Football recruitment shines

By almost any standard, the Toledo Rockets football team has been highly successful in the past five years. They’ve won more games than almost any non-power five team and have battled for a conference title year after year. And some of that success is starting to pay off in different ways. Recruiting is the base of a college football roster, and so far the Rockets have a solid set of recruits. Just recently, however, Toledo was able to reel in a big fish, with former Kentucky commit and Toledo native Michael Warren verbally committing to his hometown Rockets team. Warren, who’s a senior running back at Toledo Central Catholic, is seen by many publications as a four-star recruit. He’s also a top 20 running back in the country and has had offers and visits from a number of schools. Warren is just an addition to an already-solid class that projects to be second in the conference.“I think we’re doing well in recruiting,” said Ricky Ciccone, director of high school relations. “We have a strong class, and we’re happy where we’re at. At the same time, we’ve got to recruit, recruit, recruit. We can’t stop where we’re at.” One advantage that comes with recruiting people such as Warren is that they’re from the area. This is something the program certainly stresses. “It’s at the forefront of what we do. It starts here in Toledo and the primary area,” Ciccone said. “If they’re the best players and they’re from this area, we want them to be Rockets.” It’s not just a benefit for Toledo though; a lot of the players understandably gravitate toward local teams. “There’s an advantage of being able to play in front of your hometown. This is a city that wraps its arms around its players and sports teams, and Toledo is certainly a big part of that. To be a local guy and play in front of your home fans is a big deal,” said Toledo football head coach Jason Candle. Even with their success in this area, Toledo still travels to other schools and performs well. Candle said that being a MAC school won’t be a disadvantage in recruiting. This shows, considering that Toledo has recruited a number of players from places as far as Florida, and have a number of players from out of state in this upcoming class already.
While the Rockets are looking for the best talent out there, some things go beyond the football field.
“We put a lot into the evaluation process and it’s not just from a football standpoint,” Ciccone said. “We want guys who want a great degree. It’s not just about football, but developing our guys.”
Candle explained that the university is not only concerned about good football players, but also with good students, overall. “We look for good-character guys who have a passion for football,” said Candle. “They also have to be willing to do what Toledo requires in the classroom. If you’re a no-nonsense guy who loves football, you’ll probably fit in well with us.”