I’ve never really bought into the whole recruiting hysteria, but maybe it’s time I reconsidered.

All it took was one inspiring line from the mouth of new UCLA football coach Jim Mora, telling the tale of his first go-round on the recruiting trail, focusing on those times when he visited recruits in their own homes.

“I got about four spaghetti dinners, had some great enchiladas, had some great Thai food in Utah, had some ribs in L.A. – time to go on a diet,” Mora said.

Sign me up (pun intended)!

“I thought I knew what recruiting was and I really didn’t,” Mora acknowledged during a separate occasion in his Wednesday press conference.

Same here – being fed that well on the job would make any coach want to be a tireless recruiter.

Signing Day is an exciting time, isn’t it? Some of the highlights of my observation of today’s festivities: determining whether or not the name of Connecticut recruit Jazzmar Clax sounds more like a musical instrument or a planet from Star Wars.

Or wrapping my mind around the fact that P. Diddy has a son old enough to commit to play football for UCLA.

Look at what the event has brought to UCLA the last few years – former coach Rick Neuheisel turned in some exciting recruiting classes in the past few years, and that directly translated to the Bruins having a ton of on-field success.

Hmm.

Sorry for the cynicism, but we in Westwood have somewhat earned the right to take Signing Day with a grain of salt.

Some of the more talented players that have matriculated to UCLA in the last few years haven’t exactly panned out. Some of the excitement that has been generated by Signing Day has eventually soured in light of on-field struggles.

Part of the problem that I have with the whole deal is the media firestorm that surrounds it. I’m contributing to that right now. One of the things I enjoy most about the constant analysis cycling through ESPN all day is to keep my eye out for one team in particular.

Where’s Boise State?

The Broncos – one of the nation’s most successful programs in the last five years – are never mentioned among those teams with the top recruiting classes.

I’ll tell you when and where they are mentioned: at the end of every college football season, when the Bowl Championship Series match-ups are discussed.

Who’s been the most sought-after head coach in college football the past few offseasons (including by UCLA)? Boise State’s Chris Petersen.

He’s clearly not bringing in the highest-ranked recruiting classes, but he’s doing something right with the players that he does have, he’s winning consistently and he’s wanted by every major program that’s had a job opening the last couple of years.

Point is, it’s always healthy to be reminded that there’s more to college football success than recruiting.

That’s the reason Neuheisel spent Wednesday working for CBS Sports instead of a college football program.

Props to Mora and his staff for working some late-game magic, but the enthusiasm needs to be tempered in light of UCLA’s recent past.

We’re still six months away from the games starting, and the indicators of improvement there will be the signs that really matter.

If you’ll provide him with a lasagna dinner in exchange for his recruiting pitch, email Eshoff at reshoff@media.ucla.edu.