The 2016 Patsy Ratings: No. 3 - Bucknell

"Pass me some more Buffalo wings," one Committee member said to another.

"You're going to get wing sauce all over these folders," another said.  "Buffalo wings and Patsy point calculation don't exactly go together."

"Don't judge me," the member said, a bit more sourly this time.  "I just work differently than you.  I need protein when I compute the Patsies.  Just because you're a Vegan don't tell me how to do things."

"I'm not judging," the Vegan member said, munching on her kale chips.  "I'm simply saying not everyone likes to smell Buffalo wing sauce permeating the folders.  That's something I think we all can agree on.

"Mmmph," was all the other red-eyed Committee member could muster, his mouth full of Buffalo wings, blue cheese sauce, and celery.

The Vegan looked quzzically, until she saw a third member holding up a half-empty bottle of "Third Street Chicken and Ribs - Nuclear Sauce" behind him.

THE GOOD:  As the classes in the 2016 Patsy Ratings go, the Bison's share of "quality points" is one of the highest of any team in the Patriot League.  It's not a stretch to say that the presence of two heavily-starred recruits made an enormous difference in the Burgers' overall point total, vaulting them over many of the other classes.  Equally as important was getting a starred recruit at QB, which was not only important for the future of the Bison's offense but also for the waterfall of Patsy Points he generated.

"Where's the Patsy Points in these Bison Burgers?"

THE BAD:  While the patsy Point generation of several players was stellar, it was hardly across the board.

Once again, less than half of the overall recruits listed had profiles at the major recruiting sites (including the two latecomers added to the class by an official release).  It was tempting for the Committee to simply cut-and-paste the "Bad" from other Patsy Point releases this year.

It can be summed up with an easy slogan: Where's the Beef?

PATSY POINT CALCULATION
CLASS SIZE: 2.  When Joe Susan announced their original list of recruits, they didn't meet the threshold.  After a later addition of two recruits, it still didn't meet the minimum for points here.   Finally, though, with three additional recruits in a third release, Bucknell finally went over the 'replacement' level of 18 recruits.  Since they followed the Patsy 'rules' and announced them with a full release, they finally got two additional Patsy points.

QUALITY: 23.  It's an oddity that a 23 quality point class is considered above-average this recruiting season, and it's not a case of Ivy-like grade, inflation, either.  It became increasingly clear to the Committee that it's simply the way it is this year.

Breaking down the quality numbers reveals a similar class to the others: less than half (7 out of 19) of the class generating any quality points, and almost 2/3rds of the points coming from two multiple-starred recruits.  The quality point difference between this crew and some of the other classes was the discovery of a Scout ** recruit late in the ballgame, pushing them into the upper half.  In other words, the margin between the quality points here and the quality points of, say, Holy Cross was slim.

DISTRIBUTION: 9.   Originally this was 7 points, but the late additions on official releases added two critical distribution points.

TRIGGER: 3.  Perhaps unsurprisingly, "The Patsy Helper" came through for the Stampeders with a two-star QB, generating points here.

Speed is Important, Even for Bison

SPEED: 6.  Interestingly. this number caused quite a bit of Committee debate.

The Bison had three recruits with speed results listed.  Two of them counted for points.  One, however, had a Scout profile with an "ESTIMATED" 40 time of 4.4, which, by rule, generated 5 Patsy Points in this category.

Certainly it is worthy to raise an eyebrow at this number, especially with "ESTIMATED" next to it.

This article is five years old, but it's a very good read as to why any listing of a 4.4 40 should be taken with a grain of salt, and in some circles is called a "myth".  "Most of the time when a high school coach says a guy is 4.4, he's at least 4.5 or 4.6," on Florida high school coach said.

May or May Not Be Patsy Point Founding Fathers Looking Over Recruits

Yet the rule, the strict constructionalist Committee member noted, is clear.  The Founding Fathers of the Patsies did not differentiate between "Estimated" and "Timed" in their listings of 40 times - only that they are published on a "recognized" recruiting site.

Therefore, by rule, the 6 points remain.

JUMBO: 3.  1 out of 2 DL and 2 out of 5 OL hit the benchmarks, or less than half the recruits.

Also worthy of note: the guys that didn't hit the benchmark missed it by a ton - a 210 lb DE and a 250 lb OL.  That's not to say that these guys won't become all-Patriot League players (and, as matter of fact, they often do).  Still the size variance was noted by the Committee.

NEEDS:  A note here: Since the Committee did not get a listing of needs, the Committee members came up with their own determination.  To remind those without an encyclopedic knowledge of prior Patsy ratings: Frequently, the Committee's picks on needs are more generous than those the fans choose.

1. DB: 2 (out of 5).   The Susanators lose 3 DBs to graduation, including several all-Patriot League players in that area.  They got two defensive backs in this class, which was a little light in the numbers The Committee felt was required.  The Committee probably would have given 3 or 4 points here if one of the recruits was starred, but while both were recognized by the recruiting services, neither were starred.

2.  OL: 3 (out of 4).  On the plus side, the Bison "O" line got five recruits, including one starred player.

Originally, the "needs" points were at 2, and part of the justification for that came due to numbers. "They needed numbers, and didn't get them," a grouchy Committee member said at first.

With the official addition of two more recruits, however, this had to be revised.  "With the new release, it was decided that the Bison did indeed have enough numbers in this area to engender another point," the Committee's statement read.

3. WR: 3 (out of 3).  3 senior WR graduate on the Bison, including one starter.  They recruited two, including one of their heavily-starred recruits.  Some in the Committee thought three points was generous here, but it seemed like overall it was the right call.

ADJUSTMENT: -1.  It was the unwritten rule going into the Patsies - Don't have a heavy hand with the adjustments.  Having said that, there were a block of Committee members who were outraged by the 6 speed points awarded for the "estimated" 4.4 40.

Stop Stealing Bucknell's Recruits

"Let's say it was a verified, timed 4.4 40 time," one said.  "It's not out of the realm of possibility that he comes to Bucknell, but still, wouldn't it be a dog whistle for recruiters of Power 5 schools across the country to recruit him?  Heck, Jim Harbaugh would probably camp on his front lawn to get him."

Even the most robust of Patsy constructionalist members found it very hard to ignore that "ESTIMATED" next to the 4.4 time.  Other Patsy classes had some "estimated" numbers, but those consisted of a couple of points here and there.  In this case, the recruit yielded 5 points alone.

After a Twinkie fight, the constructionalist wing was forced into a compromise that made nobody happy: halfway between a two-point penalty and no penalty, the Committee decided on a one-point penalty, as if the recruit had actually run a 4.5 40 (which, in and of itself, would be extremely impressive in it's own right.)

The Ratings (With 2 To Go):

COLGATE - 57
BUCKNELL - 53
HOLY CROSS - 49
GEORGETOWN - 37
FORDHAM - 34