I’ve got college recruiting on my mind.
It’s the subject for tonight’s “On the Mark”. When I heard Kansas received a basketball commitment from a sophomore out of Phoenix, I thought some research was in order.
What I found out was surprising. According to scout dot com, seven of the ten highest rated sophomores have already made similar decisions. That means that kids, who aren’t even old enough to drive, already know what college athletic dorm they’ll be parking in front of. Royce Woolridge becomes the youngest K-U commitment ever, beating out Cole Aldrich, who committed prior to his junior season. Let me add at this point that Kentucky just recently received a commitment from a six foot four inch ….
Eighth grader.
Southern Cal has received a similar sentiment from two eighth graders in consecutive years. Is the clock going backwards on the recruiting process? The rules of engagement are well legislated by the N-C-Double-A.
The loophole is that while college coaches can’t call on 8th graders, or sophomores.
They can receive calls, and they can make calls to high school as well as A-A-U coaches.
And that’s what’s happening. The bottom line is that there is a trend toward earlier commitments, It’s reverberations will affects every collegiate sport we follow, and the athletes that play them. I’m not calling anybody out here, because it’s all within the rules. But, if growing up too fast is an uncomfortable sign of the times; than at least it makes you wonder where exactly the line is for too much, too soon. That’s “On the Mark”.