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??? Zachary Evans??

It's been reported that the Coaching staff backed off his recruitment after a recent In-Home visit with him.
 
I doubt this kid ever makes an impact whenever he goes. When you have this many red flags before you even step on campus it’s a pretty good indication we’ll be seeing him on last chance u if he’s lucky
 
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I know he may be a head case but he is better than nothing which is what we got this year as far as a running back. I think he is worth a chance, since we have no alternative!
 
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I know he may be a head case but he is better than nothing which is what we got this year as far as a running back. I think he is worth a chance, since we have no alternative!

I think he is down to a few places. I wonder if he is a big if academic wise possibly.
 
I know he may be a head case but he is better than nothing which is what we got this year as far as a running back. I think he is worth a chance, since we have no alternative!

#2 RB Lorenzo Lingard Jr 6-0 200 ***** rsSo - Miami, FL (Miami xfer) - EE
Offers: Mia--UF-UA-AU-UGA-Miz-MS-SCa-TN--CU-FSU-ND-tOSU-OK-etc
(will need an NCAA waiver to play in 2020, but the cupboard's not empty)

4-star RB's on the roster:
Malik Davis rsJr
Dameon Pierce Jr
Iverson Clement rsSo (ready for his break-out season)
Nay'Quan Wright rsFr
 
Yeah, we're fine at RB and Lingard more than fulfills the need for the 2020 class. Would have been nice to get Gibbs, but Evans seems like a head case, or maybe he's just confused/uncertain about what he wants to do. It seems like Florida's not really in the picture anyway so no big deal to me where he ends up.
 
#2 RB Lorenzo Lingard Jr 6-0 200 ***** rsSo - Miami, FL (Miami xfer) - EE
Offers: Mia--UF-UA-AU-UGA-Miz-MS-SCa-TN--CU-FSU-ND-tOSU-OK-etc
(will need an NCAA waiver to play in 2020, but the cupboard's not empty)

4-star RB's on the roster:
Malik Davis rsJr
Dameon Pierce Jr
Iverson Clement rsSo (ready for his break-out season)
Nay'Quan Wright rsFr

If Lingard can play in the fall via transfer I'm 100% okay not taking a RB. The angst for me is that we went after literally 5-6 RBs...all 4 and 5 star and ame up empty. I don't like that - ignoring the lIngard situation obviously.

But if Lingard is cleared for this fall I'm good.
 
Insta,

Agree

Reality - running game depends upon our OL !
4 starters returning from a mediocre OL;

Hevesy will have his hands full again ! Third year in a row for him to make bricks without straw !

The 4 RBs we have (without Lingard) can get the job done IF OL improves.

If Lingard gets his waiver, Great ! If not, he gets strong & healthy for next year.

Never understood why we could pass block but not run block until I looked at the rushing defense stats of our opponents -

UGA, LSU, AU, Canes - top 25
Tenn, Missouri, Virginia, FSU, S Car - next 25

Pass blocking more defensive / passive - just keep them away from QB.

Run blocking much more physical / aggressive - get in their face & get them out of the way; create space for RB.

Our running game better, but not great, last 2 games - FSU & Virginia.

3 OL Early Entry for Spring - Josh Braun, Issiah Walker, & Richard Leonard will hopefully compete for PT & push players ahead of them.
Like Ethan White did this year !

Spring OL Depth Chart per 247
https://247sports.com/college/flori...g-Depth-Chart-Offense-142626913/#142626913_10

Left Tackle
Stone Forsythe, RJR
Richard Gouraige, RSO
Issiah Walker Jr., FR

Left Guard
Richard Gouraige, RSO
Griffin McDowell, RSO
Richard Leonard, FR

Center
Brett Heggie, RSR
Tanner Rowell, RSR
Kingsley Eguakun, RFR

Right Guard
Ethan White, SO *** Future All-SEC ***
T.J. Moore, RJR
Riley Simonds, RFR
William Harrod, RFR

Right Tackle
Jean Delance, RSR
Michael Tarquin, RFR
Joshua Braun, FR
 
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If Lingard can play in the fall via transfer I'm 100% okay not taking a RB. The angst for me is that we went after literally 5-6 RBs...all 4 and 5 star and ame up empty. I don't like that - ignoring the lIngard situation obviously.

But if Lingard is cleared for this fall I'm good.
Just curious, why is it so important to you that Lingard plays next season?

Davis and Pierce will probably get the bulk of the carry's with Clement getting the spell time totes. Wright will get the blow out game totes late in the game. If we did sign a prep RB he would probably be redshirted, at most get the 4 game playing time under the new redshirt rule. So if Lingard sits out a year, he will still have two years to play.
 
Just curious, why is it so important to you that Lingard plays next season?

Davis and Pierce will probably get the bulk of the carries with Clement getting the spell time totes. Wright will get the blow out game totes late in the game. If we did sign a prep RB he would probably be redshirted, at most get the 4 games playing time under the new redshirt rule. So if Lingard sits out a year, he will still have two years to play.

I'm just not 100% sold on those guys is all. I think they all have the talent of course but I don't get the same vibe we had this time last year with Perine coming back, that Perine was the guy and could do everything the offense required. I could be 100% wrong.

I like Pierce but he's had issues picking up blocks. Davis looked like a dynamo 2 years ago but last year coming off an injury he looked questionable. Clement and Wright - not sure they have top-end talent.

I just have some question marks on those guys.

To the Lingard situation though I'm worried about the worst-case scenario: he doesn't play in 20, balls-out in 21 and is gone to the NFL. I'll take that of course but I'd really like him on the team for 2 years contributing. That guy just has upside the others don't possess is all.

Lastly - looking at the RB situation overall: we miss on several top-end RBs coming out of high school, Lingard may only play 1 year and I'm not sold on the other guys...just the totality of the situation is a question mark to me.

That said - RB isn't the most important position on O in Mullen's offense so I'm not losing sleep. I am a bit pissed as we should have loaded up on talent the last 2 cycles with near 5 or 5-star guys and just whiffed on a bunch. We're having to settle a bit is all.
 
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I'm just not 100% sold on those guys is all. I think they all have the talent of course but I don't get the same vibe we had this time last year with Perine coming back, that Perine was the guy and could do everything the offense required. I could be 100% wrong.

I like Pierce but he's had issues picking up blocks. Davis looked like a dynamo 2 years ago but last year coming off an injury he looked questionable. Clement and Wright - not sure they have top-end talent.

I just have some question marks on those guys.

To the Lingard situation though I'm worried about the worst-case scenario: he doesn't play in 20, balls-out in 21 and is gone to the NFL. I'll take that of course but I'd really like him on the team for 2 years contributing. That guy just has upside the others don't possess is all.

Lastly - looking at the RB situation overall: we miss on several top-end RBs coming out of high school, Lingard may only play 1 year and I'm not sold on the other guys...just the totality of the situation is a question mark to me.

That said - RB isn't the most important position on O in Mullen's offense so I'm not losing sleep. I am a bit pissed as we should have loaded up on talent the last 2 cycles with near 5 or 5-star guys and just whiffed on a bunch. We're having to settle a bit is all.

But, as has been pointed out, it's a crowded room. Maybe the idea that they would likely redshirt scared them away. Let's see what happens next year.
 
We didn’t pursue the RB position in this past class as much as some of you think.

It was Bowman or bust for the bulk of the recruiting cycle and then we tried to get in on Gibbs fairly late. I don’t think we were really going after Clayton that hard based on what I have heard.
 
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We didn’t pursue the RB position in this past class as much as some of you think.

It was Bowman or bust for the bulk of the recruiting cycle and then we tried to get in on Gibbs fairly late. I don’t think we were really going after Clayton that hard based on what I have heard.

You could be right - just my view of it. I think the thing that sticks in my side we we had Sanders from Lakeland , 5 star RB that we wanted 2 years ago and missed. Then another Lakeland 5 star RB in Bowman we wanted - missed again.

I could be making more of it than I should but both of those recruitments are in traditional Gator territories, UF is on the rise and it sucks to not get 1 of them. I like the RBs we have but those 2 are elite.
 
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The angst for me is that we went after literally 5-6 RBs...all 4 and 5 star and came up empty. I don't like that - ignoring the lIngard situation obviously.

GBO, those 4-5 star RB's expect to play lead rolls as tFr.
They took a look at UF's returning RB roster and decided to go where they would likely play. I don't blame them, or the Gator coaches recruiting efforts.
The 5-star xfer was a very good backup plan imo.
 
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Am I the only one that feels good about our running back situation? We have 2 guys that would be starters on almost any of the other teams in the conference. I am fine we didn't get a running back this cycle....
 
Am I the only one that feels good about our running back situation? We have 2 guys that would be starters on almost any of the other teams in the conference. I am fine we didn't get a running back this cycle....
On paper the 5 RB's look great. But Davis has been injury prone, Clement & Wright have played very little and even though Lingard was a 5 star player coming out of high school, he suffered a serious knee injury his freshman year. He on.y appeared in 2 games for Miami in 2019 and in his time at the U he carried 17 times for 136 yards, all in 2018. So only time will tell how much he will be able to contribute. That leaves Pierce as the only proven running back who has steadily contributed.
 
GBO, those 4-5 star RB's expect to play lead rolls as tFr.
They took a look at UF's returning RB roster and decided to go where they would likely play. I don't blame them, or the Gator coaches recruiting efforts.
The 5-star xfer was a very good backup plan imo.

Insta,

Bowman & all the rest smart enough to look at our OL & say "Hell No !"

This year's situation unknown; 5 starters back from a mediocre OL doesn't mean much !

OL has not been good since Shark Boy took over from Muschamp & found we only had 6 scholarship OL healthy enough to play.

Recruiting a stud RB (with a brain) won't happen until he can see that Hevesy has been able to develop a good run blocking OL with some quality depth.
 
^^
I think the RB recruiter just needs to improve. Good recruiters get 4 and 5 star guys - especially in florida over the last 2 cycles.
 
^^
I think the RB recruiter just needs to improve. Good recruiters get 4 and 5 star guys - especially in florida over the last 2 cycles.

GBO,

Bound to be some truth to that, but still think some other items added some weight.

I never understood why we stayed so concentrated / focused on Bowman & never looked at other RBs early on. We were too slow off the mark for the rest of them.
 
GBO,

Bound to be some truth to that, but still think some other items added some weight.

I never understood why we stayed so concentrated / focused on Bowman & never looked at other RBs early on. We were too slow off the mark for the rest of them.

I'm a recruiter (head hunter) by trade for the last 14 years. It isn't that we miss on a guy that bothers me. It's that by all reports, the coaches at RB "feel good" about getting xxxx player...only to find out they are going elsewhere.

In recruiting, you should have a good enough relationship and know what drives the talent...so much so that when they make a final decision you really aren't surprised at how it's going.

It seems the RB recruiters think they are a lot closer to getting xxxx player time and again, and it doesn't turn out that way. You should know for good or bad how that player is going to make the decision. It shouldn't' be a shock at all.
 
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N J Gator,

Is his delay due to academics (like Manuel) or is he just playing things out for his ego ?

From all reports, he's just a super finicky dude lol. He actually signed with UGA on ESD and then asked to be released. Every week there's a new leader so even when he does sign with a team, will he be there in 6 months? Who knows.

That said, I'd take him and cross my fingers lol. He has that much potential.
 
You could be right - just my view of it. I think the thing that sticks in my side we we had Sanders from Lakeland , 5 star RB that we wanted 2 years ago and missed. Then another Lakeland 5 star RB in Bowman we wanted - missed again.

I could be making more of it than I should but both of those recruitments are in traditional Gator territories, UF is on the rise and it sucks to not get 1 of them. I like the RBs we have but those 2 are elite.
I think you're both right...we need to get 'that guy' but we filled needs in other positions that were more important. If Pierce can stay healthy and improve blocking he's a beast with the ball in his hands. Not sure about his route running and catching the ball like Perine. We'll see what we got when September rolls around.
 
Am I the only one that feels good about our running back situation? We have 2 guys that would be starters on almost any of the other teams in the conference. I am fine we didn't get a running back this cycle....
We're a guy short on the roster but we have lots of talent. I expect that guys will step up and make plays...we have some of the best coaches in the league. Mullen will play to our strengths and we'll see new play makers that we didn't know make plays.
 
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Insta,

Bowman & all the rest smart enough to look at our OL & say "Hell No !"

This year's situation unknown; 5 starters back from a mediocre OL doesn't mean much !

OL has not been good since Shark Boy took over from Muschamp & found we only had 6 scholarship OL healthy enough to play.

Recruiting a stud RB (with a brain) won't happen until he can see that Hevesy has been able to develop a good run blocking OL with some quality depth.

As to the 2020 OL, it won't be the same as the 2019 OL, and Hevesy has long proven that he's an excellent OL coach. And here's a solid positive to consider....

2019 OL Recruits per 247: (3 are 4-stars)

#15 OG Deyavie Hammond 6-3 353 **** - Green Card SNAFU???


#22 OT Michael Taqrquin 6-5 279 **** - EE

#33 OT William Harrod 6-5 334 ****

#30 OG Riley Simonds 6-4 303 *** - EE

#40 OG Kingsley Equakun 6-4 294 *** - EE

#63 OT Ethan White 6-5 355 *** - EE -- (Already in the rotation)


2020 OL Recruit per 247: (3 are 4-stars)

#15 OT Issiah Walker Jr 6-4 309 **** 166/247 - EE

#21 OT Joshua Braun 6-4 335 **** 269 - EE

#48 OG Richard Leonard 6-2 320 **** - EE

#48 OT Gerald Mincey 6-5 320 ***

And we should expect that the returning upperclassmen will improve after a season of being the starters on an 11 win team....

==========

As to the mostly untested RB's, both are 4-stars.


#16 RB/FS Iverson Clement 5-11 193 **** (2018, had a 41 Yd run in 2019)

#16 RB Nay'Quan Wright 5-9 195 **** (2019)
 
From all reports, he's just a super finicky dude lol. He actually signed with UGA on ESD and then asked to be released. Every week there's a new leader so even when he does sign with a team, will he be there in 6 months? Who knows.

That said, I'd take him and cross my fingers lol. He has that much potential.

He got that UGa signing bonus and bailed. I would have done the same. Free $$$.
 
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We didn’t pursue the RB position in this past class as much as some of you think.

It was Bowman or bust for the bulk of the recruiting cycle and then we tried to get in on Gibbs fairly late. I don’t think we were really going after Clayton that hard based on what I have heard.
Bowman committed on 5/3/2019 to clemson. Was Mullen and staff in a coma for 8 months? Inexcusable. Y'all must be beyond pissed. There may be an answer in that rb room but as for now it's not apparent.
 
Bowman committed on 5/3/2019 to clemson. Was Mullen and staff in a coma for 8 months? Inexcusable. Y'all must be beyond pissed. There may be an answer in that rb room but as for now it's not apparent.

The answer always emerges when you have a staff that can develop players and make them better. Foreign concept to Georgia fans dealing with 4th and Kirby.
 
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The answer always emerges when you have a staff that can develop players and make them better. Foreign concept to Georgia fans dealing with 4th and Kirby.
Then why has Mullen's rushing game struggled? Lack of talent or development? With you somehow it'll will be Kirby's fault. Should be an intriguing retort.
 
Then why has Mullen's rushing game struggled? Lack of talent or development? With you somehow it'll will be Kirby's fault. Should be an intriguing retort.
The running game didn’t struggle in 2018. It struggled in 2019. Why would UF fans be pissed?
 
Then why has Mullen's rushing game struggled? Lack of talent or development? With you somehow it'll will be Kirby's fault. Should be an intriguing retort.

Troll, this has been answered by those with knowledge, to those with a brain. That is why you've obviously missed out on the knowing....

OL recruiting and development had suffered under the coach that was fired in 2017.
The 2018 season saw 4 Sr starters finish out their eligibility.
So 2019 suffered with new starters of decent but not great run blocking abilities.
They still managed to win 11 games and the Orange Bowl with Great coaching.
The new staff is recruiting and coaching and making steady progress, with 2020 beginning to come into focus on both lines in depth & talent. (see above for the 2019-20 OL recruits)

The depth is getting there,” Mullen said about the 2020 OL signees. “We've got some really solid young guys. Now we've got to get that depth of not just bodies but guys ready to play. The great thing is having a bunch of those guys enroll early so that they get to go through spring and they get to train, they get to transform their body a little bit.”


Mullen can point to an easy example of what the spring and all of the workouts that an early enrollee gets compared to someone that shows up in the summer. 2020 Sophomore Ethan White arrived in January last year and was clearly in need of adjusting his body and losing a lot of weight. Despite the other linemen all rated higher than White coming out of high school, White was the one that got the most playing time on the field and even started late in the season due to injuries.

Even if they don’t earn a starting spot in the fall, that time on campus in the spring is great for the team as well in terms of competition. Three of the 2020 OL recruits are 4 star EE's.

BTW, for another quick reminder of the HC'ing differences:

Dan's 1st 2 seasons, after taking over a 4-7 cluster team, = 21-5, .808
That, while digging out of the recruiting hole that the previous 2 HC's had dug.

4th & Dumb's first 2 seasons, after taking over a 10-3 stable team,= 21-7 .750
Waltzing into the stable program and 10 win team that Mark had left him.

You got what you got, and we got what we got, and I'm happy with the current situation, and the future directions, for both of us.... :cool:

PS -- The Gator's current RB roster has 4, 4-stars and 1, 5-star.
They'll do just fine in 2020 behind the 'new & improved' OL' o_O
And oh btw, DP broke HW's Ga. HS rushing record. :p
 
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The offensive line makes any offense succeed or fail and Florida has had mediocre line play since Urban Meyer left. Hevesy is a good coach, IMO, but we haven;'t recruited very many elite-type O-linemen and he can only work with what he's got. Even great running backs won;t have a ton of success if the holes aren't there. Dun Mullen, much like Steve Spurrier, is excellent at devising game plans and calling plays that take advantage of his team's strengths and minimizing the exposure of weaknesses. That's why we've been more successful under Mullen than we were under Muschamp and McElwain. But he, also, is recruiting better players and more depth at all positions on the team and I think we're close to having an offensive line than can consistently block big time SEC defensive fronts.
 
GBO, those 4-5 star RB's expect to play lead rolls as tFr.
They took a look at UF's returning RB roster and decided to go where they would likely play. I don't blame them, or the Gator coaches recruiting efforts.
The 5-star xfer was a very good backup plan imo.

imo.[/QUOTE]
Dan took a flyer on a Kid will a surgically repaired knee who couldn't win the starting job on a 6-5 acc team.
Troll, this has been answered by those with knowledge, to those with a brain. That is why you've obviously missed out on the knowing....

OL recruiting and development had suffered under the coach that was fired in 2017.
The 2018 season saw 4 Sr starters finish out their eligibility.
So 2019 suffered with new starters of decent but not great run blocking abilities.
They still managed to win 11 games and the Orange Bowl with Great coaching.
The new staff is recruiting and coaching and making steady progress, with 2020 beginning to come into focus on both lines in depth & talent. (see above for the 2019-20 OL recruits)

The depth is getting there,” Mullen said about the 2020 OL signees. “We've got some really solid young guys. Now we've got to get that depth of not just bodies but guys ready to play. The great thing is having a bunch of those guys enroll early so that they get to go through spring and they get to train, they get to transform their body a little bit.”


Mullen can point to an easy example of what the spring and all of the workouts that an early enrollee gets compared to someone that shows up in the summer. 2020 Sophomore Ethan White arrived in January last year and was clearly in need of adjusting his body and losing a lot of weight. Despite the other linemen all rated higher than White coming out of high school, White was the one that got the most playing time on the field and even started late in the season due to injuries.

Even if they don’t earn a starting spot in the fall, that time on campus in the spring is great for the team as well in terms of competition. Three of the 2020 OL recruits are 4 star EE's.

BTW, for another quick reminder of the HC'ing differences:

Dan's 1st 2 seasons, after taking over a 4-7 cluster team, = 21-5, .808
That, while digging out of the recruiting hole that the previous 2 HC's had dug.

4th & Dumb's first 2 seasons, after taking over a 10-3 stable team,= 21-7 .750
Waltzing into the stable program and 10 win team that Mark had left him.

You got what you got, and we got what we got, and I'm happy with the current situation, and the future directions, for both of us.... :cool:

PS -- The Gator's current RB roster has 4, 4-stars and 1, 5-star.
They'll do just fine in 2020 behind the 'new & improved' OL' o_O
And oh btw, DP broke HW's Ga. HS rushing record. :p

Deer Lowered, so you're relying on EE's/true freshmen to develop over the spring/summer and propel the gators into the SEC championship? Mullen needs immediate help across the board on offense at WR, RB, and Oline and rarely will one find that help from EE's/true freshmen. Even IF Lingard gets a waiver the gators RB room is seriously thin. Mullen is making progress but at this time in space Fla still has depth issues throughout the roster. Even with a favorable schedule in 2020 lack of depth can be devastating in the SEC.

I don't see the connection with the first two season records. Mullen's beaten no one of significance and he's lost to Kentucky and Missouri. In Smart's 2nd campaign he lost a natty in OT.




The only record that counts - Mullen's Record vs Smart as HCs : 0-3

As head coaches, Smart has won both head-to-head matchups over the last two years by a combined score of 67-20. Mullen’s last year at Mississippi State was in 2017, and Smart’s No. 11 Georgia Bulldogs edged the Bulldogs from Starkville 31-3. In 2018 Mullen became the head coach at Florida, and Smart’s Bulldogs beat the Gators 36-17.
 
The running game didn’t struggle in 2018. It struggled in 2019. Why would UF fans be pissed?
Because of Mullen's lack of success in recruiting RB's. Since Bowman's commitment he's floundered for 8 months signing zero talent at a position of need.
 
imo.
Dan took a flyer on a Kid will a surgically repaired knee who couldn't win the starting job on a 6-5 acc team.


Deer Lowered, so you're relying on EE's/true freshmen to develop over the spring/summer and propel the gators into the SEC championship? Mullen needs immediate help across the board on offense at WR, RB, and Oline and rarely will one find that help from EE's/true freshmen. Even IF Lingard gets a waiver the gators RB room is seriously thin. Mullen is making progress but at this time in space Fla still has depth issues throughout the roster. Even with a favorable schedule in 2020 lack of depth can be devastating in the SEC.

I don't see the connection with the first two season records. Mullen's beaten no one of significance and he's lost to Kentucky and Missouri. In Smart's 2nd campaign he lost a natty in OT.




The only record that counts - Mullen's Record vs Smart as HCs : 0-3

As head coaches, Smart has won both head-to-head matchups over the last two years by a combined score of 67-20. Mullen’s last year at Mississippi State was in 2017, and Smart’s No. 11 Georgia Bulldogs edged the Bulldogs from Starkville 31-3. In 2018 Mullen became the head coach at Florida, and Smart’s Bulldogs beat the Gators 36-17.

You are just, well, dumb. We have plenty of returning WR's and a returning top TE. We have plenty of returning RB's. We have plenty of returning Olinemen. We have a returning starting QB. We are going into year 3 of the offensive system.

How about you concern yourself with replacing your best WR, best RB, best TE, FOUR best Olinemen, and QB. Oh, and having a new offensive system for them to learn.

When you talk like your shit show has it all figured out but one of the finest offensive minds in the game can't work with all this returning talent, well, you just make me laugh and laugh.

Oh, one last thing. You scoff at the idea that we brought in a transfer with a bad knee that we are working into making eligible so he can be a backup next year, while you have a starting running back with TWO BAD KNEES. I wonder, who feeds you? You are obviously too stupid to feed yourself.
 
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Because of Mullen's lack of success in recruiting RB's. Since Bowman's commitment he's floundered for 8 months signing zero talent at a position of need.
Who said it was a position of need? We lost 1 RB and we brought 1 in. Just making stuff up isn’t going to work very well here. Just sayin
 
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