Boise State supposedly offered. One source says he's the No. 1 recruit in Idaho. Here's a photo from his junior season...
New O-line commit: Alec Kuzmack, 6-5, 285, Eagle, Idaho
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247 has him the number one recruit in the state of Idaho irregardless of position. BSU wanted him and it is nice that the Cougars beat BSU for their services. That did not always happen (cough, cough Rypien).
Coming from Idaho, he could be underrated.
Upon reading of his commitment, I had the same optimistic thought that 1990 had- that he could be underrated. Next door to Boise so BSU knew about him, as did we, but I am unclear as to whether the recruiting blog guys had much information. It is difficult to tell from the video just how good he is as he is heads and shoulders above the opposition. Dominating another high school kid who you outweigh by a hundred pounds doesn't tell you much. That said, he carries his weight well and Leach and staff have a good record of selecting promising O-linemen so I like the commitment.
We're back to winning a pretty good percentage of recruiting battles against BSU (Rypien being a notable exception).
It wasn't too long ago we stood very little chance of beating out Boise for a recruit.
With Leach, at a minimum, our recruits generally have Boise, Fresno or SDSU offers. Towards the end of the Wulff era, at a MAXIMUM, they had offers like that. In 2012, prior to being canned, I think Wulff's most recruited commit was Eduardo Middleton, with offers from OSU, BSU, SDSU & SMU.
We really had little chance against BSU in attaining Rypien's services. When Rypien visited Pullman to talk to Leach, he was interviewed shortly thereafter. He thanked CML for being "frank". I remember him using exactly that word. That perked my ears up. The word "frank" is a code word used by diplomats to describe a meeting in which the two positions were bluntly presented and were polar opposites with no chance of resolution. I doubt whether Rypien intended it to be perceived that way but I felt immediately that he was gone. That he had inquired about the possibility of early playing time and was told that he could compete for the position but that his chances of overshadowing the guys in the squad with a year or more of experience in his version of the air raid were quite limited. So I don't view his signing with BSU as being outrecruited but, rather, that we were just not a good fit for his aspirations. I wish he could have become a Coug but it was just never in the cards considering his desire for early PT.
You are right about the raising of the bar in recruiting. We now see kids with one or more offers from other Power5 schools seriously considering WSU with interest. The days of competing with the Big Sky and Mountain West schools for players are over and Thank God for that. We will still lose some to BSU and other of the higher quality programs but not many. Many of our listed prospects have offers from Big10 and Big12 schools as well as Notre Dame, BYU and the service academies and that is worrisome but we no longer need to lose hope and search elsewhere. We are in competition for the kid and legitimately so. Most will go elsewhere but that is the case with all the other programs as well. We will get some and as our program continues to improve I expect that share to increase.
I think it was kind of like that. Although I believe that Leach says to each recruit that they have a chance to compete for a starting job along with everyone else (like you stated)...and the best guy will prevail no matter what experience or graduating class may be. I doubt he tells them that it is a long shot or unlikely they start as a freshman. I think they can reach their own conclusion based on the depth chart. I may be wrong though. Rypien likely figured out on his own he wouldn't be playing early.
BSU was a good option for him, although I would have thought that playing in the Pac-12 would have been much more challenging week in and week out.
We'll see how it all plays out. I'm sure there is nothing more that he'd like to do this season than outshine Falk and WSU.
Who is Rypien's mother? Who is she related to, and that more than anything probably will let you know why Rypien probably didn't give WSU the look people probably expected from a relative of a former WSU QB.
Here's what Rypien said:
He (Rypien) said it came down between BSU and Washington State, the first school to make an offer.
“I can’t thank WSU enough,” Rypien said. “It’s the toughest decision I’ve ever made. I’ve lost countless hours of sleep over it.”
I don't exactly know either but seem to recall that she is related to a member of the previous staff. I cannot remember who the individual is but since none of the previous staff were retained, the implication is that she would be pissed at her relative's termination by CML. Apparently Ed knows the details and can fill in the spaces in due time.
Neither of us were in the room during their discussion and really know with any certainty what transpired. You may well be right. I got the impression from Rypien's comments after their meeting that he had asked point-blank what his chances of seeing the field early were. Since early PT was important to him, it would make sense that he would inquire about it. And since we have seen a number of times recruits complimenting the staff on their honesty, I would suspect that Leach told him the truth. "It is possible but unlikely". But that is all conjecture on my part and yours'. Perhaps only Leach and Rypien know the truth.
BSU was and is a good choice for him considering his desire to see the field early. Factoring in the academics and athletic competition, we may have been a better choice over the long term but I am not sure about that either. Perhaps his early exposure will find him in the NFL a couple of years earlier from BSU then he would have experienced at WSU.
Yep, he can be expected to have a little bit more motivation to surpass Falk and the Cougs than another random opponent. Adds a bit of sugar and spice to an already good matchup, doesn't it?
Maybe Rypien wanted to drive trucks if the whole football thing doesn't work out?
She is Chris Tormey's sister. Not sure the issue was ever between Leach and Rypien's mom. Could be, just don't know that is the case. Maybe the issue is more with the person who terminated Tormey and company.
Ah, the evil Bill Moos, who decided that 6 and 40 was not the direction WSU football should go. Sisterly love is special.
Welcome Alec Kuzmack (cool last name BTW) . The big guy carries 285 easily and might be ready to contend early. Any OT with an offer on that list looks pretty good one way or another.
Here's what Rypien said:
He (Rypien) said it came down between BSU and Washington State, the first school to make an offer.
“I can’t thank WSU enough,” Rypien said. “It’s the toughest decision I’ve ever made. I’ve lost countless hours of sleep over it.”
But he "Lost countless hours of sleep over it" because Chris Tormey's sister is his mumsie...
I've heard many theories as to why Rypien decided to go to Boise State. Yours is the only one that has anything to do with WSU firing her brother. As Yaki pointed out, terminating Wulff might be the most justified performance termination in the history of college football.
WSU finished 9-4, won a bowl game in 2015, and Ed is still wimpering about the previous staff's firing. Wow. Guess the Chris Ball separation anxiety has some real hang time.
Do you just read my stuff with Wulff glasses? Who said I am whimpering about the firing. I simply stated the reasons that I have heard mom was upset. I made no remark about the firing.
Have you ever heard the wife, brother, sister, friend of a terminated coach that said- "yeah, they suck, they should have been canned early. I have zero sympathy for any of the coaches or their wives." When you hear a family member that is rational when it comes to the firing please let me know.
And while Wulff was 9 and whatever, how long was Tormey on the staff? Was he there for all four years?
Again, whoever argued the termination was justified or not justified. I simply stated the reason I heard Rypien wasn't going to WSU.
If Mrs. Rypien was that disconnected from reality, it's best for both WSU and the Rypien family that her son went elsewhere. And while you're at it, can you explain Rypien's interest in UW, you know the other school that fired his uncle? I've heard that he was ready to commit to uw, but Browning beat him to the punch.
July 14, 9:37 a.m.
"She is Chris Tormey's sister. Not sure the issue was ever between Leach and Rypien's mom. Could be, just don't know that is the case. Maybe the issue is more with the person who terminated Tormey and company." - CougEd, July 13, 9:09 a.m.
Care to reconcile these two statements? I suppose your board-littering vacation has ended. Back to your same-old tactics.
Essentially, you have polluted this thread with innuendo and the obsessive ramblings of a teen-age girl whose heart was broken in 2011. Everything goes back to 2011 for you.
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FWIW, I've heard this rumor as well. I think Mark Rypien even gave an interview where he mentioned it. Doesn't mean it was the only factor, but I have to think it played some sort of role.
And, I'm not going to speak for Ed, but I don't think he's arguing Wulff, and thus, Tormey shouldn't have been fired, just acknowledging it as a factor for Rypien.
And, I'm not going to speak for Ed, but I don't think he's arguing Wulff, and thus, Tormey shouldn't have been fired, just acknowledging it as a factor for Rypien.
What is there to reconcile? If Leach had coached Boise or UW would Rypien' mom been ok with him coaching his son. My guess is yes, therefore in the sale of WSU to the Rypien's it wasn't Mike Leach that looked to be the problem.
Nothing goes back to 2011 to me. I am simply stating that I heard by more than one person Tormey's sister didn't want her kid attending WSU. Fab confirmed Mark Rypien had mentioned it. I didn't say I agree with her, I simply said that was the factor as I heard it.
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First, have you ever had a family member say -"yeah my husband or brother or cousin sucks and they deserved to be fired"? There have been a ton of firings and with social media and main stream media I have yet to hear that type of honesty.
So it isn't about being disconnected from reality. Family is family. Not sure how accurate this it, so if you Google it (maybe a job for Whitless Coug) and find out it is misinformation take with a grain of salt. I have a client who worked for a couple of years with Tormey and he mentioned one of the attraction for Tormey to get back and coach in the state of Washington was that he was (I believe-again not gospel) two years from being vested in the state of Washington retirement fund. So that means if he stayed on one more year he would get retirement from the state of Washington. The family could argue that WSU could have kept him on in an advisory role so he met that date.
Is any of this true or totally accurate? I have no idea. I do know he was there for a year, and maybe in his sister's eyes she thought her brother helped get things improved from the prior year. Irrational maybe, family for sure.
It would be like an attorney who just lost a case and family friends and relationship partner saying...."Yeah Denny Crane sure sucked on that one. Denny sure deserved to lose. Matter of fact Denny sucks as an attorney." I could be wrong, maybe that does happen.
At the expense of interrupting the CougEd hypothetical to nowhere crazy train, I will just repeat myself. WSU football under Wulff was a sinking ship. Everyone knew that. No surprise that Tormey was fired. If Mrs. Rypien was that disconnected from reality, it's best for everyone that Brett is not here.
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You said she was ---what was the word...disconnected from reality. Not sure I say that. I would say that is what family members do. You think Hall Mumme's wife says "yeah he sucks, he deserved to be fired"? Ask Leach if he ever felt Mumme deserved to be fired. is he disconnected from reality?
Leach understands how the system work, you have to win games. People aren't blind to the fact you are paid to win games and if you don't, you get fired. You go 2-9, 0-8 in the SEC you get fired and pretty sure that Mumme was under investigation by the NCAA too. Which played a major part in him being let go.
Do you just argue to argue?
Can we just ignore the fact that Rypien isn't here and that we lucked our way into a walk-on named Luke Falk who has helped resurrect our program?
In a thread about a promising young offensive lineman from Eagle, Idaho, it comes down to this for Ed: "Maybe the issue is more with the person who terminated Tormey and company." But nowhere does this qualify as making a remark about the firing. Frickin' nuts.
Brent H...WTF....Let me get this straight. Kayak writes a post where he didn't think losing Rypien was anything Leach had done, and I agree with it. It wasn't. Leach sold Rypien how he sells every other kid. Some he gets, some he doesn't. I simply pointed out it was personal for Rypien's mom, therefore Leach may have been able to say all the right things and it wouldn't matter. Not sure why you have a problem with that? Please explain.
I then go on explain what I had heard, as did Fab, and why it was personal. I made no judgment about Moos and thinking he was wrong in letting Wulff go, or that he was wrong in hiring Leach. I have never met Paul Wulff. I know Ken Bone. have you ever heard me once say Moos shouldn't have changed direction on Bone? Do I think Rypien's mom is misguided, or out of touch? No, I think she is family and would react as any family would react.
And yes, everyone knows this is a business where you are hired to be fired. Very few coaches ever make it without getting the ax. Whether it is performance based or something else, a vast majority of those who were hired will be fired. So yeah, I would never call Brett's mom delusion or disconnected with reality. As I pointed out most family members and friends view their performance differently.
But I get it. You would have preferred me to simply say Leach was at fault for not securing the signature. As for Falk, there is a certain amount of luck involved. Just as for Price there was a certain amount of luck involved getting Bledsoe when he did. Both players changed the direction of the program. But luck only happens where planning and prep meet opportunity.
To be fair, I think Ed really was just saying that Rypien's mom is mad at WSU for the firing of the previous staff without any intent to judge the merit of the firing. Unfortunately, Ed is too stubborn to realize that it doesn't matter what he says about that subject....he is going to get pummeled for anything he says that remotely involves Wulff. I intentionally didn't post anything in the recent thread about KSU allowing alcohol on campus because I know that the fact that I live in Kansas would have tainted the conversation for some.
Ed needs to learn that even when he thinks he has a point about anything even remotely related to Wulff, he should apply a "is it worth it?" filter before he posts about it. In time, if he avoids these types of discussions, he can say that Rypien's mom was pissed that a family member was treated bad without it devolving into a pissing match. It's gonna take time though.
Ed needs to learn that even when he thinks he has a point about anything even remotely related to Wulff, he should apply a "is it worth it?" filter before he posts about it. In time, if he avoids these types of discussions, he can say that Rypien's mom was pissed that a family member was treated bad without it devolving into a pissing match. It's gonna take time though.
Poor ole Ed can't catch a break. Every time he posts about something pre-Leach, someone accuses him of coming to the defense of CPW. He may not have mentioned the gentleman's name or even suggested it but since his post refers to that era one or more of the others posters draw their conclusion and the inevitable onslaught ensues. Flat is correct is suggesting that Ed needs a filter, one that makes him reconsider any post prior to the current staff. I know, that's hard to do but Flat's question, "Is it worth it?", might well be useful.
On another note, it has been suggested that Tormey's sister may or may not be disconnected from reality. If she is still pissed half a decade after the termination then I would have to say, "Yes, she is." The reality is that long term employment is far from the norm among collegiate staffs, especially for assistants. Many move on every year and for many diverse reasons. The pertinent reason may have nothing to do with competence. The HC is canned and most of the staff are let go, deservedly or not. "Hired to be fired" is putting it mildly. Those guys are one step above transient labor. Surely she has been around football long enough to realize this. If her son has a minimal knowledge as to this reality of college football life, one would expect him to put little stock in his mother's grudge. I doubt that this issue had any significant import on his decision. A factor, possibly, but I doubt that it was a significant one. Just my conclusion and might be wrong.
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