You want to know what ESPN got right about TCU in their offseason evaluation? They graded us based on who we pulled from the portal and how many stars the recruiting services slapped on our incoming freshmen. Fine. Whatever.
But I remember when we built teams the real way. I remember the late 80s and early 90s when Jim Wacker was out there finding diamonds in the rough. Kids who played because they loved the purple and white, not because they were shopping their NIL value every December. You think any of those guys from the 1994 Southwest Conference title team would have hit the portal after a bad game? They would have looked at you like you were speaking another language.
Recruiting the old way meant you watched a kid for three years of high school. You knew his family. You knew if he had the fire in his belly or if he was just collecting offers. Now these kids commit to a school in June, flip in December, and transfer again in January before they ever take a snap.
The portal and NIL have destroyed what made this sport great. You cannot build a culture when half your roster turns over every twelve months. Coach Patterson built those great defenses with three-star kids who stayed four years and graduated as men. You cannot tell me that formula does not work anymore. I refuse to believe it.