The best teams in college football are a mix of the best players, and some of the best coaches and coordinators in the country that are able to put it all together and execute consistently every Saturday.
Much easier said than done.
For quite some time it seemed like Alabama not only had one of the best staffs, but also had the recruiting rights to all the top players in college football. However, Kirby Smart's arrival at Georgia in 2016 and his emphasis on recruiting quickly vaulted the Dawgs into the national title conversation with his emphasis on recruiting.
After beating Florida on Saturday, in a 34-7 game where they controlled the momentum from the very beginning with a bunch of players from The Sunshine State making key plays and contributions, Kirby was asked about the importance of recruiting.
"Guys...if you don't recruit, there is no coach out there that can out-coach recruiting. I don't care who you are."
"The best coach to ever play the game, better be a good recruiter because no coach is going to out-coach players."
"Anyone will tell you our defense is good because it has good players. So spending time on the phone and spending time with people at your house, spending time with people when they come to your campus. You know, I'm not with my family when I'm doing that. My family sacrifices so that I can go and spend time with other people's families so that we have good players."
Just how important is recruiting compared to evaluation and coaching? Well Kirby breaks it down to end his answer on the importance of recruiting.
"It's 25% evaluation, 50% recruiting, and another 25% is going to be coaching, but if you don't recruit, you've got not chance."
Hear more from Kirby in the clip.
The Dawgs will wrap up their season against four unranked opponents (home against Missouri, on the road at Tennessee, home against Charleston Southern and on the road at Georgia Tech) before the SEC title game on December 4th.