Interesting article on early commitments

[Phil]

Link

Excerpt (of proposal):

2. During the sophomore and junior years, a player can officially notify the NCAA she would like to sign an early letter of intent. An early letter of intent would give both sides time to evaluate their decision and back away should an extremely early (say freshman year) commitment prove to be unwise. Also, the early letter of intent would be optional, no one is forced to undertake this step, but a failure to do so indicates to the college that the recruit is in truth already wavering at least slightly as to the commitment. At the same time, this will lessen the pressure on the player and her family about her eventual destination.

 

[Vowelguy]

I only read your excerpt, and I'm sure there's stuff I don't know, but on its face I don't like it. I think this will ramp up the pressure for kids to sign an early LOI and then stay committed to it, which would only seem to increase the chances of bad matches. Not the direction things should be moving, imho.

 

[Phil]

The excerpt was intended as a teaser, but it doesn't make a lot of sense without reading the rest.

 

[UcMiami]

That is an interesting article and worth the read. I do think there might be a little added pressure to sign an early LOI and would like to add an age/school year requirement if this were adopted, but the reality has changed and a lot of top level recruits are making their choices during their junior year and not waiting until fall of their senior year. Making school and player wait until fall does add stress to the situation. And allowing a paid visit earlier in the process makes it fairer for financially challenged kids. A lot of kids are able to take un-officials with their families all over the country, but those trips can cost $1000s and are beyond the means of a lot of HS athletes.
I also like the idea of putting in the agreement more guaranteed outs for athletes when coaching changes occur after their commitment.
I actually think basketball (men's and women's) is not too big an issue with de-commits - they happen, but not that often. The little I have followed of football recruiting, it looks like a free for all with lots of high level defections, lots of recruiting by other schools of already 'committed' athletes, etc.