So true..........so true. To add to the point, CU is also in a position to catch the sleepers or underrated. One of the funny things about A&M is that they are so hard pressed to keep up with Texas that their class is almost full and leaves NO room for late bloomers in this upcoming season. Mark my words, its gonna come back to bite them.
Another part of this is that at this point a lot of kids are falling in love with an image, what they have seen on Sportscenter or in other media. As time goes by and a lot of these kids actually take a closer look at what each school offers many will change their ideas.
A lot of schools that have been very high profile in recent years thus grabbing kids attention have some serious drawbacks if you look closer. In many cases top position coaches have moved on, in others head coaches are likely to leave for the NFL or for other college jobs. What a kid sees right now may and probably will be very different in 3 years.
Another factor is going to be the kids who are already on the roster and those who are committed. Kids have to look at what their prospects are for seeing the field in the near future. If the school they are considering has two highly rated prospects at his same position in the previous years class and another highly rated kid committed this year, the kid has to ask how much of a priority is his development going to be. How much personal attention is the staff going to give him, are they going to try to find him field time to develop him.
As kids look more closely at CU they are going to see a lot of opportunity with a highly qualified coaching staff with experience at the highest levels and a staff that is coming in with a clean slate. They don't have prior commitments to a bunch of kids, everyone is going to get a fair shot at seeing the field.
To some kids this stuff doesn't matter. They have dreamed all their life of wearing a certain uniform or telling people that they are signing with a top 10 team. Others are going to look at the entire package, what is the best situation for them both on the field and in their lives academically, socially, etc..
The lucky kids have a parent, a coach, or someone else they can trust who has their best interest at heart to help guide them through this process. Some kids start the critical evaluation process early and have time to make a decision based on what is really important. Others start later and can change their mind in the process. Every year we see kids decommit as they get closer to LOI day and go another direction.
A lot of kids end up signing with a school and then later realizing that in retrospect they would have made a different choice. Some stick with the school, other transfer or more sadly just don't finish, dropping out. Of course a lot make less that their best decision but still make a good experience out of it. If a kid is willing to work hard and have a good attitude he can make the best out of a variety of decisions and have a great experience but it still wouldn't be as good as it could be.