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Like many prospects, 4-star defensive end Aaron Armitage wasn't thrilled to see the news a couple days ago that the NCAA has extended the recruiting dead period -- meaning no on-campus or off-campus in-person recruiting -- until July 31.
He has wanted to make a decision by the end of summer, and while he's done all the virtual tours and talked extensively with each of the schools he's considering, seeing the campuses and meeting the coaches in person remains the missing element in his recruitment.
Armitage, a Rivals250 prospect from Blair Academy in Blairstown, N.J., had a USC official visit planned that remains on hold, and of his top five schools he's only visited Stanford so far. Along with the Trojans and Cardinal, he's also considering Oregon, LSU and Florida, with whom he has a virtual visit scheduled for this coming week.
So given all of that, where do things stand and what's his mindset at this point?
Armitage talked to TrojanSports.com at length to offer the latest insight into his recruitment.
"That's what's [weighing] on my mind right now because I really want to make a decision by the end of summer, but if I can't visit it's going to be difficult," he said. "I'm just going to have to sit down with my family and talk about what's best, because I've only visited Stanford, so I'd have the best evaluation of that school over the others, which isn't really fair. It's going to be difficult, but if I can't visit, I'm going to sit down and I'm going to make a wise decision because I've taken virtual tours to all the schools already and I've seen what they all have to offer, so I'm just going to have to sit down and talk to my parents if I can't visit."
Armitage says the earliest he would announce a decision would be June 21 -- Father's Day -- as that's a date he has long had in mind for his commitment. But if he feels he's not ready at that time, it will likely wait until the end of the summer.
In the meantime, he said, his mind has gone back and forth.
