Tom Smart, Deseret News
Recruiting classes accomplish at least two purposes: reloading after the departure of players who graduated or went to the NFL the year before, and stockpiling talent to develop for the future.
In the state of Utah, and particularly at BYU, this is a bigger challenge than at most other schools around the country because the majority of signees leave on two-year LDS missions before ever playing a down in college football.
As such, many of the players who will sign National Letters of Intent with the Cougars on Feb. 1 become an investment that won’t be cashed in on for at least two years, and it’s often as many as four or five before they make a real impact.