Mel Kipers Draft Picks for the 49ers

Originally posted by CorvaNinerFan:
I think Mayock's a better judge of talent...he played the game, so has an insight guys like Kiper and McShay don't.

wasn't kiper 2nd string kicker in high school?

Originally posted by buck:
Why know the high school stats or the history of their high school coaches?

If I were getting paid to be an expert it would be a good idea to know as much as possible about each kid. Some of them come from well coached HS teams that prepare them for the next level while others need a year or two to learn the basics. If you see a kid sit on the bench or red shirt for two years in college...it might be due to this limited experience/preparation. Also, it would be good to have talked to as many HS coaches as possible to gain knowledge of the players character.

If this were my job, full time, it would be a much easier task after the first few years. Get to know what programs around the country produce well and get to know those coaches; attend coaching clinics, seminars, etc. Imagine how many kids Harbaugh met recruiting for SD and Stanford! Of course, you couldn't meet every coach or parent but you could establish connections in communities around the country to gain info.

My HS team was a very good team but compared to the coaching at a big Texas HS there is no way we could compete equally as freshmen. Weightlifting, technique refinement...there are so many ways coaching impacts a players readiness. Also, I've seen a coach completely misuse players at lower levels (and the pros), with another coach coming in and letting the player excel.

At least I stopped at HS knowledge and didn't indicate I would interview their Pop Warner coaches!