Always tell the truth. That way you don’t have to remember what you said. Unless you’re recruiting. Then you invent words to get the teenager to sign a national letter of intent.

That’s the reality of selling to gifted athletes getting wooed from so many other polished pitch men. But assistant coaches on Kansas University’s football team say that’s not the case with them and, get this, I believe them.

In time we’ll learn whether Turner Gill’s calm, consistent demeanor can translate to big-time winning in the perennially loaded Big 12 Conference, but all signs point to it being a plus in recruiting battles.

In the midst of a losing streak that has reached four games, Kansas received oral commitments from running back Darrian Miller, linebacker Ben Heeney and defensive back Adonis Saunders. All three players have serious speed.

With recruiting coordinator Reggie Mitchell leading the way, Kansas already is landing faster athletes.

Contrary to what might seem logical, losing doesn’t necessarily hurt recruiting.

“In my past, some of our best recruiting classes have come out of our worst seasons,” offensive coordinator Chuck Long said. “It’s staying consistent in how you sell it. It’s the rapport you build up with that recruit. There are a lot of recruits out there who see those records and say, ‘I can help them.’ We’ve also had some not-so-good recruiting classes after a bad year.”

Not having to remember what they say to recruits is a bonus.

“If you keep sending your message and stay consistent with that, parents know,” Long said. “Anymore, parents get involved, more so than when I was a player. When I went on a recruiting trip, there were no parents there. It was just us guys.”

That explains why they were so much more fun for athletes then than now.

“Parents are smart,” Long said. “They’ve had the experiences of the ups and downs of life, so they don’t get caught up so much in the record, as opposed to, ‘Hey, I’ve had the experiences, too. Let me see what you’re all about as people.'”

At his press conferences, Gill speaks in coaching platitudes and reveals little about himself. What is he about as a person?

“He’s very patient,” Long said. “He’s not a yeller or a screamer. His mission is to build young men through the college football experience, build them to be high-character guys who will go off into the world and be good citizens.”

Defensive coordinator Carl Torbush grows passionate when talking about his boss.

“He’s a great man,” Torbush said. “But don’t ever get confused with him not being a great disciplinarian and hard on the players when they need to be worked on hard, and he’s got a bunch of coaches that do the same thing.”

Torbush enjoys telling the truth in living rooms across America.

“I don’t think there’s any question there is one thing we can always do when we go into a house recruiting or when talking to y’all or anybody else, it’s not like we’re going to say something about our football program or our head football coach that we don’t truly believe,” Torbush said. “There are some people in America who can’t do that.”