Woelk: Recruiting Always Changing, But For CU's Bernardi Relationships Still Foundation

BOULDER — While the "game" of college football recruiting continues to change — think social media, ever-changing NCAA rules and the evolution of camps, satellite camps and more — there is a constant that has remained the same for decades:

Relationships. More specifically, the relationships between college coaching staffs, high school coaches and players.

The importance of those relationships, built over years, hasn't changed. It involves constant communication, a strong level of trust from all sides involved and sustained cultivation of those elements.

It is a process that will be front and center over the next couple of months as CU coaches hit the road beginning this week for the spring evaluation period.

"I've always taken pride in going to places and maintaining relationships," Colorado assistant coach Gary Bernardi said. "That means going to places where they may not have a player this year, but they may have one next year or the year after. You still want to stop by there because historically, they have players and you want to keep up that relationship."

Those long-standing relationships pay off. Case in point?

Roughly five years ago, Bernardi was talking with an Arizona high school coach he had known for years, Scooter Molander (coincidentally, also a former Colorado State quarterback). Molander told Bernardi about a defensive back on his team who wasn't getting a lot of national attention, but one he believed could play at a high Division I level.

"I must have called him 20 times and he must have told me 20 times, this guy is going to be a heck of a player," Bernardi said. "Scooter and I had that long-term relationship, that trust. I trusted him and he trusted me. I trusted his word, we recruited his player and it turned out to be pretty good for all of us."

That player was defensive back Isaiah Oliver, who is projected to be drafted in the first two rounds of next week's NFL Draft.

"That's a big part of recruiting — making sure you are staying in contact and establishing and maintaining those relationships," Bernardi said. "Every situation is different, but if you don't have a good rapport and that relationship, you hurt your chances. What you have to remember is it's not done over the span of just a year or two. It's accomplished over years of establishing that relationship."

Bernardi has literally spent decades cultivating those relationships. While his school has changed over the years — his coaching stops have included Arizona, USC, UCLA and San Jose State — he has maintained contact with high schools in roughly the same geographic locales throughout his career.

At Colorado, that experience has helped the Buffs attract such players as Oliver, Aaron Haigler, Colby Pursell, Rick Gamboa, Kanan Ray, Chris Bounds, Brett Tonz and Jared Poplawski — just to name a few — to Boulder. Some were highly recruited players; some were "diamonds in the rough." But the constant is the relationship that Bernardi and CU coaches built with those players' high school programs over the years.

"You always want to secure your areas so you don't miss players," Bernardi said. "I've always tried to do a good job of cultivating the area I've had. Now, it's a little more difficult with fewer days you can get by those schools."

Yes, that's correct. The task of cultivating those relationships, especially when it comes to making personal visits to those high schools, got a little tougher this year.

Ironically, that impact is a peripheral result of the addition of a 10th assistant coach to NCAA Division I staffs. While the benefits of the addition of the 10th coach are no doubt many, beginning with the increased individual attention players receive in practices, one of the minor downsides is the potential impact on recruiting.

You see, while the NCAA did approve the addition of a 10th assistant coach, the governing body did not add additional days to the recruiting calendar.

Thus, if all 10 coaches on a staff are recruiting, the number of days each coach can utilize to visit high schools has been slightly reduced.

"Everybody has a few less days now," Bernardi said. "But it's still your responsibility and still part of your job to make sure you are staying in contact and establishing and maintaining those relationships."

Those long-term relationships paid off for CU in two relatively rare instances over the last couple of years.

Two years ago, CU was recruiting standout offensive lineman Casey Roddick. When Roddick's mother went to FedEx to send a package, she struck up a conversation with the store owner.

She told him her son was being recruited by the University of Colorado and coach Gary Bernardi. Turns out the store owner was a former UCLA player who Bernardi recruited some 25 years ago, and he told Roddick's mother that Bernardi had been a great coach and honest man.

Roddick later signed with Colorado.

More recently, CU found itself back in the mix for offensive lineman Kanan Ray, who had originally signed with UCLA. Ray decided to transfer — and Bernardi's relationship with Ray and his high school coach was still strong, and Colorado was quickly back in the mix.

Ray ended up choosing to come to CU.

"Those relationships that you build over the years — you never know what or who might come up a year or two down the line, or 10 or 20 years down the line," Bernardi said. "The bottom line is it gives you a chance. Nothing is for sure. There are a lot of coaches out there doing a really good job."

Contact: Neill.Woelk@Colorado.edu