College football’s regular season is boring my comparison.
National Signing Day came and went and yet again didn’t disappoint with an entertaining Wednesday full of players flipping commitments, giving odd reasons for their decisions and coaching staffs reacting to the news.
You can relive the festivities below:
1. Johnny Football would be proud: Texas A&M welcomed each new recruit with a personalized tweet from its easy-on-the-eyes hostess staff. Who wouldn’t want to play in College Station with this kind of welcoming committee.
2. What would signing day be without controversy around the top player in the country? Florida defensive end Byron Cowart announced his commitment to Auburn over Florida on ESPNU, told recruiting reporters he had signed, yet the papers never arrived at the SEC powerhouse.
His coach, Sean Callahan, told Rivals.com the plan wasn’t to send in his National Letter of Intent (NLI). Then it was reported he was heading back to his high school in the afternoon. He also told ESPN he was waiting to send the papers to make sure his “heart is there.” Adding to the intrigue, former Florida coach Will Muschamp is now the defensive coordinator at Auburn.
3. Roquan Smith went on ESPNU and declared his commitment to UCLA, a stunning decision from the Georgia native who was seen as a heavy Georgia lean. The four-star linebacker made his supposed decision with flair, throwing away cards for Michigan and Texas A&M before holding up his UCLA gloves.
Then, hours later, he told reporters it wasn’t his final decision and he had yet to sign. The Sports Leader must be thrilled.
4. Brandon Martin can expect a rude welcome the next time LSU visits Missouri. The four-star wide receiver from Louisiana announced he was de-committing from Missouri and signing with LSU with the hashtag “#decommit” (and some tiger emojis). Perhaps he didn’t have the text-messaging phone plan to inform the Missouri coaches.
https://twitter.com/5_go_live_5/status/562966468661612546/
5. Some players pick schools to enhance their NFL prospects, others to win a national championship. Five-star running back Sosa Jamabo of Texas chose UCLA, it seems, for the girls (it’s a lyric by Childish Gambino). Clearly, Jamabo doesn’t take himself too seriously. Last week, he joked he was picking between University of Phoenix and ITT Tech.
6. BYU may need to hire a few extra chefs. Or, perhaps, assign a dedicated one to its newest lineman: mammoth 6-foot-7, 410-pound signee Motekiai Langi of Liahona High School in Tonga.
The Cougars staff seems excited by the addition – they welcomed him with a rap song, as they did with all of their recruits.
7. Preston Williams left little doubt. The Georgia product and 19th-ranked wide receiver in the country, according to Rivals, showed up for his press conference with an all-white suit, an orange bowtie, no socks and a felt Tennessee helmet-hat. If his ability is anywhere close to his interesting fashion sense, the Volunteers will be elated.