By LONN PHILLIPS SULLIVAN
@LonnPhillips
Ever since Lafayette Christian's superstar safety / WR / Returner Sage Ryan announced his commitment date of Halloween (finally after months and months of questions) every single recruiting service just handed the Louisiana native (and cousin of the Faulks) to Nick Saban...why??
Because one analyst dipped his feet in the water and made a pick for Alabama, followed by a bizarre race for recruiting info oneupsmanship?
Because there's legitimate evidence pointing in that direction???
What about both???
Or....neither.
Regardless of where Sage is headed, I don't think I've ever seen such a gross overreaction from two fanbases over a recruit, and we're also including such big in-state departures as Warrick Dunn, Ed Reed or Landon Collins....maybe we're just in a unique era where he get to see all the vitriol or disappointment from fans online....but it feels so premature and almost...wrong.
This overreaction should make the recruiting analysts at Geaux247, Rivals and others feel high and mighty...their crystal ball predictions are now imitating the recruits' own decision, creating a narrative and pounding that storyline into college football's consciousness, whether they're right or wrong....and because no one is capable of waiting 2 days in this society, we've already made up our minds about where Sage Ryan is geauxing BEFORE he has.
Let's keep some things in perspective here:
We talked to Sage himself last night and to the question "will LSU fans get an extra scary Halloween?"
He replied "Of course, sir. You'll see sir!"
Ryan is as mischevious as he is polite, the superstar having some fun with the recruiting process, entertaining himself as fans fly into a rage, back and forth, demanding answers NOW....
I feel for Sage actually.
The young man has been told his entire life what school he HAS to play for, what type of career trajectory he'll have, who he MUST play with...just like Landon Collins, it must've been extremely easy for Nick Saban to walk in, amongst all this expectation or bustle from Louisiana and "strip the decision away" from the Tiger-loving public and back into Collins' hands.
It's a highly manipulative move, all based on the idea that the kids themselves can't make their own decisions based on family / local pressure... but this used car salesman approach has proven effective in pulling recruits from Louisiana before...
Could Sage Ryan become the biggest player in Louisiana high school football to defect to Alabama?
No...we believe Sage is smarter than that....he's going to LSU and I know I'm the only one saying that right now...
He kneauxs who can develop his talents best...Alabama have a horrid time figuring out home positions for versatile beings such as Ryan.
Not only those reasons, but I can't seem to find too many dynamic Alabama stars who were an NFL success:
Dee Milliner should've been unreal in the NFL, but the shutdown corner was never developed properly.
Dre Kirkpatrick may have shown the world (and LSU) how great he was within Saban's secondary (becoming one of Saban's favorite & most trusted players), but yet he was a big time NFL bust....how could defensive-freak Nick Saban's defensive captain never materialize at the professional level???
WR/KR extraordinare Christian Jones is another Alabama force who should've had a middling NFL career at least...instead he's playing in Edmonton.
Alabama may have rings on their fingers from years ago, but those championships never equaled sustained NFL success for the players who earned them, despite the amount of high draft picks and big contracts, most of Bama's strongest professional ambassadors faded incredibly fast.
Why???
They know how to develop you just enough to fit their needs, they understand how to use you to maximize your potential for a 3 or 4 year window, and then....good luck to ya.
Sage, your talents cannot be wasted, they must be pushed to their maximum...we must see The Infinite Flash....also, I'd worry about taking the ball out of the end zone, too.
Anyone telling you they know where Sage is geauxing right now doesn't really know....these are educated guesses turned into "etched in stone" truth by the readers themselves...
In reality, this is ALL LSU.
We know Sage digs Saban, we know of Sage's familial ties to LSU, we know Corey Raymond and Bill Busch have done all they can to secure Sage Ryan...but the combination of recruiting services booking Ryan's place in Tuscaloosa already (alongside their wild criticism of Orgeron's staff (while they take part in team-invited media days) as well as LSU's recent offer to safety Matthew Langlois, and you have a whole bunch of fans connecting dots which may or may not connect...let alone exist.
There are too many assumptions being made before the actual decision itself.
Let him decide.
Then we'll talk.
Let the kids decide.
GEAUX TIGERS
BLACK LIVES MATTER
by LONN PHILLIPS SULLIVAN
Copyright 2020 Uninterrupted Writings Inc LLC
SHOUTOUTS: AD you're gonna get through this brother!!! LSU Dan you know why! We get each other broseph! Alex King you sultan!
I am definitely not an Alabama fan, as you know, but Amari Cooper is a very successful NFL star from Alabama. Even though he is a Bama man I am always impressed with his skills and he was also a finalist for the Heisman Trophy. Thanks for the shoutout too Lonn and this is a very good article. Nice job again.
Another gem LPS!! You're in rare form here!! You're absolutely on point if the young man goes deep and looks beyond his college years and wants a pro career there's only one choice and that's geaux!!