FSU Football: Early Signing Day Has Plenty of Pros And Cons

FSU football and the rest of the FBS will get to sign players early with a new December signing period – which has both good and bad points for everyone.

This past week, the NCAA made several rule changes that would affect college football programs across the country, including our own personal favorite – FSU football. Of course, the biggest one came in the world of recruiting, where the Seminoles will now be allowed to sign players six weeks earlier if those players are ready.

The early signing day period, which this year will be a three day event starting December 20th, will allow players to sign a letter of intent with the school of their choice without having to wait until the first Wednesday of February. It’s a move that has been met with praise from some coaches and schools – while others still have reservations that only the top name schools will benefit.

It’s a move that has several pros and cons when you break it down.

Pros of Decision

For starters, it will allow a player who knows where they want to go the ability to end the constant phone calls, visits and overall chaos and make a decision six weeks sooner – thus giving them the freedom to enjoy their final months of high school and be a teenager for a while.

It will also allow schools to get a better idea of what areas they need to go after over the final six weeks of recruiting. Using FSU football as an example, head coach Jimbo Fisher and his staff can focus on going after a defensive end recruit if they know other spots are locked in and other top recruits aren’t at risk of getting poached by other schools.

Cons of Decision

For a recruit who may be a “late riser” and might not get into the spotlight until after all-star games and later in the recruiting process, they risk being left out of getting looks and offers from the big schools (Florida State, Alabama, Ohio State, etc.) if those schools are either filled up or not looking anymore at certain positions.

Florida State Seminoles Football

It could also create some chaos when it comes to the world of coaching changes. A school is not going to be willing to wait until the end of the season before making a change out of fear they won’t have a staff in place in time to get recruits to sign in December. It could create a NHL-style atmosphere where coaches are fired in the middle of the season and being replaced ASAP.

As far as players being eligible, that could also be a problem for schools that rely on a player’s final semester of high school to get them eligible when it comes to GPA or test scores. Now, a player will have to have that all taken care of entering their senior year while schools will have to “figure out” who will be eligible and who won’t.

No matter what side of the issue you fall on, the fact of the matter is that time will be the only way to tell if an early signing day will be a success. From FSU football to the West Coast and all points in between, plenty of coaches and recruits will be taking advantage of it – for the time being.