Posted by: Chris Vannini on February 13, 2013

Come signing day and throughout the recruiting process, the focus is on the coaches and which ones recruited which kids.

Assistant coaches are even being ranked as recruiters now.

But when recruits come on visits, one of the most important parts is the communicating with the current players. In a Signing Day video released by Miami (FL), Al Golden emphasized how player relationships are the real key, certainly undervalued in the process.

Golden says, "On signing day, annually, there is a lot of talk about who the good recruiters are, but the backbone of any organization as it relates to recruits are your current players."

"It's one of the most overlooked aspects of the recruiting process: players connecting with recruits," Golden said. "The relationships they establish, the communication in which they answer recruits' questions is invaluable to the recruit and their parents and ultimately, has a great impact on what happens on Signing Day."

Throughout the video, current Miami players talk about their relationships with players as Signing Day goes along.

"We're just trying to, again, make sure that the young people that come visit the University of Miami are exposed to our culture and make sure they get all their questions answered and that they establish rapport and comfort level with our current players," Golden said.

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Chris Vannini is the lead writer for CoachingSearch.com and has covered Michigan State sports for The State News, The Oakland Press and MLive.com. He writes a weekly column for the Detroit Free Press on behalf of SB Nation. Vannini lives in Big Ten country, so his foot speed is far from SEC caliber, but his pulse on coaches is hard to match. Be sure to follow @CoachingBuzz on twitter and send your feedback to chris@coachingsearch.com