Take Two returns with a daily offering tackling a handful of issues in the college football landscape. Rivals.com National Recruiting Analyst Adam Gorney lays out the situation and then receives takes from Rivals.com National Recruiting Director Mike Farrell and a local expert from the Rivals.com network of team sites.
MEET THE 2019 CLASS: PQB | DTQB | AP RB | RB | WR | TE | OL | SDE | DT | WDE | OLB | ILB | CB | S | ATH
THE STORYLINE
With an early signing period and earlier official visits starting in the spring, the thinking was that earlier commitments would happen. That has not been the case as the 2019 class navigates through the new recruiting calendar.
If anything has been learned over the last few months, it’s that top prospects are waiting longer to make decisions, even with key dates being pushed up.
Only 21 percent of the Rivals100 have made their commitments so far and only one of the top 12 players nationally in five-star receiver Jadon Haselwood (Georgia). No players from the Mid-Atlantic and only two from the West, quarterbacks Spencer Rattler (Oklahoma) and Dylan Morris (Washington) have made pledges.
That number was below 20 percent before Saturday when four-star athlete Jordan Whittington committed to Texas and four-star athlete Marquez Beason picked Illinois. A string of commitments could continue as official visits start gearing up.
It has been a slow start to the recruiting cycle with fewer than normal commitments, especially among the higher-level prospects but are things about to change heading into the summer?
FIRST TAKE: CHAD SIMMONS, RIVALS.COM RECRUITING ANALYST
“I’m not that surprised. We are talking about the best of the best that are being pursued by elite programs. I still think it is early, even with the early signing period now in place. By the time the summer ends, this number will be much higher. Prospects in this class know they can take official visits this spring, so I think many will take advantage of that, then make decisions. And, even with the number of commits in the South being higher than other regions, many of those prospects are looking around just as much as the uncommitted ones. The number of commitments in the Rivals100 will likely look drastically different come Aug. 1.”
SECOND TAKE: MIKE FARRELL, RIVALS.COM NATIONAL RECRUITING DIRECTOR
“It’s because of the official visits. Now you have official visits in the spring, so kids are holding off so they could actually take advantage of that rather than just commit. It has to have something to do with the early official visits and the early signing period. That’s the only reason I can see the change.
“It will start. Between now and June there are going to be a flurry of commitments and we won’t even be talking about this then.”
