[SamuelMcF]

Is Stanford going back to "having its hat on the table" so the recruit can make everyone think he's smart, when the reality is Stanford isn't a serious option for the recruit by Stanford's choice or his own?

The feeling I get is Stanford Football recruiting has really fallen off a cliff.  Is this true, or just a perception I have that isn't based on anything but pure speculation?

I believe you're basing this on '21, which was indeed awful. Covid totally nullified the staff's main weapon in recruiting, the campus visit. (Contrary to what you may think, it generally works.) We saw a bunch of admitted recruits committing to hometown schools because they couldn't officially visit anywhere else, and could generally pop over to the local campus multiple times. With Kane Patterson we're seeing it again. Helps that Vandy is very good academically.

Staff responded to this new situation in '22 by firing off offers at a (relatively, of course) breakneck pace and speaking to recruits earlier and more, but it's still way harder to get kids to come to campus and walk around by themselves/with family due to NCAA restrictions. The fact that Gavin Sawchuk just did so is pretty cool.

Oh, and it doesn't help that the on-field product isn't what it was.

Also, Finkley is a realistic possibility. Not just a hat on the table.

[SamuelMcF]

Is Stanford going back to "having its hat on the table" so the recruit can make everyone think he's smart, when the reality is Stanford isn't a serious option for the recruit by Stanford's choice or his own?

The feeling I get is Stanford Football recruiting has really fallen off a cliff.  Is this true, or just a perception I have that isn't based on anything but pure speculation?

I believe you're basing this on '21, which was indeed awful. Covid totally nullified the staff's main weapon in recruiting, the campus visit. (Contrary to what you may think, it generally works.) We saw a bunch of admitted recruits committing to hometown schools because they couldn't officially visit anywhere else, and could generally pop over to the local campus multiple times. With Kane Patterson we're seeing it again. Helps that Vandy is very good academically.

Staff responded to this new situation in '22 by firing off offers at a (relatively, of course) breakneck pace and speaking to recruits earlier and more, but it's still way harder to get kids to come to campus and walk around by themselves/with family due to NCAA restrictions. The fact that Gavin Sawchuk just did so is pretty cool.

Oh, and it doesn't help that the on-field product isn't what it was.

Also, Finkley is a realistic possibility. Not just a hat on the table.