Recruiting article

[PonyPride]

Football recruits keeping wait off
More college football prospects sticking by early oral commitments

By RICHARD DURRETT / The Dallas Morning News

GARLAND – White envelopes with Texas A&M logos landed in the mailboxes of Garland Naaman Forest defensive back Melvin Bullitt and quarterback John Kelly in mid-June.

Both knew what it was right away. Inside was a no-haggle, no-hassle offer that neither could refuse. The letter, signed by Texas A&M head coach R.C. Slocum, said the Aggies wanted them to come to College Station on a four-year football scholarship.

"It was everything we wanted," said Bullitt, whose father, Jerry, played at A&M in the early '80s. "Both of us figured, 'Why wait?' "

Bullitt and Kelly represent a growing trend of high school players who orally commit to colleges before their final season begins. Some do it even earlier, such as Baytown Lee quarterback Drew Tate, who committed to Texas A&M at the beginning of his junior year.

Of course, oral commitments are nonbinding. No scholarship is official until the athlete signs a national letter of intent. And that can't happen until Feb. 5, 2003.

But that hasn't stopped many athletes from declaring their school of choice in the summer, especially to Texas and Texas A&M.

"You have two traditional state powers and you also have the fact that those places have huge alumni bases or fan bases," said Bobby Burton, editor of the Rivals100.com recruiting Web site. "More kids grow up wanting to play for Texas and Texas A&M than some other schools."

The Aggies already have 15 oral commitments for the 2003 class. Texas isn't far behind with nine. Baylor and SMU each have one commitment, while TCU and North Texas don't have any to this point.

"It seems like the commitments are earlier and earlier," Burton said. "If college coaches are sticking with their commitments, than why not let the players sign early?"

That could happen in the next few years. American Football Coaches Association executive director Grant Teaff said that about 53 percent of the coaches support the idea of an early signing period.

"We won't recommend anything until we have 75 percent, but the idea has really gained support in the last three or four years," Teaff said. "I think in a couple of years we might see a signing date at the end of the summer."

So why are so many athletes committing early?

For some, it's almost like an insurance policy. Most schools don't rescind scholarship offers, even if the athlete is injured, for risk of damaging relationships with high school coaches and other prospective players.

Other athletes hope that by orally committing, they don't have to deal with the daily barrage of phone calls, e-mails and letters starting in September.

And some commit because they don't want other players at the same position taking their spot. That's what happened to Hebron linebacker Lewis Baker. He went for an unofficial visit with Texas this summer and was told by coaches that the Longhorns had only limited scholarships for linebackers, and one was already taken.

"My plan was to wait, and I felt a little rushed," Baker said. "I felt like I had to commit because they said they offered a few other guys and the first one to take the scholarship got it."

For the most part, the athletes that commit and the colleges that offer seem to stay together. Last season, only four players on The News ' area Top 100 who committed in the summer changed their minds. And one, Paris North Lamar quarterback Billy Don Malone, committed to Texas, but both parties agreed to move on in January. Malone admitted that he felt unwanted by Texas once he committed, and wanted to look elsewhere. Texas, as it does with most recruits, told Malone if he visited somewhere else, they would rescind his scholarship. And that's what happened.

But Malone's case is still a rarity. Because preseason commitments are traditionally successful, more coaches continue to offer early. Part of the reason the athlete sticks with his commitment is relationships.

Burton said in the last five years, Texas, Texas A&M and other schools around the country have worked hard to establish earlier relationships with hometown coaches and athletes.

"I think that's why out-of-state schools aren't doing as well in Texas," Burton said. "Kids are going to camps and combines, and the college coaches in-state know who the good players are before anyone else and offer those players early."

College coaches like to get early commitments so other athletes see the recruiting class take shape. That might cause a domino effect where schools have a chance to land some of the biggest recruiting prizes based on the other members of the signing class. It also gives coaches a blueprint for what positions they still need to evaluate when the high school season begins.

As for the early signing date, Texas recruiting coordinator Hardee McCrary said it only makes sense if players are sticking with their commitments.

"That way, kids could have fun their senior years and not worry about recruiting or the scholarship," McCrary said.

Some of the smaller schools don't agree. They'd like the extra time to convince solid recruits that they can get on the field quicker and make a bigger impact by switching commitments.

"I'm not for it, but I potentially see an early signing date in football," SMU coach Phil Bennett said. "So many kids are committing early that I think that's where we're headed."

[ClassOf81]

First of all, it's nice to see an article that covers Texas recruiting where the writer bothered to talk to Coach Bennett.

I don't think an early signing date is a bad idea at all. The heavyweights will fill out their classes with many of the top names. Then, as the players go through their senior seasons, they'll have a better idea of who has how many players at each position. They might realize that a school like Oklahoma already has five players signed at a certain position, and look elsewhere.

It would allow schools like SMU to compete more equally for the remaining players, since top schools will have their classes mostly filled. And schools with more spaces available would be better able to go after a player who wasn't necessarily that highly thought of but suddenly has a breakout year. The big schools won't have room, and they'll be locked in to the letters of intent they sign with the early players.