Recruiting: Chicken or the egg?

I read an interesting article by Football Outsiders about the correlation between recruiting and on-field success in college football. The article mentioned BYU as one of the top over-achieving teams in the country. Here’s the link: www.footballoutsiders.com

We’ve posted a few thoughts on BYU’s recruiting the past few weeks, and I thought this article brought up some interesting points. Does on-field success follow good recruiting? Or does good recruiting follow on-field success? Both points seem to provide valid arguments. Either way, BYU is a prime example of a program built on solid recruiting. The Cougars thrived for years on the shoulders of lesser-known recruits and are now using their recent run of on-field success to attract more four- and five-star players. This influx of superior talent can only mean good things for the Cougars, whose 2010 recruiting class was ranked No. 22 in the country by scout.com.