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Parsons and Buffs part ways

Comparing a de-commitment to a breakup is cliché. Not mention lazy. The narrative is used far too often in too many stories. In the case of four-star tight end Mitchell Parsons' de-commitment from Colorado, though, it's impossible to cast aside. It simply fits too well to ignore.
The metaphor bleeds through Parsons' immediate reaction.
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"It was a mutual thing," he said when reached by phone on Wednesday night.
His explanation is long and winding. He delivers it without potshots or parting disses. All that's missing is a disingenuous, "We're still going to be friends." Still, Parsons' account of the situation is anything but simple.
"The last couple weeks, I've not been 100-percent happy with CU," he said. "I called (Colorado assistant J.D. Brookhart) tonight. He asked me how recruitment is going. The last time we talked, we established that I'm going to be committed to CU, but still take my officials and look around. Tonight he said that they didn't consider me committed. He said, "we're still going to recruit you and everything but, right now, you're not one of our commits if you're looking around.
"I actually called him to de-commit because I had been talking to my parents. They were asking when I was going to go up to a CU game, and I was like, "I don't even really want to right now." I still love Boulder and all that stuff. I just need to figure things out right now."
The process of sorting things out will include a visit to California on Dec. 7, a trip Parsons had planned well before his decision to part ways with the Buffs. What happens next is uncertain for now. What is clear, however, is the fact that there's no shortage of interest in the services of the Parker (Colo.) Chaparral standout.
It took less than an hour for other coaching staffs to reach out via the Internet.
"Word spreads fast," Parsons said. "BYU just hit me up on Facebook about a minute ago. So did Vanderbilt.
"They're just asking me what I'm going to do and trying to figure out what I'm thinking now."
Asked to name a handful of schools that will definitely be in mix going forward, Parsons comes up with the usual suspects -- programs that have been in the mix all along.
"Washington, Vanderbilt, Cal, Oklahoma," Parsons said. "My twitter … I tweeted it an hour ago. It took 15 minutes for my feed to blow up. It's crazy right now. I just need to sit down with my family at the end of my season and figure this out."
Outside of his planned visit to Cal, Parsons remains uncertain as to which campuses he'll look to tour in the near future.
Parsons is the No. 2-ranked player in the state of Colorado for 2012 and the No. 10 tight end in the country. He was CU's first commitment in its current class and pledged his services to the Buffs on March 30.
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