Feb 5, 2014; Gardena, CA, USA; Junipero Serra high school cornerback Adoree Jackson poses for a photo after he signs with the University of Southern California during national signing day at Junipero Serra High School. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
Less than two weeks to go until National Signing Day, and it’s the weekend so official visits are being paid to schools all over the country. College football fans all over the country are checking in with their favorite recruiting website to see who is committing, flipping, or staying on board. Through it all, fans of every school will want to believe these things even though they aren’t true.
My school is spotless
No. They just aren’t. Unless they are a program that has only won one game for the last ten years, your school is looking for ways to bend the rules and find every possible nook and cranny to get the star recruit to come to your school. There’s nothing wrong with accepting this. If they weren’t, they would be a terrible football team.
Mississippi State Bulldogs
My school’s main rival is the dirtiest program in the country
I guess someone has to be the dirtiest, but just because they are your main rival doesn’t mean it is them. Yes, they are trying to find every advantage just like your school, but it doesn’t mean they are automatically doing stuff far above and beyond what your school is.
Losing a committed recruit to another school doesn’t hurt your team
Can we stop this silly nonsense? If you were thrilled to death to land a 4 star recruit, please don’t expect us to believe that he wasn’t that good or he won’t help your team that much if he leaves for greener pastures?
You Have Sources
An aunt’s nephew’s girlfriend’s mother’s boyfriend who was at the Dairy Queen and saw the top defensive lineman in the country and they took a picture with a fan and said your school’s motto does not mean they are signed, sealed and delivered. It means they are being nice. Most recruits try to be nice.
Seeing a recruit take a visit to another school means they aren’t really committed
They might not be, but please don’t forget one of the most important parts of recruiting. These are all 17 and 18 year old kids. They like attention. And they get tons of it when they go on visits. Don’t freak out if they take a visit somewhere else.
Coaches mean what they say at their press conferences on National Signing Day
If they lost a whole bunch of recruiting battles and had to resort to their second and third options more than they got their first, they might be saying they are happy with the players they signed, but they probably aren’t. Coaches aren’t going to stand up there and say, “Well, we wanted 10 five star recruits, but we got some three star guys instead and we’ll just have to make it work.” That’s not exactly instilling confidence in your guys, so don’t ever expect them to say it.
You can take a break after National Signing Day
Nope. Recruiting is an ongoing process. The class of 2016 is already being formed, coaches have their eye on members of the class of 2017, and they might take a look or two at players that will be in the class of 2018. It never ends.
Less than two weeks, and the class of 2015 is in the books. Happy crootin’ y’all!