FAU news we'll be watching on Signing Day
By Chuck King
We've been waiting for the craziness that is National Signing Day since the season ended almost two months ago, only to see the action start earlier than expected. We spent Tuesday afternoon/evening tracking down three new recruits who committed to FAU. There was also one recruit whose commitment was thrown into question.
Now the fun really starts. By our count, 24 players who are committed to FAU should sign on Wednesday. That doesn't count the three junior college players and one early high school graduate who are already enrolled. Colton Kane, a 2011 signee who enrolled at FAU this spring, isn't counted among those 24, either.
Owl Access Pass holders have been able to follow all the commitments and changes to The List. By the time you read this, our list will be published for all to see.
Will all 24 sign? Will more than 24 sign? We'll know in a few hours. Here are some of the decisions we'll be watching closely throughout the day.
- James Mathis DE Lowndes, (Ga.) - Mathis (photo) committed to Troy, but enjoyed last weekend's visit to FAU enough that he's seriously considering the Owls. Mathis thought he'd announce his decision at a banquet on Tuesday, but he told me he decided not to go. It doesn't sound like he's having too much fun with this decision. I'm betting the FAU coaches would really like to steal a signee from the Trojans.
- Chris Gilchrist, WR, Charter Oak (Calif.) - Here's a late name into the signing day sweepstakes. Gilchrist received early interest from PAC 12 schools, but questions as to whether he would qualify academically made them shy away. He's 6-foot-5 with 4.5 speed, and still could go to Nevada. He received an offer from FAU earlier this week, but said on Tuesday he didn't want to sign without seeing the school first (He's never been to Boca Raton). Gilchrist re-took the SAT this weekend and feels good about his score. Will he decide FAU's sure thing is better than waiting for another offer? Will FAU hold a spot for him if he doesn't sign on Wednesday?
- Roosevelt Donaldson, DL, Miami-Southridge – Some reports have Donaldson de-committing from FAU to sign with Western Michigan. I talked with Donaldson and his coach on Tuesday, and both put the odds of Donaldson signing with the Owls at 50/50. We still have him on the commitment list but, obviously, wouldn't be surprised if he became a Bronco. Another question: With defensive ends Isaac Edwards and Trevon Coley committing to FAU on Tuesday, does FAU still have room for Donaldson?
- Mike Bullard, ATH, West Palm Beach-Forest Hill – Bullard was one of the first players to commit to the Carl Pelini regime. Bullard, though, received some bad advice early in his high school years and is going to come up tremendously short academically. Forest Hill coach Chris Kokell says Bullard may actually need to take high school classes into the fall before he can enroll at FAU. Kokell said the Owls are sticking with Bullard and helping through his troubles, and I believe him. However, don't be surprised if Bullard isn't technically part of the signing class. Why sign him and count him toward an overcrowded 2012 class when he can't enroll until the spring?
- JUCO transfers – Three are already enrolled, seven more are expected to sign today. Double-digit JUCO's – who would have thought that would ever happen at FAU? Signing Day presents many challenges for FAU pertaining to these guys, none the least of which is that many of them are no longer at their schools. That means no Signing Day ceremonies and no urgency to sign the paper work. Will all of them get their NLIs faxed to the Oxley Center before FAU's scheduled 3 p.m. press conference or will there be some stragglers that come in later? Also, because there weren't coaches available to help them, at least a couple have been dealing with phone calls from larger schools since making their commitment. Adarius Glanton received so many calls from the likes of Florida St., Miami and Nebraska that he actually changed his phone number last week. Glanton says it's a done deal with FAU, but did one of the other seven find those calls to be more persuasive?
- Outside chances – FAU has sent papers to Satellite Beach athlete J.T. Washington and Miami-Norland defensive back Feddie Davey, their high school coaches said. Washington will choose between West Virginia (where he is committed), Arizona and FAU, Satellite coach Andrew Disney said. Davey's coach, Darryle Heidelburg, said keeping the commitment to Washington St. is almost a certainty for Davey. ... If FAU was ready to take a chance on Gilchrist, would the Owls also take a shot with fellow Californian Blair Brown? The linebacker was ready to commit to FAU after his visit, but the Owls were wary because he'd yet to achieve his test scores. ...As far as the talk about West Palm Beach-Dwyer lineman Mike Minns, he told me weeks ago that FAU wasn't a consideration. Not so sure that FAU is even interested anymore. ...Royal Palm Beach's Tremane McCullough doesn't seem to even have an offer from FAU. ...The Owls are also no longer pursuing St. Petersburg-Gibbs defensive lineman Albert McCoy.
We'll be hitting the high schools early and the FAU press conference in the afternoon. Return to OwlAccess.com as often as possible for continuous updates, and be sure to follow us on Twitter @FAUOwlAccess. We'll be getting the Signing Day news out as fast as we can.
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