There is a certain reality for football recruiting when it comes to the non-traditional, brand name powerhouses that dominate the college ranks: you have to be smart.

Smart recruiters at schools like NC State can succeed by identifying the right fit. Lost in the never-ending arguments over rankings is a truth that once you get past the elite level prospects, the margin differential starts to shrink.

Yes, on average the four and five-stars are as good as advertised. The more you land of them, the higher your odds are of being really good. It is not a given, and within in the ACC alone you just have to look at Florida State’s odyssey over the past three years to see. But you are also not likely to often find teams competing for national championships whose rosters aren’t loaded with blue chip recruits.

The reason those teams have maintained their standing recently is that the blue chip players tend to sign with the title contenders: Alabama, Clemson, Georgia, Ohio State and Oklahoma being most prominent among them in the playoffs era.

It would take years of sustained high-level success to reach that level of recruiting. Thus for NC State, it is more important, for now, to be smart. Of course if a blue chip opportunity presents itself, pursue it intensely.

How could one define smart recruiting?

Here are three suggested starting points: