NEW: Reaction from state’s coaches on Roquan Smith bypassing LOI
Roquan Smith could change the landscape of college football recruiting forever, if he decides against signing a national letter of intent (NLI, or more commonly called an LOI) after he commits to college, as his high school told the AJC that he plans to do in a story you can READ HERE.
Here’s some reaction from other high school coaches on Roquan’s potential game-changing maneuver:
Arden Key's coach, Winston Gordon of Hapeville Charter: "I think this is a monumental situation, and it will forever change the landscape of college recruiting. I always err on the side of the student-athlete because they are kids. The D1 coaches make life-changing money and can rebound from there decisions. So I think even with my player, Arden Key … three weeks prior to signing day, LSU made a change in its coaching staff with the change of Brick Haley to Ed Orgeron (as defensive line coach). If Arden didn't feel comfortable with that change, he would have probably been in the same situation at Roquan." Key signed with LSU.
Lassiter's Jep Irwin: "I think it is a viable option for the elite recruits that is not used enough. However, if you are not an elite recruit, this could backfire on the family. It's important to know where you rank on a school's board for your position and if they are willing to wait past national signing day."
Arabia Mountain's Stanley Pritchett: "I think this will affect the recruiting for the higher-ranked kids because they will hold the leverage over schools. But for the majority of kids, I don't think this will affect them because there's a possibility that it could backfire if they try the same thing."
Creekside's Olten Downs: "I think it can be revolutionary, as I believe many parents and high school coaches didn't know exactly what kind of document that an NLI really is. I can see future recruits doing the same … it seems as if the NCAA would step in and provide some new type of legislation if this became more prevalent."
LB Roquan Smith (AJC/Michael Carvell)
Central Gwinnett's Todd Wofford: "I've been following it. I'm not sure but I would assume that there will be pressure to make some adjustment to the letter-signing process. The recruiting approach these days is family and trust, and these type things happen yearly (coaches leaving right after signing day). And the college coaches are really never in a position be accountable to the families that bought in to their sales pitch. I don't know if putting a clause in the letter somehow would be the answer. They pay people way smarter than me to figure that one out."
Norcross' Keith Maloof: "This can only impact a small group of people. The majority of the time we tell our kids to go to the best place for you because you can't always expect the coaching staff to stay intact all four or five years of your college."
Milton's Howie DeCristofaro: "We tell our players not to commit to a coach — they change like the weather. Commit to a program. The program's building never moves."
Burke County's Eric Parker: "Nowadays, recruiters start building relationships with kids as early as when they're in the ninth grade. And it's devastating when the coach leaves before or soon after they get there. At the end of the day, it's important for the high school coaches to make it clear with the kids and their parents that it's a business. College coaches will get opportunities that put them and their families in a better situation, and they are going to take them. For example, our quarterback from last year (Donquell Green) built a special relationship with his recruiting coach at Marshall (Todd Hartley). After one year, Coach Hartley got an opportunity to take a job at UGA, which is obviously a step up. He took it, and you can't blame the coach for doing that. However, I do agree with Coach Harold that it's deception when you know you're leaving and you tell the kid you're going to be there (in order to sign the kid). That's a flat-out lie, and I don't think that's ethical. However, I don't know if there is a real answer to stopping this practice."
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