"Zook's recruits raising eyebrows"

I can't figure out whether if there's smoke, there's fire, or whether unethical college coaches are just trying to poison the waters of an emerging challenger.

Was Zook known as a slimy guy when he was at Florida? Or is this brand new?

http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/chi-0612150135dec15,1,3251183.story?coll=chi-sportsnew-hed

 

Most other FSU fans will disagree with me, but I don't think he was or is a slimy guy. At least not in the terms of where he goes far and above what anyone else does. He's been known as a good recruiter and has a staff of solid recruiters.

He's had an aggressive game plan and its paid off. Most teams expect a school like Illinois to mope in its record and settle for second and third-tier recruits like many major conference bottom feeders, but he's going into this with nothing to lose.

 

Agreed. I'm sure he bands the rules like everyone else does (and everyone else does), but I think for the most part he's just a tireless recruiter. Some recruits were turned off by it while he was at Florida, some loved it.

 

I know first-hand about a real, real shady recruit that Zook welcomed with open arms even after several other schools backed away because of poor academics, drug charges, and an incident with a gun. So chew on that.

Personally, I think he's a slimeball.

 

Wow, there's an anomaly. A coach taking a change on a recruit with questionable character...I'm guessing you're talking about Melvin Alaeze? No different then Miami with Willie Williams, who had over a dozen various chargers on his record or when Oregon got a waiver for a recruit who took part in...murdering a kid....

 

I am anxiously awaiting DyePack's arrival here.

 

Zook talked himself into a negative story by responding to the reporter's question about what outsiders think of the Illini's recruiting work. That's Bad P.R. 101.
This story includes no accusations, either or on or off the record, and yet Zook's quote allows the headline writer to suggest the raised eyebrows.
And you wonder why he got fired so fast at Florida.

 

Well that was because he sucked as a coach. Florida hasn't exactly shied away from slimy coaches in the past if the success rate was high (i.e. Charley Pell). But once Zook's group lost to Mississippi State in Croom's first year that was all she wrote. Add in an 0-3 bowl record and an 0-2 record against Ole Miss...the pile on begins.

 

Wow. Odd story. No real news, just stuff from analysts and vague thoughts from unnamed coaches who are getting beat on recruits.... I would be careful about writing stuff like this:

"But Brent, the fifth-ranked player in the state by rivals.com, also is expected to pledge his allegiance to Illinois."

Who knows what recruits are "expected to pledge" anything? It's recruiting, no one knows anything.

 

Odd is an understatement.

Those 'analysts' are a joke ... didn't everyone read that lemming got canned from his last stop because he had been calling recruits himself to steer them away (or to?) certain colleges?

This is an embarrassing story for the writer (didn't even look at the byline). How about calling the kids and their parents and saying, 'why Illinois?' Or their coaches? How about going to the Illinois player who is talking about the Illini and asking why?

I'm surprised this actually ran, it's that bad.

 

An absolutely nothing story with an overly inflammatory headline.
And Zook did not say anything to create a negatve impression.
A total waste of time and space.

 

If we're gonna investigate him, we also have to look into how Orgeron has two top-25 recruiting classes coming into Ole Miss.