CBS Sports conducted a survey of one hundred high-major coaches, asking them to answer a few questions about how their peers performed on the recruiting trail. While the bulk of the story wasn’t particularly surprising, there were a few tidbits that are of particular interest to ACC fans. Though North Carolina coach Roy Williams was pegged as the third best recruiter in the nation after Kentucky’s John Calipari and Arizona’s Sean Miller, what is more interesting is the list of coaches who are apparently overrated as recruiters. I didn’t expect to see Bill Self and the very good Kansas program pegged as overrated in terms of recruiting and somehow, I was even more surprised to see none other than NC State’s own Mark Gottfried as the third most overrated coach in terms of recruiting.
This is a little stunning considering how excellent a job it seemed that Gottfried was doing in his first year recruiting for the Wolfpack. Do the coaches know something we don’t about the players that Gottfried landed? Or is this just sour grapes; coaches jealous of a guy who was able to burst back on to the scene and make an immediate impact? Whatever it is, it’s fascinating that a coach who, in his first year after taking a break from coaching, made the list. I’d be eager to know why the other coaches think so little of a coach who seems to be doing the right things on the recruiting trail.
Other ACC coaches were also noted. Florida State head coach Leonard Hamilton made the list as one of the more underrated recruiters in the country, well-deserved praise for a man who has repeatedly led deep, talented teams to strong finishes in the Atlantic Coast Conference. Another interesting story is how assistant coach Dalonte Hill from Maryland shows up in the top five as one of the nation’s best recruiters. This is probably well-deserved as well. Hill was best known for being the highest-paid assistant coach in the country under Kansas State’s Frank Martin. As the man who was able to bring Michael Beasley out to the plains, he has a proven track record as he goes to work for new head coach Mark Turgeon.