Note:  I began writing this post prior to Pistolsguy’s post yesterday.  Also, when I say you should care about recruiting, I mean from a standpoint that it correlates to on-field production.  If you get emotionally involved in a high school kid’s college decision, I think you need help.

Another Note:  Congrats to Laquon Treadwell on making his college decision.  Of course I was hoping he’d be a Cowboy, but it’s a win any time a guy signs his name on that line to accept a college scholarship offer. 

I understand as much as anyone that the number of stars next to a guy’s name isn’t a true representation of his future career.  You don’t need to throw Justin Blackmon at me accompanied with the fact Rivals had him ranked as the 91^st best wide receiver (okay…wow) in the 2008 recruiting class. They missed on him. Almost everyone missed on him.

If that’s your case for recruiting rankings being a complete farce, I’ll point out that Julio Jones and AJ Green ranked first and second in that wide receiver class respectively.

You cannot hand select one guy, or even a group of them, to make your argument.  We can go back and forth about guys who panned out (Markelle, Randle, Dez) and guys who didn’t (Reid, Cole, XLK), but neither address recruiting from a team standpoint.

Ten teams have played in the past ten BCS National Championship games:  Alabama, LSU, Auburn, OU, Texas, Southern Cal, Notre Dame, Oregon, Florida and Ohio State.

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You won’t get much recruiting news on PFB, but Jay Fielder from OState.com (Rivals) and I exchanged emails regarding some popular trends and names for the 2013 class. You can follow Jay on Twitter here. If you want more in-depth recruiting updates and information, consider signing up for their premium material at OState.com.

Matt Amilian:  Despite how much fun he had in Stillwater this weekend, Laquon Treadwell seems to be favoring Ole Miss.  What reason do OSU fans have to believe he might be wearing orange next fall?

Jay Fielder:  I think the biggest beacon of hope would be the fact that Treadwell is willing to take the visit and is expected to bring his mother with him.  If he was 100 percent convinced Ole Miss was the right spot then why waste the time and wait until after to announce it.

That said, I do think it will take a momumental visit experience for OSU to surpass Ole Miss at this point.  As you mentioned, all indications point to Ole Miss but there is a lot that makes sense for him at OSU that could give him something to think about such as the recent success the Cowboys have had with Dez Bryant and Justin Blackmon, the offensive scheme itself, and his uncle is former OSU All-American linebacker Ricky Young from the early 1980′s.

Lastly, OSU has an outstanding track record of landing uncommitted prospects that take official visits to Stillwater each year.  They don’t sign everybody that visits but they have historically landed an overwhelming majority in the end.

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I have as good of an idea as you do of who Gundy will hire as his offensive coordinator.  We could run down the popular candidates, such as Lincoln Riley and Jason Phillips, just as we did two years ago.  If we’re going to speculate, let’s look at three guys you most likely haven’t mentioned in your “So who do you think it’s going to be?” conversations.  How many of you heard that Monken was a candidate prior to his hiring in 2011?

*Note:  I have not heard or read these guys’ names being connected to the opening.  Just fun speculation here. 

Jeff Scott

Current job:  Clemson Tigers; Wide Receivers Coach and Recruiting Coordinator

Coaching experience: Clemson Wide Receivers from 2008 to Present.

He might not have the experience Gundy wants in an offensive coordinator, but let’s look at his positives first.  Rivals.com named him one of the top 25 recruiters last year, and I’m sure bringing in Sammy Watkins and DeAndre Hopkins had something to do with that. We like dominating wide receivers, right? I hear Oregon a lot, but I feel like Clemson is a more comparable football program to OSU.

Concern: In addition to his lack of experience, he’s a Clemson alum so it would be difficult to pull him away, especially when he knows the Clemson OC position will be open within a couple years when Chad Morris bolts for a head coaching job.

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I’ve missed the past couple games with the prop bets, but I couldn’t deprive you of them for the matchup with Baylor.  I’m probably more towards the “hatred” end of the spectrum than others as far as Baylor sports are concerned, but I plan to use my blog contributor opportunities to lure you my way as time goes on.

1)  Oklahoma State -5 at Baylor

We’d all feel more comfortable about this game if it was in Stillwater, but is anyone expecting a raucous crowd in Waco?  I can’t figure it out but OSU has owned Baylor while the Bears have managed to upset or compete with ranked teams over the last few years.

2)  Total Points Over/Under:  87 (!)

@Covers tweeted they went back to 1985 and could not find a game with a higher over/under total than this game.  The second biggest they found was 83…same matchup last year in Stillwater (teams combined for 83).

3)  Which will be greater:  OSU total yards or amount of money (in thousands) $cott Drew has slid underneath the table to Perry Jones, Quincy Miller, Pierre Jackson, Isaiah Austin and these three guys?

Yeah, shots fired.  I’m not holding back today.  Before you quickly pull the trigger on the Bears here, keep in mind they are 119^th (out of 120) in total defense

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It’s sad there’s not much buzz going around about this game, but it’s nobody’s fault but the teams’.  I was one of the few that thought West Virginia would struggle in the Big 12, but most chose to look at that offensive show the Mountaineers put on in the Orange Bowl last year.  However, they’ll be competitive in the conference and I’m thrilled to have them on board.  The 2013 Mountaineer Man Trip is going to be nothing short of epic.

To the bets!

1) OSU -7.5 vs West Virginia

I can’t help but think Stedman Bailey and Tavon Austin will find the holes in our defense, and if we don’t get pressure on Geno, one would have to think he’ll be hitting one of those two guys often.   We haven’t faced a fierce passing attack since David Ash put up 300+ and 3 against us.  The good news, we’ll score plenty ourselves whether it’s Lunt or Chelf.

2) Over/Under Total Points:  79.5

I feel like no matter how high this number is, it would take serious convincing for you to take the under.  Does anyone really think 100 is out of the question?

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It might seem that I have a minor crush on this Kansas State team, and in all honesty, I do. By no means do I want them to beat us Saturday night, but if they do, I’m all in for the Wildcats getting to the title game.

I’m not sure what it is about this team. Maybe it’s because they won 10 games last year, brought back everyone, still had to prove themselves to everyone, and they have. They’re gamers (keyword: they’re because, as you’ll find out Saturday, this team is not just Collin Klein).

1) OSU +9.5 at Kansas State

I thought this would start at 14. Am I giving the Wildcats too much credit or am I not believing in OSU as much as I should? The 2011 argument against K-State that they won too many close games doesn’t apply in 2012. Just ask Al Golden, Charlie Weis, Tommy Tuberville or Dana.

2) Over/Under total distance of Quinn Sharp’s two longest field goals: 73

Bill Snyder was born October 7, 1939 – 73 years ago.

3) Over/Under total scores for OSU (TDs, field goals, safeties, etc.): 5.2

Collin Klein averages 5.2 yards per carry, as well as two touchdowns per game…on the ground. If you’re wondering, he has 12 TDs through the air, has completed 70.9% of his passes and has only thrown two interceptions. Collin Klein is good at football.

4) Which will be greater: Klein’s rushing TDs or the number of OSU crutches on the sidelines?

This prop bet brought to you by @Shook_Knight. In case you have forgotten, Klein rushed for 144 yards and 3 touchdowns last year in Stillwater. Their playcalling in the red zone in the final minutes of that game still has my mind blown. For real, I want to believe in the Cowboys but I’ve seen our pass rushers run by opposing QBs too many times which ends up in an attempt to get an arm on him as he scurries outside the pocket. Arm tackling Klein won’t work.

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