Tis the season for de-committing......

[PonderinHog]

Would anyone like to tell him why Petrino was gone after 4 years?

Dude couldn't handle the curves on his motorcycle

[Horse racer]

Don't you mean the curves on his volleyball player?

[PonderinHog]

Don't you mean the curves on his volleyball player?

Possibly...

[hollywood hog]

Of course kids decommit. They get out on official visits more and pressured into taking a spot or losing it in many cases.  Others see teams they commit to that they think are on the right path get embarrassed by teams like Missouri and wisely decide to take a better offer.

[Rzbakfromwaybak]

If they are still involved in the recruiting process it's because they want to be.

True, & all would still have that option.  But, with an early signing period, a decent percentage may have already signed in the early period.  This helps the schools that really want these particular players the chance to early sign them.   It also helps some of these players that would get their scholarships jerked at the last minute on national signing day, (that are being played along) to sign with their 1st choice.  It helps the coaches recruiting, since they don't have to stay in contact with all 25 signees up until the last minute on signing day.  It narrows their work.  Instead of 25, they may only need to concentrate on 12-15 players by national signing day.  Whatever the number, they will have less to worry about bailing, on national signing day.

[onebadrubi]

I've always liked the idea that if a kid has an offer then he can sign. Retract that offer at anytime if it isn't still valid. Whew would things really change. No more offering 500
People like Ole Miss was doing. No more Saban and Malzahn throwing offers to just stir pots.

[bennyl08]

what is the benefit of an early signing period that would make it preferable to moving signing day to earlier in the year?  nothing is forcing players to sign on signing day.  it just happens to be the first day they are allowed to sign.  To me, it seems like a reasonable time to sign since it is after their senior season.

coaches could still pull a scholly the week before early signing day and commits could still decommit the week before early signing day.

players could still sign after signing day to any team that is not yet full on scholarships, just like they can now. 

the reason we have them wait until signing day to sign is so that they don't make a rash decision after thier first visit, and have time to look around before making a decision.  if you have an early signing day, then they are going to be pressured to make a life changing decision without having had time to explore thier options..

I agree with you partly, but you are missing one aspect: Availability.

For example, If a coach yanks a scholarship a week before current signing day, then many other schools will not have any spots left for t hem and they could be left going to a less prestigious school. Similarly, if a player flips last minute, the school could be left with only a short amount of time to try and court somebody to replace.

Insert early signing day. If a prospect flips them or a school says sorry then, both parties have several months to find alternative options. I.e. it's the difference between a hotel canceling your reservation a week in advance vs when you show up.

Pros: It decreases the impact of flips from either side. Say you get 2/3rd or your commitments finalized at the early period, it gives you time to compensate for any surprises. Similarly, if you get left out to dry, schools are not likely to be filled with their allotments and you can still find a good place rather than just saying yes to whoever first says yes.

Cons: No way to know how it will play out. For example, maybe most major schools will be full after the early signing day and kids left out to dry will be in a similar position (however, that still gives them more time to better choose a lower school). Or, maybe the top players won't sign till the second signing day and the early changes little to nothing (pro is that it can't possibly hurt as far as being left out to dry goes). However, there is inherently a con in that it increases the pressure. Higher likelihood of a player going somewhere they regret because the coach would pull their scholly if they didn't sign early. Depending on when the early period was, it could lead to damaging effects on the student's school work or their sports season. Schools could be in an even worse position by being fully committed to students who ended up not qualifying.