What is the cheapest method of landing a player without offering promises?

Generally its 4 ST + scholly, 2 HV + scholly, 1 CV + scholly, 40 Calls/Letters + Scholly to get signed for the minimum

Miles	10	200	200	360	360	1400	1400
ST	150	190	265	300	530	660	700
HV	300	340	415	450	745	875	1215
CV	800	825	1025	1050	1260	1445	2020

0-360	HV	CV	ST	LTR
370-1400	CV	HV	LTR	ST
1400+	LTR	CV	HV	ST

And here is how much recruiting effort is:

Phone call= 2 
Letters =3 
ST= 60 
HV= 150 
CV= 350 
Scholarship= 250 
Promised Start= 250
Promised minutes= 5 * minutes promised 

And it takes about 400 "points" for a recruit to consider you.

From: MEGA FAQ's

That's it for minutes promised? Seems rarely worth the risk. Last resort kind of thing

I really have to question if the promise levels above are accurate. Both promised starts and promised minutes seem low to me. 

A start seems to move the needle far more than a CV does when battling for a kid..I certainly don't think it's only 70% of the value of a CV by a long shot. I would also argue that a 15 minute promise is far closer to the value of an HV than this chart gives it credit for. It might not be equivalent to, but it certainly is more than a 50% HV in my opinion. 

Maybe I have perception bias and I'm only seeing what I want since those are options I reach for frequently in battles, but my impression is that the chart shows both on the low side of their actual impact in the process. 

Keep in mind the minimums listed by theOnlyis are SAFE minimums. You can get guys for less, especially later in recruiting when player's standards are lowered; but even early on there will be guys that will sign for even less, you're just taking a risk that it's not enough. For example 1 HV + scholly can work, but it won't meet every player's threshold. I do think 1 HV + 1 ST is a pretty safe bet and that's cheaper than 2 HVs.

I had one scholarship open (rescinded a guy who I took a chance on at the end of a large recruiting class) and only had $616 in cash to spend.  Got my guy with 1ST, 1HV, Schollie with exactly $0 leftover.

Posted by Benis on 10/29/2015 1:52:00 PM (view original):
That's it for minutes promised? Seems rarely worth the risk. Last resort kind of thing

Well, if you need to play the guy anyway, it is 10 bucks for 100 recruiting effort. (If you promise 20 minutes)

Combine it with a promised start and it is 350 effort for 20 bucks.

That is assuming the numbers for effort are correct.. They are based on 400 as being the 'consider point'. That may be too simplistic. I think some recruits are different than others. But it is possible for someone to accept a start and not consider your team. So, I think that is the basis for those start and minute values being assigned.

I think the trentonjoe is the guy who set those values, so he can speak to why. They seem close to me,for most recruits.

Also remember that promises don't have the same weight. Admin has said that a promise from an A+ will carry more weight than a promise from a B.

Posted by acn24 on 10/30/2015 8:17:00 PM (view original):
Also remember that promises don't have the same weight. Admin has said that a promise from an A+ will carry more weight than a promise from a B.

this is a pretty interesting topic, here... by definition effort from an a+ carries more weight than effort from a b. is that all admin meant? i don't think so...

also, its worth noting, promises are almost for sure linked to the same old player caliber vs school caliber stuff, that you see in a variety of other places in recruiting. if a recruit looks down on you, a promise can actually be worthless! its a real scenario, i don't know if many people have seen it, but i definitely have (they respond like, who cares, of course you will give me that!). 

whats not clear to me, is if a promise from a B school, who is "above" a recruit, is worth any less from a promise from an a+ school, to the same recruit, except for the standard prestige advantage of whatever b to a+ is.