It's largely this.I think some of it is based on one recruiting site ranking him as the #1 back in the country (never mind that the others had him way lower - like in the 10-20 range).
Not saying that he can't be good, but from what I've seen in his first two years, he's the 4th best back on next year's team. That's not really a criticism. It's more that Fletch, Brown, and Pringle look really good.
Makes sense that fans lock on to the highest rating - but there was a wide range of opinions/outcomes for Lyle:
On3 - RB #1
Rivals - RB #3
247 - RB #15
ESPN - RB #24
When all you see is that RB #1 rating, and he doesn't play well, a couple things happen:
1) You start scrambling for excuses - Injuries, OL play, play calling, not used right, etc.
2) That RB #24 rating proves to be the most obvious/correct - but it's also the last thing people want to admit.
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