Hits & Misses
Hit: Brandon Albert (UNKNOWN) — Originally unranked. Outcome: NFL Pro Bowl. Despite not having a ranking coming into college, Albert made a significant impact, reaching the pinnacle of college football outcomes.
Hit: Chris Cook (CB) — Originally ranked 653. Outcome: NFL Starter. Despite a relatively low original ranking, Cook was able to reach the NFL Starter level, exceeding expectations.
Miss: Vic Hall (ATH) — Originally ranked 109. Outcome: College Starter. Hall, despite being a high-ranked recruit, didn't make it past the College Starter level, falling short of his high ranking expectations.
Miss: Mike Brown (CB) — Originally ranked 117. Outcome: Contributor. Brown, another high-ranked recruit, underperformed expectations, ending his college career as a Contributor.
Development Story
The 2005 Virginia recruiting class was a mixed bag in terms of outcomes versus original expectations. Several recruits exceeded their initial rankings, while a few top-ranked players fell short. The class, originally ranked 17, was reranked 6 by S2S, indicating a strong development program at Virginia.
The most notable overachievers were Brandon Albert, originally unranked, and Chris Cook, originally ranked 653, both of whom achieved the NFL Starter level. Their development underscores the ability of Virginia's program to identify and develop talent that may have been overlooked in the recruiting process.
On the other end of the spectrum, Vic Hall and Mike Brown, both highly-ranked recruits, fell short of their expectations. Despite this, the majority of the class met or exceeded their original expectations, contributing to the class's high rerank.
Outcome Summary
Overall, the 2005 Virginia recruiting class outperformed expectations. This is reflected in the S2S rerank, which moved up from the original ranking of 17 to 6. The success of previously unranked or low-ranked recruits, coupled with solid contributions from the majority of the class, led to this positive rerank.
However, it's also worth noting the underperformance of some high-ranked recruits. While these cases were exceptions rather than the rule, they do underscore the difficulty of predicting college football outcomes solely based on high school rankings. The main takeaway here is that while Virginia had a few misses, the 2005 class as a whole was a recruiting success story.