Recruits vs population

[hOUston...]

I was reading another website where someone asked if there were any Mississippi committed football players that OU might want to “poach”. Someone responded that the highest ranked Ole Miss recruit not being a player OU would want to sign. That got me to wondering how many State of Alabama players would OU “want to recruit”. One website listed 14 4/5-star players.

I look at the number of 4/5-star players in the State of Oklahoma. There were six players. The State of Alabama has a population of 4.88 million and the State of Oklahoma has a population of 3.97 million. Does anyone have an idea why there is such a disparity of 4/5-star football players?

 

[JConXtsy]

A lot of factors here, some that are probably too sensitive to discuss openly on a message board. There's just such a vast difference in demographics between the two states.

Oklahoma is mostly populated by Tulsa and OKC, 400,000 and 600,000 residents respectively. Each is probably more like 1M for the metro area. That's half of the population in two spots.

Alabama is littered with a number of cities, but none of them reach higher than 200,000 and they aren't really metro areas. Birmingham, Mobile and Montgomery are all equal at about 200,000. Then you have Tuscaloosa and Huntsville each at maybe around 100,000.

Then you look at the population density, and Alabama is almost TWICE the density of Oklahoma. 95 people/sqmi vs 55 people/sqmi.

I think that probably has a lot to do with it. You're talking about similar populations with similar GDPs yet twice the population density. That means twice the money density too. More youth are probably within accessible range to better facilities, competition and opportunities in Alabama. Almost all 5M of their residents are within daily driving distance from some decent population.

In Oklahoma, you've got the kids in the Tulsa and OKC metros taken care of, but that's only half of the population. The other half live too far away from daily opportunities that would promote elite sports.

 

[owenfieldreams]

There is nothing sensitive about quoting the demographic statistics. 26% of Alabama's 4.8 million people are A.A. Only 10% of Oklahoma's 3.7 million people are A.A. The A A. demo is more likely to be on the first rung of the inequality ladder and football is a ticket up that ladder.

 

[CTOkie]

Once upon a time OU could get great talent from places like Ada, Enid, Ponca City, Okmulgee, Lindsay, Muskogee, Marlow, Durant, Wynnewood......and some place called Eufaula.
But high school football in Oklahoma has dropped off in small towns over the past few decades and the OKC-Tulsa areas are pretty much it for getting talent as JConXtsy and Plaino have pointed out. This makes the state of Texas more vital than ever for OU.
TE Jermaine Gresham from Ardmore was the last great talent I can recall. There are still a few small town players on OU's roster each year, but it seems they are walk-ons.

 

[Plainosooner]

I blame the state. The recruiting by the few "have" high schools in the state, have discouraged an overall encouragement of more quality programs. When you allow essentially unlimited transferring, then kids who have no chance to compete will search for places besides a football field.

The overall coaching in the state is subpar because of that, and other reasons. The mess at the state level for funding, makes it unlikely that quality coaches will hang around. Some of the best go south of the Red River, but other places as well.

There are other factors, but IMO, those are the big two.

Given the specific question, though, the root of it is that overall, that high school football is more important to the students of Alabama than the students of Oklahoma. The most recent stats would say that Alabama has a little under 5 million people, and Oklahoma has a little under 4 million. My guess is that there are 900,000 more people in Bama, but a whole lot more football players generally.

 

[OUnabomber]

I was reading another website where someone asked if there were any Mississippi committed football players that OU might want to “poach”. Someone responded that the highest ranked Ole Miss recruit not being a player OU would want to sign. That got me to wondering how many State of Alabama players would OU “want to recruit”. One website listed 14 4/5-star players.

I look at the number of 4/5-star players in the State of Oklahoma. There were six players. The State of Alabama has a population of 4.88 million and the State of Oklahoma has a population of 3.97 million. Does anyone have an idea why there is such a disparity of 4/5-star football players?

Maybe it just happened to be a great year for Alabama and a so so year for Oklahoma.

 

[Plainosooner]

I don't think Oklahoma has had that many in a while. So it was likely worse in previous seasons.

 

[oudogg]

Dont forget Lawton has a good influx of talent too other programs. Iowa state tailback is the last ex.

 

[Plainosooner]

Mike Warren from ISU was a transfer from Hawaii his soph year and was a three star guy, though OUr staff really liked him. But they wanted a kid from Cali just a little more. Second round draft pick, who was a five star.

 

[Scottsdale.Sooner]

Until Oklahoma takes a hard look at teachers salaries we will see an exodus of quality coaches heading for higher paying states.

 

[owenfieldreams]

Back in the Wilkinson era and on into the Switzer era West Texas was where the best Texas H.S. football was played. Midland, Odessa, Abilene, Wichita Falls, and even smaller communities like Brownwood were powerhouses and they all were prime recruiting territory for OU. A lot of our success related to the oil business and relative proximity to Norman. Now, the suburbs of Houston and DFW and along the I-35 corridor through Austin and San Antonio are where much of the talent resides. Contrary to the past when a kid picked a school due to allegiance, family ties, local influence, etc., now it's all about where to go to prepare for the NFL and which schools get the most favorable media coverage.

 

[Soonerheart]

Lots of good points made in this thread. I would agree most with the thoughts that it would help the entire university of Oklahoma if we fixed the things wrong in our public schools and try to make sports a higher priority in our middle and high schools.

Beyond that much of this is out of our control but OU boosters, fans and leadership can always work to improve OU facilities, endowments and academics so that we can recruit great players.

 

[roygbell]

Here is a good exercise for anyone who wants to spend the time to find the answer to this question. Just go the the latest US census site and search the 2010 data on the demographics of the states represented in each of the power 5 conferences. Some may think the answer is sensitive. It may indeed be sensitive to some, but the data is also factual.

Just look at the demographics of the individual power 5 conference teams rosters and compare it with the same demographics of the states represented in each conference. It is blatantly clear that the SEC and ACC have a built in advantage when it comes to recruiting. It isn't just an advantage, it is a huge advantage.

 

[owenfieldreams]

This!