Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/797655
Early signing period can't get here soon enough I t's been talked about for years, even decades in some circles. Many are against it, others are all for it. It's truly a divisive topic that has grabbed the attention of not only college foot- ball coaches, but also the sport's fans. No, I'm not talking about the move- ment to pay players; that's another de- bate for a different day. I'm referring to the push to institute an early signing period. This may be news to some of you: An early signing period is coming to col- lege football. In January, the American Football Coaches Association recom- mended a new model for Division I football recruiting, one that included an early signing period begining on the third Wednesday of December and lasting for three days. That proposal will likely be ratified at a meeting of the NCAA's Division I council in mid- April. It will take effect immediately, meaning that the verbally committed players in Penn State's Class of 2018 will be able to officially sign with the Lions on Dec. 20, 2017. If a player chooses not to end his recruitment in December, he will still be able to sign on the traditional signing date in Feb- ruary. There are a lot of di3erent ways to look at this, and I understand the con- cerns about coaches being 2red a5er a player signs. But despite that, I'm still a strong proponent of an early signing period. Since I started at Blue White Il- lustrated in 2010, I've gotten to know basically every player who has signed with the Nittany Lions over that span. I've also gotten to know many of their families and coaches, and I can assure you that the majority of them would have liked to have been given this op- portunity. For all the players who end up taking additional o4cial visits to other schools a5er they commit in April or June or whenever, there's usually a much bigger group of players who never waver. Just look at the Class of 2017, for example. Of the 13 players who commit- ted before the 2016 season started, only C.J. Thorpe, Mac Hippenhammer and Brelin Faison-Walden entertained the idea of taking visits elsewhere. However, despite the fact that most of those players are 100 percent set on the school of their choice, for many of today's top prospects, the recruiting process doesn't end when they verbally declare. Sure, you can change a phone number and even ask not to be both- ered. But at the end of the day, if a school really wants you, it's not going to let up. On top of that, the amount of media attention that is devoted to recruiting at the Football Bowl Subdivision level is much greater than it was when I started, and that was only seven years ago. I would argue that this is actually the main reason that most of these players would like to end their recruitment early. There are rules that dictate when coaches can contact a player and his family. That's not the case with re- porters. With three major recruiting websites all competing for that breaking news story, plus newspapers and web- sites such as ESPN getting into the mix, players are o5en besieged by calls and texts from reporters. That, more than anything else, is what wears these prospects out. As with every major change in any profession, it's going to take time to work out the kinks. There will be a few players who are negatively impacted in the 2rst year or two. In fact, that's the main reason that we're only seeing an early signing period in December and not in June, which was also proposed. As the process is amended over time, I'm con2dent that an early signing period will turn out to be a step in the right di- rection. As someone who follows the ins and outs of recruiting on a daily basis, I don't believe that this change will hurt prospects by speeding up the recruiting cycle. That's been one of the major criti- cisms of the proposal, but let's be hon- est: Players are already earning scholarship o3ers in eighth and ninth grade. You can't properly scout a prospect before that age. With that said, there are ways that the NCAA can help alleviate some of the stress that's part of the everyday routine for many of these top-level prospects, and that starts with an early signing pe- riod. ■