Dantonio recruiting critics need their head checked!

Dantonio recruiting critics need their head checked

Three major recruits, all very talented young men that earlier had committed to play football for MSU, have all chosen to move on. Keith Nichol as you know is moving on to Norman; Paul Simkovich (OL) is going to Akron and Quincy Landingham (DB) to Wisconsin. Those are all facts.

Coach Dantonio has gotten two young men to commit to MSU and arguably they have not had the splash that those three would have had according to recruiting gurus, but that is not the issue. Having been the coach for 10 days, Dantonio actually has people already complaining about his lack of recruiting prowess. That is about as logical as me being a Jenny Craig instructor.

It has never been a secret that I am not afraid to be a critic. However, any criticism of Dantonio is foolish at best, and should make us at least question the IQ of anyone willing to take those shots.

We all know that recruiting is the lifeblood of college football and we all should give serious inspection to what he does. With that said, come back in February of 2008 to accurately asses that. This class is naturally going to have kids that are at the Cincinnati level. The new staff must recruit the players that they already have connections with. This class will not be one that is going to get a lot of national love. That said, back off and take a long hard look at next season. In February of 2008 if we still are competing for MAC and Cincinnati type talent then I will gladly lead the charge of frustration and criticism.

My feeling is that we won't have to worry. Dantonio deserves to have the chance to succeed or fail on his own, not with unrealistic blowhards trying to sound smart. I know for a FACT that all coaches use message boards, internet sites and other sources of information in recruiting; at least let them see that the Spartan Nation doesn't rip and tear 17 year olds by hiding behind a false sense of bravado. If coach offers a kid that picks us over Grand Valley you can't blame the kid. The point is that rather than being critical of a 17 year old kid, let Dantonio do his job and bring the players to MSU that he feels will help bring us to the next level.

I am not saying that Dantonio is the next Tom Osbourne. But remember, when Osbourne was the head coach at Nebraska, he rarely had highly rated classes and before he won a national championship people ate his lunch for it. My points is give him the time to cement relationships and demonstrate what MSU football will look like and sell the program. In February of 2008 we will know immediately what we have.

Any person who is being highly critical of the Dantonio era at this stage is precluding themselves from demonstrating an intelligent viewpoint.

I don't care who the person is, a critical attitude toward Dantonio at this point simply does not make sense. Relax Spartan Nation, the jury is not deliberating yet; in fact, the jury has not even been selected. We will revisit this in February 2008, until then be glad that we have a new coach and enjoy the honeymoon. It is only 10 months and 27 days until the MSU vs. UM game.