National Signing Day 2009

[TFoA]

So, National Signing Day was today, and of course for those that are uninitiated, this is the first official day that recruits can sign a binding committment to the school of their choice. Of course, schools like USC, Notre Dame, Florida, Alabama, & other powerhouses racked up, but for those of us who aren't really fans of the powerhouse schools (like yours truly), this is the day you get happy about the fact that you maybe got one or two All-Americans coming to play for you.

MSU got one: Montrell Conner, and a bunch of other solid recruits from the south.

I'm really hoping that Mullen can continue his good recruiting so far, he's actually brought in a solid class, and the players not only seem committed to the schools, but to making sure that the vision of Dan Mullen finally bringing the spread to Starkville will become an explosive reality.

So how did your school do? Are you happy? Are you mad? Could you care less?

[STL FANATIC]

U of I got a good class. Not quite as good as Zook had been bringing in, but after a disappointing season and a turnover of a few coaches, it's not surprise that recruiting took a bit of a hit. Still some really good talent in the class.

[Cujo]

So how did your school do? Are you happy? Are you mad? Could you care less?

Bingo.

ESPN tries to hype the hell out of this day every year -- but what casual sports fan cares about high schoolers?

Really, I'd rather watch paint dry or a Los Angeles Clippers game than track high school football.

[TFoA]

So how did your school do? Are you happy? Are you mad? Could you care less?

Bingo.

ESPN tries to hype the hell out of this day every year -- but what casual sports fan cares about high schoolers?

Really, I'd rather watch paint dry or a Los Angeles Clippers game than track high school football.

I wouldn't really pin this on ESPN. There've been some parties on this day for a long time now, especially down at LSU. The excitement is more of a southern thing than anything, but at the big schools nationwide it's a pretty big thing, just because it's really an excuse to talk more junk about college football.

It's also a reminder that spring practice season starts pretty damn soon.

[pcgd]

U of I got a good class. Not quite as good as Zook had been bringing in, but after a disappointing season and a turnover of a few coaches, it's not surprise that recruiting took a bit of a hit. Still some really good talent in the class.

Hawthorne and Benn sure are gonna give Juice some nice options to throw too!

[ferrousoxide66]

The only interesting thing is the wrapup on busts from the 2005 five-star prospects.

[rams80]

U of I got a good class. Not quite as good as Zook had been bringing in, but after a disappointing season and a turnover of a few coaches, it's not surprise that recruiting took a bit of a hit. Still some really good talent in the class.

Hawthorne and Benn sure are gonna give Juice some nice options to throw too!

Maybe he'll actually hit them, too.

[STL FANATIC]

U of I got a good class. Not quite as good as Zook had been bringing in, but after a disappointing season and a turnover of a few coaches, it's not surprise that recruiting took a bit of a hit. Still some really good talent in the class.

Hawthorne and Benn sure are gonna give Juice some nice options to throw too!

Don't forget about Jarrod Fayson, a 5-star recruit who transfered from Florida after his freshman (2007) season. He sat out per NCAA rules last year and becomes eligible again this year.

The Illini offense, if the line lives up to its potential and Juice improves instead of regresses, is really stacked. I hope the new OC shows more willingness to use that talent than Locksley ever seemed to want to.

[oddball]

The biggest joke out there today. National Signing Day. First of all, most of these jokes for players, can't play. They hype themselves up and they turn out to be nothing. Secondly, if you wonder why the games you watch suck and why a db can't tackle or a reciever can't catch, try wondering why these kids worry more about sitting in front of a camera and putting on a hat. National Signing Day is just another way for these egomaniacs to get there fix of attention. The day means nothing. Real football players don't need to sit in front of a camera and tell the world where they're going to school. They just sign and go. 99% of football players that mean anything to a team don't sing on this day, only the prima-donnas do! These kids are more worried about face time, than they are about the game. It's not what players you sign on this day that matters and it's not where you end up each year in the recruiting rankings, it's how you develop what talent you have. Boise State, TCU, Utah, ect. probably will never rank higher than any of the big schools, but they develop their talent better than 90% of these so-called big time schools that are always in the top 20.

[Drew22]

3 guys from my high school signed with DI schools. Specifically, Air Force, Ohio, and Miami-Ohio. Not bad.

I'm pumped that UGA signed Marlon Brown from Tennessee.

UNC has the 8th rated class, while Georgia has the 9th. Pretty good to me.

[STL FANATIC]

The biggest joke out there today. National Signing Day. First of all, most of these jokes for players, can't play. They hype themselves up and they turn out to be nothing. Secondly, if you wonder why the games you watch suck and why a db can't tackle or a reciever can't catch, try wondering why these kids worry more about sitting in front of a camera and putting on a hat. National Signing Day is just another way for these egomaniacs to get there fix of attention. The day means nothing. Real football players don't need to sit in front of a camera and tell the world where they're going to school. They just sign and go. 99% of football players that mean anything to a team don't sing on this day, only the prima-donnas do! These kids are more worried about face time, than they are about the game. It's not what players you sign on this day that matters and it's not where you end up each year in the recruiting rankings, it's how you develop what talent you have. Boise State, TCU, Utah, ect. probably will never rank higher than any of the big schools, but they develop their talent better than 90% of these so-called big time schools that are always in the top 20.

Eh. In a lot of cases it's a way for a really celebrated athlete to really put a nice ending to their HS career.

And in other cases it's just an easy day for a kid to impose a deadline on themselves to make a tough decision.

And yes, in some cases it's so kids can get their ego fix.

But it's wrong to lump them all into that.

[floydnimrod]

Cincinnati's recruiting class was solid. Nine players from Cincinnati, and 17 from within a 100 mile radius of campus. The Midwest has great high school football players. One I'm particularly excited about is WR Jamar Howard, a 6'5'' juco WR. With Dominick Goodman gone, the Cats should now have four solid wideouts(attention fantasy owners): Marshawn Gilyard, Marcus Barnett, Howard, and DJ Woods, who chose US over Michigan last year. I'm thankful to see no quarterbacks on UC's list, as we have plenty of them.

Two kids from my former high school also signed today. The QB could have signed with a MAC school, but opted for playing time (I guess) at Georgetown College in Kentucky (the site of bengals training camp). The tight end sign to play at Dartmouth, so that was pretty exciting.

[The_Admiral]

This doesn't strike me as particularly necessary. Too much pressure on a lot of kids who won't make it through the ranks. Seems like a real holiday for townies, though.

[Thad]

Alabama racked in, per the new norm.

App was able to steal a couple 2 star players and a 3 star safety. One of the RBs they were able to get has been timed at a 4.26 in the 40 - makes me wonder if he's got that type of speed if he has fumble-itis since he only had a couple FBS schools recruiting him.

[cappital92]

I'm in high school, so my school lost a guy today. The co-quarterback's going to play at Temple. Didn't they go 0-12 this season?

[lbr218]

My high school has been around for 11 years and today was the first time someone signed to a D1-A school. That school? Georgia Tech, the school I will be attending next year! I'm very excited

Actually an interesting article from last June in our local newspaper

[rams80]

I'm in high school, so my school lost a guy today. The co-quarterback's going to play at Temple. Didn't they go 0-12 this season?

5-7, 4-4 in Conference. Not good, but not bad.

[infrared41]

I'm not a fanatic about signing day but I think it's kind of cool to see who's going where and what schools did well etc.

ESPN ranked Ohio State's new class #4. I am happy the #3 ranked RB in the country is coming to Columbus. Word around here was The Buckeyes were recruiting a lot of speed. That's a good move. A really fast team in the Big Ten should have little trouble winning.

[rainmaker17]

I'm just happy Texas manages to keep most local talent around. A&M on the other hand can't get diddly, which I'm not as happy about as you might think. Of course I despise the Gigems, but I also want the conference as a whole to represent well. I'm afraid they might be horrible for a long time.

[cappital92]

I'm in high school, so my school lost a guy today. The co-quarterback's going to play at Temple. Didn't they go 0-12 this season?

5-7, 4-4 in Conference. Not good, but not bad.

Oh. I thought they were horrid. He could be the boost for that extra win in two or three years.