as those from So Fla, but they make up for it in Football IQ. The Metroplex is more well-rounded when it comes to the type of recruits it produces than So Fla. Even though there are a plethora of recruits, there are a handful of schools depending on the Metroplex to stock their roster. Texas and Oklahoma cherry pick the best from the top and then Texas A&M. Oklahoma State, Nebraska, Texas Tech and TCU take the next level of recruit. It might not be as big of a deal except Texas kids usually like to stay closer to home so winning recruiting battles over Arkansas, Baylor, Missouri, Kansas and KSU is a little tougher. Coach Pat Poore is already covering the Metroplex for the Gophers.
3. Atlanta (50 mile radius) a smaller radius so hopefully it could be covered by one coach. This smaller area has 135 D1 signees and 65 BCS signees and there is lots of quality. But it’s in the heart of SEC country and everyone but Florida recruits there on the regular. Much like the Metroplex there are plenty of recruits at every position but they have more athleticism like So Fla kids. Convincing a southern kid to leave SEC country to play for a northern team is tough. Minnesota does not currently have anyone on staff that has Atlanta connections (as far as I know) so that would be a hindrance as well. On the bright side, we may be one of the only Big Ten teams there so if someone wants a change of scenery then we could be in good shape.
4. Houston (50 mile radius) Houston has 125 average signees and 50 BCS signees per year. The same problems exist for Houston that exist for the Metroplex but Houston is located even further south. Also, nobody is currently recruiting Houston for the Gophers which is tough but not impossible. Coach Lewis used to recruit Houston under Brewster so the Minnesota name is still out there a little.
5. North Florida (250 mile radius from Tallahassee, FL only) The 250 miles sounds outrageous but the schools spread out a little more than normal and there are several metropolitan areas to hit like Tallahassee, Jacksonville, Tampa, etc. so you can just pick and choose where you want to recruit. This 250 mile radius averages 212 D1 signees and 100 BCS signees and is very much like Atlanta in that there are lots of recruits, it is hit by every SEC school (albeit not as hard as Atlanta) and there are players at every position available. We haven’t recruited Atlanta is quite some time but I’d like to see it start.
6. Chicago (50 mile radius, IL only) averages 70 D1 signees and 25 BCS signees. This is the closest football hotbed to Minneapolis and it is in the heart of Big Ten country. For the most part the helmet schools leave it alone unless there is some really elite prospect. ND recruits a lot there but other than that it’s just Big Ten teams slugging it out. Chicago produces a lot of OL, DT and TE types and we’re more likely to get junior day visits, summer camp visits, unofficial visits than any other kids. Plus Kill’s staff is pretty familiar with Chicago from their days at NIU and SIU. Limegrover, Zebrowski and Phelps all have connections in Chicago.
7. Cincinnati (50 mile radius, OH only) 55 D1 signees and 27 BCS. Cincy is just like Chicago but not as close to Minneapolis. Plus you get more LB and DB prospects as opposed to OL/DT/TE. We don’t have any connections currently but both Zebrowski and Sawvel were born in OH and played at Mt. Union. I’d imagine that making connections shouldn’t be too difficult. If Mase could recruit there, then why not Kill?
8. Cleveland (50 mile radius, OH only) 50 D1 signees and 22 BCS. Ohio State grabs the cream and the rest is a free for all. OH kids are tough, which seems to be a trait that Kill likes and OH is relatively close to Minneapolis, at least in comparison to TX & FL. If nothing else, making it harder for our peers to recruit OH kids sounds good to me as many of their
9. Kansas (entire state) 67 D1 signees and 35 BCS. Granted most of these are at JUCOs but if/when we ever find ourselves in need of a quick fix then KS JUCOs are probably our best bet. Recruiting the entire state isn’t so bad when it’s really just a handful of schools. Also we can cherry pick the best of the non-elite prospects rather than beating the streets for unearthed gems. It seems that almost the entire staff has some kind of connection to KS so recruiting there wouldn’t be too surprising.
10. Louisiana (entire state) averages 140 D1 signees and 35 BCS. Louisiana kids are VERY loyal to LSU. This could work out well if we are able to convince southern boys that it’s better to head up north than to play for Ole Miss, Mississippi State or Arkansas. There is plenty of speed and there are players than fly a little under the radar so we could pick out a couple plums. We’d be the only Big Ten program recruiting LA which could help us differentiate ourselves. Coach Sawvel currently recruits this area which was great for NIU as they would get the leftover from lower level SEC teams but we can’t settle for that.
11. Alabama (entire state) averages 104 D1 signees and 43 BCS. Just like Louisiana but substitute Alabama and Auburn for LSU. Sawvel recruits this area as well.
12. Maryland/DC (entire state) 95 D1 signees and 35 BCS. This area isn’t as hotly recruited as other areas even though it turns out some good players. Like any other place, the helmet schools find the elites and the rest is up for grabs. There are some pretty good grabs out there provided you can haul the away from the east coast. New Coach Randy Edsall will want to make a statement in his first year as Maryland HC so 2012 recruiting could be a little more heated than before.
13. San Antonio (50 mile radius) 50 D1 and 25 BCS. Someone from the former NIU staff has some connections to the area and it doesn’t get as much non-Texas foot traffic as other TX cities. Still have to convince TX kids that the center of the universe is not in TX.
14. New Jersey (entire state) averages 95 D1 signees and 40 BCS. These kids are used to the cold weather and are pretty tough. But they are pretty loyal to Rutgers but Schiano is on the hot seat some so there could be a chance to do a little damage. Definitely a place where you could supplement a recruit or two in your class while flying under the radar. Kill has mentioned that he wants to start recruiting New Jersey so let’s see what happens.
15. [Insert Midwest location here] – Detroit, St. Louis, Indiana, Wisconsin and Iowa are all hotly contested as the local schools want to keep their players at home just like Minnesota does. There are not enough recruits to make these locations a priority but can make nice supplements to any Gopher class.
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