By Jeff Rice, NN Senior Writer

jrice@nittanynetwork.com

June 4, 2009

Tom Luginbill has seen the game as a player, a coach and a personnel evaluator. Each year, ESPN’s national director of recruiting and his colleagues at Scouts, Inc. evaluate more than 3,000 high school prospects, from future NFL stars to those destined for FCS programs.

In the final installment of our three-part series (check out installments one and two), Luginbill talks about where the Nittany Lions stack up against their conference rivals, what the Big Ten can do to get some of its national rep back and how the game and recruiting itself has changed since he played quarterback for Georgia Tech and Eastern Kentucky in the mid-1990s.

Jeff Rice: How do you see Penn State faring in the Big Ten this season?

Tom Luginbill: To be honest I see them probably competing with Ohio State for the championship. People are saying Ohio State has a leg up. I’m not so sure on that. With (Daryll) Clark coming back, that will pay real dividends for them. He’ll have to adapt to (the new) guys around him but you love to have an experienced guy coming back under center.

If you look at overall speed and athleticism across the conference, Penn State and Ohio State are the top two.

JR: The Big Ten has taken its share of criticism in recent years. How do they fix this? Is it a matter of simply recruiting more speed? Is it winning more BCS bowl games?

TL: One goes hand-in-hand with the other. They are going to have to beat a top-ranked team in national title game or BCS bowl game in front of the world, take care of business against a team that is perceived to be or actually is more athletic and faster.

I know people don’t like to hear this, but the reality is the proof’s in the pudding -- we scour this country nationally, evaluate 3,000 kids in any given class, and we can tell you as we look across the country and various regions, there’s no question that the fastest, most athletic players seem to reside in the southeastern portion of the United States. That seems to be where the most speed and athleticism, especially with skilled athletes, seem to be.

Where we see a little bit of an edge on the offensive front, the tight ends, is in the Midwest. We’re not just basing that off top of our head, we’re seeing that year in, year out.

If you look at Rich Rodriguez at Michigan, to fit his scheme, he’s going down into the south (to recruit). There are higher enrollments at the high schools, more athletes to choose from.

Then you take Ohio State, which has a strong presence in Florida and Georgia.

Now you are seeing Penn State do similar things in the D.C. and Maryland area, which is very comparable to the speed and athleticism you see in the south. The Big Ten has just got to get faster, more athletic as a whole, to even out the scales.

JR: Who is the best Penn State player ever that you have seen play?

TL: The most physically gifted player to take over a game I’ve seen would have to be LaVar Arrington.
 
JR: What have been the biggest changes in the game since you played?

TL: One of the things that’s really happened, it used to be about all size and strength; now everybody is committing to the slightly undersized player that can run like the wind. If a guy is an inch or two short, or 20 pounds light, before you wouldn’t go after him. Now, that’s what everybody’s pursuing.

Fifteen years ago, most of the offenses were a one-back set, zone blocking, and then you still had a few option teams. What you’ve seen (recently) is somewhat of a transition to a hybrid version of that.

It used to be people were scared to run the football out of the shotgun. Now teams have realized we can run out of the gun no differently than under center. The single wing option has transformed into the shotgun zone read.

Also, more now than ever, the quarterback is becoming the X-factor because defensively you have to account for the quarterback running the football. Fifteen years ago you didn’t have to account for that unless you were playing an option team. I think that’s one reason why you’ve seen lack of talent moving out of college ranks into the NFL at the (quarterback) position. No one will pay 45-million to a guy and risk getting him hurt running the ball.

In today’s college game, it’s ultimately how can I get my best offensive guy matched up against the worst defender.

JR: What have been the biggest changes in recruiting since you played?

TL: It’s become rapidly accelerated in terms of the calendar. Kids were getting letters in the spring of their junior year, they’d go to one camp during the summer, take visits in November and December, sign in February, and it was over.

The Internet has created such a wealth of information readily accessible to coaches and parents, that it’s easier for them to educate themselves on what’s out there. There’s so much information, college programs now know about players much more in advance, the competition starts quicker, the unofficial visits, then you get more players committing early. The time frame advances.

Then it’s onto evaluating the next class -- who the sophomores and freshmen are. And it’s trickled down -- the FCS level is now what the FBS used to be in terms of their recruiting pace.