[Redrum]

My assertion is there will be more Ben Edwards types if the academic bar for football scholarships at the major football factories rises.

But for the type of candidate that can get into Stanford, the raising of the minimum standards at the other schools would probably be irrelevant as to motivation.  The "rise" in the minimum would affect many other players at the bottom end.  The Stanford-admissible  kids might then opt for those newly reformed football factories because their interest was more skewed to football anyway or they bought the hype and the newly reformed factories were now academically "good enough" or, at least, talking the talk. 

Furthermore,  the experiment on the good-enough academics approach has been run.  It's called Not.re Dame.  We know from experience that kids who could make it into Stanford  opted to play instead for No.tre Dame.  How is Stanford better off  if it is losing recruiting battles with Not.re Dame?  Despite imaginary girlfriends and all,  why is it better for Stanford that Manti Teyo opted to play for Not.re Dame?  Why is it better for Stanford that Tai-ler Jones switched commitments to play for Not.re Dame?  Would they still have switched from us if Not.re Dame's academics were on par with, say, the Univ. of  Arkansas?  Doubt it.  ND's standards are exactly as you laid out: Not on Stanford's levels but respectable enough..  We don't need more schools who try and possibly succeed in selling that they are academically respectable enough.  Our starting recruiting pool is small enough as it is.  Losing an additional 3-4 kids per class to schools that successfully rebranded themselves as academically "good enough"  is no help to us whatsoever.

Right now we hold an enviable brand position:  THE academic school that plays great football.  We can blow it by playing crappy football.  Hate to see that, but it's fair. We have a chance to keep our brand every Saturday.  We can also lose the brand if some schools come in with an academic pitch that deprives us of top notch football players.  I don't see how having more sharks in the recruiting pool trying to take a bite out of us helps.

[Redrum]

My assertion is there will be more Ben Edwards types if the academic bar for football scholarships at the major football factories rises.

But for the type of candidate that can get into Stanford, the raising of the minimum standards at the other schools would probably be irrelevant as to motivation.  The "rise" in the minimum would affect many other players at the bottom end.  The Stanford-admissible  kids might then opt for those newly reformed football factories because their interest was more skewed to football anyway or they bought the hype and the newly reformed factories were now academically "good enough" or, at least, talking the talk. 

Furthermore,  the experiment on the good-enough academics approach has been run.  It's called Not.re Dame.  We know from experience that kids who could make it into Stanford  opted to play instead for No.tre Dame.  How is Stanford better off  if it is losing recruiting battles with Not.re Dame?  Despite imaginary girlfriends and all,  why is it better for Stanford that Manti Teyo opted to play for Not.re Dame?  Why is it better for Stanford that Tai-ler Jones switched commitments to play for Not.re Dame?  Would they still have switched from us if Not.re Dame's academics were on par with, say, the Univ. of  Arkansas?  Doubt it.  ND's standards are exactly as you laid out: Not on Stanford's levels but respectable enough..  We don't need more schools who try and possibly succeed in selling that they are academically respectable enough.  Our starting recruiting pool is small enough as it is.  Losing an additional 3-4 kids per class to schools that successfully rebranded themselves as academically "good enough"  is no help to us whatsoever.

Right now we hold an enviable brand position:  THE academic school that plays great football.  We can blow it by playing crappy football.  Hate to see that, but it's fair. We have a chance to keep our brand every Saturday.  We can also lose the brand if some schools come in with an academic pitch that deprives us of top notch football players.  I don't see how having more sharks in the recruiting pool trying to take a bite out of us helps.