Now that's a strong recruiting pitch

Published Apr. 25, 2013 1:00 a.m. ET

Sam Gardner

College football teams have always had unique ways of convincing top-flight athletes that their school is the place to be, but this year, coaches seem to have taken a turn for the weird when it comes to bringing blue-chip recruits in.

Mississippi State has gotten attention of late for its captivating "YOU'RE A BALLER" and "Can of Swag" recruiting letters, while North Carolina State has put its spin on approaching "ballers" as well. And there are certainly countless other original approaches that go undocumented on the internet.

But perhaps no one has done it better than Rutgers, which has taken to 2014 three-star Sparta, N.J., athlete Noah Brown — and let him know with a pitch that featured this, um, interesting image of Scarlet Knights defensive coordinator Dave Cohen’s face superimposed upon a gleaming bodybuilder holding a barbell.

Brown has removed the photo since posting it to his Twitter account on Wednesday, and on Thursday he clarified his reasoning for putting it online in the first place.

But the photo and its message will live on in infamy forever. And at this point, Brown — who has also attended camps at Boston College and Temple and has several offers from top-tier programs all across the country — probably owes it to Cohen and the Scarlet Knights to heed the letter’s advice, stay local and join the cause.