Central Michigan 2004 — Recruiting Outcomes

Hits & Misses

Hit: Steven Friend (DL) — Originally unranked. Outcome: All Conference. Steven Friend became one of the standouts of this class, elevating from unranked status to become an All-Conference performer. Hit: Andrew Hartline (IOL) — Originally unranked. Outcome: Undrafted NFL Roster. Despite being overlooked in initial recruiting, Hartline proved his mettle and made it onto an NFL roster. Miss: William Ball (CB) — Originally ranked 847. Outcome: Bust. Ball's high initial ranking did not translate into expected performance, resulting in a disappointing outcome. Miss: Antrione Archer (LB) — Originally ranked 1376. Outcome: Contributor. Archer, despite his ranking, was unable to make a significant impact and finished as a mere contributor.

Development Story

The 2004 Central Michigan recruiting class was a mixed bag in terms of performance outcomes. The class was originally ranked 98th, but managed to outperform expectations to some extent, rising to the 90th spot in the S2S re-rank. The class had no blue-chip recruits, but some players showed significant development. Unranked recruits like Andrew Hartline and Steven Friend exceeded expectations, with Hartline even making an NFL roster and Friend earning All-Conference honors. However, it wasn't all rosy for the Chippewas. Some of the higher-ranked recruits like William Ball and Antrione Archer didn't live up to their billing. Ball, who was the highest ranked recruit of the class, turned out to be a bust, which was a significant disappointment. Archer, another ranked recruit, couldn't progress beyond being a contributor.

Outcome Summary

Despite the mixed outcomes, the class generally outperformed its original ranking. This is reflected in the S2S rerank, which placed the class eight spots higher than the original ranking. Most of the development success came from unranked players, showing that Central Michigan's coaching staff was able to extract value from overlooked recruits. The class had its misses, particularly with its highest-ranked recruit turning out to be a bust, but overall, the 2004 Central Michigan recruiting class was a story of unheralded players rising to exceed expectations.