Does anyone use percentage of playing time or guaranteed starts when recruiting?

Very carefully ; sometimes. Got to make sure I really will start him.

Yep, I use them all the time.

Yeah, I use them every season.

To meet % promises, I move their Stamina Effectiveness to 60% when I play Sim teams and start them so they play nearly 100% of the snaps. That gives me the ability to reduce their PT against human opponents.
For starting spots, I move them into a starting position on the depth chart for one half or the other at 95% effectiveness.

I only use one formation on both offense and defense and rarely even use variants of that formation. If you use different formations you're going to want to make sure they get at least 55-60% of the plays in the half that they start.

*** Fun Fact #1: you can promise PT and still redshirt guys, as long they don't have a promised start.
*** Fun Fact #2: a DNP (so 0% playing time) doesn't impact a player's total % of plays for the season (Game 1 -100%, Game 2 - 0% will be 100%, etc.). I never use this trick because I usually play all 47 guys. Even the 3rd string QB usually gets a few plays

Jeff, that 60 percent thing in AI games, Very Wise dude .

Yeah, I just took a screenshot of Jeff's post for future reference. Thanks!

Posted by mojolad on 11/4/2018 5:25:00 PM (view original):
Very carefully ; sometimes. Got to make sure I really will start him.

What are the repercussions to not starting someone who you promised a start? Will it make new recruits less likely to accept your offer when recruiting? I have a TE that even I don't know why I offered a sophmore start to. Would using Notre Dame Box for 5% of my plays (just to get a second TE in) count towards being a starter?

no

putting him #1 in the depth chart for either half of the game will definitely get it done

Thanks Bag, I just used Jeff's 95% efficiency trick. Hopefully my ships internet holds up this winter and I can make changes at halftime. What about the season after a promised start? Am I free to bench him without it affecting my reputation? Luckily I only have one human opponent this season and can bench him for the whole game

Yup . After you fulfilled your commitment you can do what you want.
Note, answer to what happens if you don't honor your commitment is his work ethic drops drasticly.

Ok, thanks mojo. If I don't play him, will it affect my recruiting in relation to promising a start? I.E. would a recruit say "I heard you don't keep your word when promising a start"? I'm going to play him, I'm just curious about how it affects recruiting new players

No. Won't effect future recruiting. But that major WE drop will just about kill that players chance of getting much better.

Thanks for the input. I kind of unintentionally took over clarkvb's posts, haha