Recruiters search for quality players

It's the unofficial holiday of college football. 

For months, college coaches schedule recruiting visits, call prospects and pitch why their program is the "best fit" for a player's future.

It all leads up to Signing Day.

The months leading up to the first Wednesday in February aren't always easy, however.

Located in Boone, N.C., Appalachian State University sits tucked away in the foothills of the American wilderness and the heart of the Atlantic Coast Conference.

Despite winning back-to-back-to-back Football Championship Subdivision (formerly I-AA) championships from 2005-2007, highlighted by a historic upset over then-No. 5 Michigan in 2007, defensive line coach and recruiting coordinator Mark Speir admits App State "doesn't win a lot of ‘look' contests."

"People don't realize how many (ACC schools are) in the state of North Carolina," Speir said. "You're divvying up a state that already has five major (Division) I-A programs, and then Maryland, Virginia, Virginia Tech, South Carolina in the SEC, Georgia Tech – they all heavily recruit North Carolina."

On top of that, competing schools use App State's location as a scare tactic on recruits.

Speir was in Florida visiting prospects this past week. Some of the schools App State was recruiting against were telling players, "You're going to be in the mountains. There's going to be a foot of snow, and it's going to be about 10 degrees," Speir said.

For the kids who are looking for bright lights in the big city, it works.

But that's where App State makes a killing, so to speak.

"What we do is beat our opponents to the punch," Speir said. "If I decide I like a kid, the first thing I'm going to tell them is where we're located, it gets cold, there's snow, and we're not a big town.  We're a very blunt, matter-of-fact coaching staff."

It's a tactic Speir said is traced back to current Mountaineers Coach Jerry Moore's time at Nebraska.

Moore was an assistant coach under Tom Osborne from 1973-1978. Much like Osborne, Moore and his coaching staff don't get caught up in high-school player ratings.

They're searching for quality individuals who are willing to work hard.

In fact, Speir admits the coaching staff doesn't pay attention to Web sites like Rivals.com.

"Our thing is recruiting quality people," Speir said. "There's enough guys out there that are quality individuals that are still good football players. We're not a go-get-the-best-player kind of school. We take into consideration the characteristics of the person and what their goals are."

For current Nebraska running back Roy Helu Jr., the same holds true.

Helu Jr. wasn't focused on the top-tier programs. It was about finding the best fit.

"To be honest, I think it was because of my mother's prayers that I came out here just to get away," Helu Jr. said. "It's worked out so far, but there was no factor as far as playing time or anything like that."

Growing up in California, competition was fierce on the gridiron. 

A three-star running back coming out of San Ramon Valley High School, Helu Jr. was part of Nebraska's 13th-ranked signing class in 2007 along with wide receiver Niles Paul, quarterbacks Patrick Witt and Zac Lee, and fellow I-back Quentin Castille.

Helu Jr. said he never paid attention to the ratings. He just wanted to play ball.

So far, Helu's mentality has allowed him to pave the way for Nebraska running backs.

In his first year at Nebraska, Helu rushed for 202 yards. This past year, the Danville, Calif., native was NU's leading rusher with 803 yards and totaled 1,069 all-purpose yards.

"I give respect to the people who come to college and get recognized after that," Helu Jr. said. "Before that, I don't know who ranks people by stars. It wasn't a big deal for me. But, I can see why it's a big deal."

In the same way programs look at players' ratings, national exposure is what draws recruits to big-time programs.

"Growing up, not a lot of kids dream about going to Arkansas-Bluff or some school that's small," Helu Jr. said. "People really dream about coming to places like Nebraska with tradition and exposure. I know kids who have gone to a Big 12 (Conference) school because of how popular it was."

Ty Kildow, a 2009 Nebraska prospect, experessed similar sentiments.

Listed at 5-foot-7 and 170 pounds, Kildow isn't the prototypical wide receiver. But what he lacks in size, he makes up with speed and determination.

Last June, Kildow recorded a 4.39 40-yard dash at a Nebraska football camp. That's when Kildow said NU really showed interest in him.

A week after running the fastest 40-yard dash at the camp, the Omaha native blew out his knee, tearing both his MCL and ACL during another Cornhusker camp.

While sidelined for his senior year of high school, Kildow remained in contact with Nebraska and worked to stay motivated.

"The biggest thing I learned was to not take anything for granted," Kildow said. "I'd never had a major injury in my life before and then to sit out an entire season, I had to work a lot harder."

Despite the injury, Nebraska continued to pursue the speedster. Kildow said that on his official visit, NU Head Coach Bo Pelini and Ted Gilmore, wide receivers coach and recruiting coordinator, told him they were brewing a new plan of attack on offense.

"They were trying to build a package for a slot receiver," Kildow said. "A small, quicker guy that they can get the ball to quicker, and they said they see me as that player."