Georgia TE Miles Campbell puts plans on hold
The first cut has come for Miles Campbell — sort of.
The 6-foot-4, 225 pound tight end out of Douglasville (Ga.) South Paulding is up to 26 offers, and out of those offers, he had trimmed his list down to 11 schools.
That was all set. His mind was focused on 11 schools off his offer list. He had discussed it with his parents and those close to him. And he was set to reveal his list this week, but those plans have been put on hold.
"Since I announced my plans to name my top 11, I picked up offers from Michigan State and Miami," said Campbell. "After those two offers, I decided to wait and not put out my top schools.
"Those offers showed that other schools are still interest that haven't offered yet and are still evaluating me.
"The virus pretty much had a big impact on this because now I have to fit lots of visits during the summer. With the new and incoming offers I do look to reshape my list and look to announce it possibly when spring is over or during summer."
Initially when Campbell was planning to cut his list down, he was set to cut it to 10. Then North Carolina offered, so the Tar Heels instantly jumped into the mix and that pushed it to 11.
Campbell did not have a deadline, and even if he would have trimmed his list to 11, schools that offered later still would have had their chance.
He will continue to evaluate each offer the same, regardless of timing, but based on what options he had, he had it to 11.
How did Campbell come up with his list and how will he reshape it moving forward?
"Making that list really came down to who I was comfortable with and the relationships I formed with coaches. The coaches have connected with me because of their honesty from the get go. I have talked to all about how I would fit in, their programs and they have been honest, genuine and just not sugar-coating things with me.
"That is what it came down to for me."
Some of the schools that have built that bond with Campbell are Florida State, Georgia Tech, Louisville, Michigan, Nebraska, North Carolina State, Tennessee, Arkansas.
Campbell said the communication he has with each schools is "in the same ball park", but Georgia Tech, North Carolina State and Tennessee may be the ones recruiting him hardest day to day.
With the virus halting on campus visits, Campbell has not gotten out as much as he had hoped this spring. So far he has visited Georgia Tech and North Carolina State three times, Louisville and Tennessee twice and Florida State once. He had planned to hit the road hard in March and April to see new schools and schools maybe a little farther away.
"The virus has messed my travel plans up," said Campbell. "I had planned a lot of visits. I was planning to be somewhere almost every weekend, then on spring break (April 5-11), I was going to spend that entire week visiting different schools.
"Now, I have to wait until we can get back out and I am not sure when that will be. The virus definitely made a big dent in my plans. Hopefully I can work some visits in over the summer."
Although the spring plans have been put on hold, it likely will not effect his recruitment too much. Campbell was not looking to make a decision early in the process, so he is still in a good place.
"I am not pushing for a decision at all," said Campbell. "If I take a visit, everything was perfect and I knew I was ready, then I could commit, but I have really been thinking about making my decision right after the season.
"All the visits I take are important to me, but I am not close to a decision. The ideal time for me based on how I feel right now would be for me to commit right after the season."
Campbell's new plan is to trim his list at some point in the coming months. He is drawing a lot of interest from schools like Clemson, Georgia and Penn State among others, so as new offers come in, he will evaluate those as well.