Coach favors controversial rule
In February, South Carolina and coach Steve Spurrier moved to the forefront of the oversigning debate raging in college football when USC was forced to inform two committed recruits they would not be able to send them National Letters of Intent to sign on National Signing Day.
On Wednesday, Spurrier spoke candidly about the controversial practice many deem unethical, saying it benefits his program.
“We like the way the rule is now, because we actually sign four, five that are on the bubble of qualifying or not,” said Spurrier on a Southeastern Conference coaches teleconference. “This year, we’ve got about five that haven’t done it and probably three will not make it.”
Under current NCAA rules, teams are allowed to sign 28 commitments on Signing Day, three more than the maximum 25 scholarships that can be awarded in a given recruiting cycle. The ability to oversign is considered a protection from commitments failing to qualify under NCAA standards. Spurrier said the poor education system in the state of South Carolina magnifies this issue for USC.
Due to a rash of commitments from highly regarded in-state players in the days leading up to National Signing Day, Spurrier and staff were forced to tell Lorenzo Mauldin, a linebacker from the Atlanta area, and Groveland, Fla., native Jordan Montgomery, also a linebacker that they could not sign. It is customary for schools to give first priority to in-state recruits in order to sustain ties with high school coaches.
Mauldin and Montgomery were told by USC that they would be able to sign in the summer if room in the class became available, with Spurrier even encouraging them to go through with the signing ceremonies most top-level recruits hold at their schools.
Mauldin chose to sign with Louisville as a non-qualifier and has yet to qualify. However, Montgomery did wait. Now, it appears that decision will pay off and he will become a Gamecock. Spurrier did not use any names, but strongly hinted there will be room for Montgomery to sign and join the team due to already-signed recruits failing to gain eligibility.
“We were able to bring in all the guys that we signed that qualified, although we could not sign them on Signing Day, which was embarrassing to us a little bit, and to them,” Spurrier said. “But sometimes time heals a lot of wounds. It appears the one guy in particular will be able to sign with us and come with us when the freshmen report.”