USC can't let itself get taken for a ride by recruits

USC football has had yet another player decommit from the program after committing just months earlier. Hylton Stubbs joined Justus Terry and Isaiah Gibson as a commit-turned-decommit who claimed to want to play for USC and then quickly changed course.

USC fans have learned the hard way that in 2024 and the era of NIL, a commitment really doesn’t mean anything — not until a recruit signs with a program. This does bring up an important point, however: When a recruit commits to a program but doesn’t sign, and he still takes visits with other schools, that actually sounds less like the player making a decision, more like a player seeing how he can leverage his position. It’s not as though the player is doing something unethical, too. Let’s be clear about that. If an athlete can still visit other schools after making a “commitment,” why wouldn’t he do so? He can still talk to other schools and coaches and see what life is like in another locality. He might indeed change his mind and back off his commitment. The point here is that in a system where “commitments” aren’t really commitments, players shouldn’t think they have to make their final choice any earlier than necessary. What we see today, with players committing and then decommitting within a few months of each other, should be viewed as a natural extension of this process.

If the rules are going to allow all these loopholes, and if players are allowed to take visits elsewhere even after “committing” to one school, the players are simply taking advantage of the rules. They aren’t being unfair. The rules are unfair, not the athletes.

Let’s go back to USC, then: If a verbal commitment merely sets up the possibility that an athlete will leverage his position, visit another school, and then decommit from USC after that visit to an SEC (or other) school, the Trojans shouldn’t put themselves in such a spot. Commitments not finalized with signings merely put the Trojans in a position to be embarrassed, which further undercuts their reputation in college football circles.

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