Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, December 24, 1994 TAG: 9412280053
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: DOUG DOUGHTY STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
A growing trend toward early commitments has left prospects paranoid, coaches concerned and fans frantic. Nobody knows where it will stop but, for at least one year, it has changed the face of college football recruiting.
In 1993, when the Roanoke Times & World-News published its annual list of the top 25 high school prospects in Virginia, three had made oral commitments. In the past 20 years, never have there been as many as six commitments by Christmas and, in some years, there haven't been any.
But 17 players on this year's Roanoke Times & World-News Top 25 have made commitments, as have four other Second 25 or Second 50 prospects.
The chief beneficiary is Virginia, which has commitments from six Top 25 players and as many as 20 overall, depending on the accounting method used. Five of UVa's commitments are from players who still plan to visit other schools.
``There were a few [bowl] practices that I missed to go recruiting and I've never done that before,'' said UVa coach George Welsh, who did not leave campus the previous December. ``The indications were that a lot of kids were going to make decisions early.''
Many feel there was a trickle-down effect when Syracuse and Penn State each had a half-dozen or more commitments by the end of the summer.
``It's incredible,'' said Terry Taylor, father of Top 5 linebacker Dillon Taylor from Spotswood High in Penn Laird. ``I can tell you what we're hearing: `We don't have a lot of scholarships left, so you better [commit] now.'''
West Potomac defensive lineman Mike Willetts, whom some consider the state's No.1 prospect, committed to Boston College on Oct.22.
``I understand Penn State had all of its commitments by the end of the summer,'' Welsh said. ``It's a trend, a definite trend. What you had to do is take some kids [based] on their junior year. In the past, you'd like to see them play at least once during their senior year.''
A Division I-A program cannot bring more than 56 players to campus for official visits. Welsh said Virginia entertained either 44 or 45 players over three weekends in early December.
The commitment mania hasn't escaped the attention of Virginia Tech coach Frank Beamer and his staff. The Hokies traditionally do most of their entertaining in January and so far have had 13 prospects on campus.
Tech has four commitments, the latest from all-state defensive end Keith Short from Group AAA Division 5 champion Patrick Henry-Ashland. Short has not visited Tech or any other school.
``I think it's a sign of the times and we're going to have to adjust to it,'' Beamer said. ``We may have to start offering [official] visits during the season. I can't say I like doing that. I'm not sure the visit's as good, but everything is moving up.''
Of the in-state players who have visited Tech so far, only Donald ``Dre'' Bly from Western Branch has committed to another school. Bly, whose blazing speed makes him a prospect as a defensive back, wide receiver or return specialist, has committed to North Carolina.
``I think every year comes down to five or six major battles,'' Beamer said, ``and we've lost only one of those so far.''
That's not to say that some of the players who committed to Virginia weren't on Tech's list, but the Hokies and Cavaliers have upcoming showdowns for two of the state's top players in Taylor and tight end Erron Kinney from Patrick Henry-Ashland.
``I'm planning to take my visit to Tennessee [on] Jan.13 and make an announcement as soon after that as I'm ready,'' said Taylor, who already has been to Tech and UVa. ``I'm not going to wait until Feb.1 [the signing date]. I don't know if anybody will.''
Bryan Stinespring, the Hokies' tight ends and assistant offensive line coach, said Tech has nothing against December visits, but more than a few prospects were occupied in playoff games or with Scholastic Assessment Test.
``It's something that we probably need to address,'' he said. ``You see a lot of kids who take one visit now and, boom, they commit. Hardly anybody is going to take five visits [the limit] anymore.''
Evan Hunt, who committed to Virginia earlier this week, said he was told that Virginia made scholarship offers to 30 players during the summer. The Cavaliers knew they would sign between 20 and 25, but Tech is looking to sign no more than 15 or 17.
``We had to be careful about how many scholarships we extended and to whom we extended them,'' Stinespring said. ``Everybody was talking about this year being the year of the offensive linemen, but we had a need for offensive linemen last year and signed five to seven who could play on that side of the ball.''
Many felt that 1993 would be the year of the quarterback in Virginia, but only three signed Division I-A letters-of-intent. A similar situation occurred this year, when offensive linemen like Northside's Roth Townsend (6-7, 314) and Jeff Painter (6-5, 270) did not receive the demand that they or others might have expected.
The early commitments haven't been the only new developments on the recruiting scene. Boston College, which had not previously spent much time in Virginia, has received commitments from four Top 25 players and is a finalist for two others.
North Carolina, which once made a living in Virginia, offered scholarships only to Bly and tight end Casey Crawford from Bishop O'Connell in Arlington. However, North Carolina State and Duke each stepped up their recruiting efforts to the north.
Willetts, Bly and Kinney were the choice of all recruiters asked to pick the top five prospects in the state. Crawford, not included on a Roanoke Times & World-News list of the top preseason prospects, is probably the biggest surprise.
``He could be a first-round draft choice one day,'' one recruiter said. ``He's like Jay Novacek [of the Dallas Cowboys]. Virginia got a diamond there.''
Also considered for the final two spots were Hunt and two-time All-Group AAA linebacker Maurice Daniels from Annandale.
Probably the toughest decision involved Eric Webb, the Timesland defensive player of the year from Pulaski County. Webb took the SAT on Dec.10 and has not taken any visits while awaiting the results.
Cougars' coach Joel Hicks said it did not make sense for Webb to take the SAT until he completed two math courses that would prepare him for the test.
``If I was a college guy, I'd say Eric would make an excellent tight end,'' Hicks said. ``I expect him to play somewhere [in Division I-A], even if it means going to prep school for a year.''
by CNB