The early signing period for recruits has drawn criticism covering a wide array of opinions. Count Arakansas football coach Bert Bielema as one of those who is totally in favor of the NCAA’s recent change.
On Tuesday, Bielema proclaimed that 90 percent of his recruits would be signed by the early deadline in December.
Full video: Arkansas head coach Bret Bielema at SEC Spring Meetings https://t.co/EhMf2UqooP https://t.co/7e6EndNPwQ
— Barrett Sallee (@BarrettSallee) May 30, 2017
Typically, recruits have until the first week of February to publicly announced where they will be playing their collegiate ball. According to Barrett Sallee of SiriusXM, Bielema is looking for players who are ready to “get married.”
“If a kid says ‘I don’t want to sign until January,’ he wants to still be recruited, he wants to be coddled, he wants to keep dating a little bit. I’d rather him sign those papers and let’s get married.”
The early deadline has been subject to scrutiny due to the fickle nature of high school recruits. It’s not uncommon for players to change their minds on their desired destination as the date nears. Many feel that asking, or expecting players to declare earlier puts undue pressure on them to make a decision.
Always the entertainer, Bielema is never hesitant in giving his opinions. He’s looking for players ready to commit to Arkansas right away. For better or worse, time will tell how that will effect Arkansas recruiting efforts in the future.
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