Sorry, busy day at work.
Paws I am not saying saying NOT TRUTHFULL, but more along the lines of SUGAR-COATING. Ok, this is what the hell is the point...
Please pay attention to the bold sentence in this article below. I want you to know that the writer of this article got in touch with me and thanked me for being honest and critical of what was written. This person, I and others know that the article below was a "sugar coating" of the current retention and APR situation that ISU football is experiencing right now in the football program. This is a VERY REAL problem, that can't be minimized by comparing the past with the present situation.
What I did find out recently is that ISU is taking this matter very seriously, they recognize it, acknowledge it and they are trying to get a handle on it. I am not going to reveal anything more, because I am satisfied that a remedy for this situation is seriously being looked at. I think everyone knows how I feel about this situation. I do not want ISU to lose scholarships and I do not want to see ISU get banned from post season play in the future.
Long before a player matures into a Clint Knickrehm or a Jaron Taylor, he is usually just a 17- or 18-year-old boy who harbors a vague notion of how much he loves football.
That's something Idaho State coach John Zamberlin is keenly aware of when he goes on recruiting visits.
"These kids are big, strong kids, but they're still kids inside," Zamberlin said. "It's hard to judge sometimes how they're going to adapt to change, so you've really got to keep your finger on the pulse."
For some of Idaho State's recruits the past two years, the move to Pocatello and what is essentially a full-time job playing football hasn't suited their tastes. That is partly to blame for the attrition rate of Zamberlin's first two recruiting classes, for which the coach has come under fire lately.
But after examining a list of his 2007 and 2008 recruits, Zamberlin concluded that he is satisfied with how many players -- and which players -- he has retained. Just as importantly, Zamberlin pointed out that player departures so far haven't cost Idaho State APR sanctions, unlike at four other Big Sky schools.
"I'm happy with the kids' retention that we've had," Zamberlin said. "As I look at those lists (of recruits), I feel pretty good about that."
Of the 13 high schoolers the Bengals signed in 2008, only five are currently on the roster. But the figure is somewhat misleading because five others (Stetzon Bair, Kyle McGuire, Sean Williams and brothers Kevin and Kyle Whimpey) are currently on LDS missions.
Zamberlin expects all of them to return to Idaho State, pointing to the examples of how offensive linemen Parker Jolley and Jordan Peterson stayed loyal to the Bengals after their missions.
The other three high schoolers in the 2008 class are defensive back Brandon Green, who was dismissed, and running backs Jared Barthlome and Wes Fletcher, who left for personal reasons.
"You can never judge how that's going to happen," Zamberlin said. "There's going to be some attrition that way."
The 2007 class has been a bit more problematic. Of the 17 high schoolers signed, only seven remain. Some of those who have left had run-ins with the law (Travis Anderson, Ryan Anchetta-Major and Keith Goins, Jr.), while other suffered injuries or illness (Jolley and Adam Chadwick). Still others like Scott Milbourn, Scot Allen and Angelo Magee simply left for personal reasons. The effect of their departures on Idaho State's APR will not be clear until the spring, at the earliest.
Zamberlin attributed that turnover partially to the fact that he got hired on Dec. 15, 2006, which is late in the recruiting class. Nick Whitworth, the Bengals' running backs coach and recruiting coordinator, was the only holdover from the Larry Lewis era.
As a result, Zamberlin and his coaches didn't have as much time as they would have liked to evaluate the recruits who eventually formed the 2007 class. "We had to try and learn them," Zamberlin said. "We had to try and hit the ground running, watching tape on kids, trying to get back in the hunt for kids and trying to put together a class. That's tough."
Among the players that form Zamberlin's latest recruiting class, one -- defensive lineman Colton Paulhus -- has left. Wide receiver Mo Culpepper is taking care of grade issues, while offensive lineman Talai Livai has left for an LDS mission. Three others -- quarterback Justin Level and linemen Ryan and Sean McElwain -- are gray-shirting and will join the Bengals in the spring.
"You try to do the best you can in any evaluation where you're not rushed," Zamberlin said. "You ask tough questions, not just of the coach, but the teachers and counselors and all those things, and it helps you in your evaluations."
