The Hype (And Hats) Of Signing Day

Hey, a bunch of high school kids are picking their colleges today, and I'm pretty certain that one kid you don't know is totally going to help you win an office pool some day.

Look, I understand that recruiting is a vital component of every college program and that you simply can't win titles without quality athletes, but in all honesty, this isn't much better than organized gambling. No one really knows how any of these kids are going to do in college, or whether one recruiting class is better than another. (That's why they give you so many scholarships, because they know that half your choices will be bad ones.) How big is the difference, really, between the No. 3 RB and No. 8 RB and who says the top middle linebacker from the state of Pennsylvania is really the top? And it doesn't matter anyway, because as soon as they enroll everyone forgets about them and where they were "ranked" by some scouting service no one understands. I guess it gives fans something to argue about during the offseason, but when your hopes and dreams are tied to the whims of a 17-year-old kid, that never ends well.

And another thing! I guess the families get excited, because their baby is a star for one day, but do we really need to hype these kids up any more? Take Jelani Jackson, a top something recruit, who got to interrupt SportsCenter for four minutes today. He was asked a question by an anchor, completely ignored it, and then gave a rambling speech to the nation, before putting on a hat. Then he gets to be mocked by Josh Elliott. I really hope that's not the highlight of his life.

And yes, I'm being a grumpy old man today, but if you think all this hype and pomp and Todd McShay's wardrobe budget is completely harmless, I've got one thing to say: Kevin Hart. That poor bastard still gets to me.

Jelani Jenkins [Rivals]

Or: Open Up Your Heart And Let National Signing Day Come In