AUBURN, Ala. -- Some loved it. Others hated it. And for (likely) the vast majority of the country that cares little about college athletics, the feeling was one of ambivalence.
That the saga of Bryon Cowart's letter-of-intent -- and all the questions surrounding it -- dominated this year's national signing day wasn't a shocking turn of events. At this point, it's the kind of thing people expect annually.
It's because the perfect factors for chaos are always in place: indecisive, highly-touted football players; rabid fan bases; and parents who still want to sign off on their son's future school. Toss in the occasional rogue coach who doesn't agree with his player's decision and voila! Craziness ensues.
What that meant Wednesday was Auburn's coaching staff and fan base having to sweat things out a little longer than they liked. More than seven hours elapsed from the time Cowart chose Auburn over Florida to the time the school received his letter. Believe what you want as to why it took so long.
There were multiple explanations thrown out there. One was that Cowart still wasn't fully behind his own choice. The far more juicy accusation had his coach at Florida's Armwood High School, Sean Callahan, refusing to fax the letter. As that story went, it was because he hoped the longer he waited, the more time Cowart, a defensive end, had to think. And the more time Cowart had to think, the better the chances he might change his mind and go with the in-state Gators. And while that wouldn't help Callahan specifically, it would help his son, who had recently accepted a position to coach Florida's defensive backs.
Whatever really happened, Auburn ended up receiving his letter a few minutes before Auburn coach Gus Malzahn took to the podium to review his team's 2015 recruiting class.
But you didn't think the spectacle was over just yet, did you? Thursday morning, news broke that CeCe Jefferson, who committed to Florida over Auburn, Alabama and Ole Miss on Wednesday, still hadn't faxed his letter to Gainesville, Fla.
Welcome to Cowart 2.0.
Why isn't the fellow five-star defensive end from the Sunshine State officially on board with the Gators?
It's a familiar storyline: the "parent who ain't gonna let their kid go just yet."
Yes, Jefferson's father, Leo, took none too kindly to his son's choice of the Gators. He explained his reasoning on Twitter Thursday afternoon.
"Yes we are holding out," he tweeted. "Florida making to (sic) many coaching changes. [T]his is not a game it's my son life."
So add Leo Jefferson to the illustrious list of "meddling family members" in recent years. He joins a list that includes Josh Harvey-Clemon's grandfather (who refused to let his grandson send his letter to Georgia in 2012, since he preferred he choose a school closer to their Valdosta, Ga., home) and Landon Collins' mother (who openly showed her displeasure on national television when her son chose Alabama over in-state finalist LSU, which also happened in 2012).
But we'd be remiss not to include Alex Collins' mother, who actually stole her son's letter-of-intent after he picked Arkansas -- after his father had signed off on it. Not ready to go down without a fight, Collins' mother hired an attorney to try to prevent her son from becoming a Razorback. It was a valiant -- albeit futile -- effort on the part of Collins' mother, as her son indeed enrolled at Arkansas. (And he's been a rousing success, running for more than 1,000 yards in his first two seasons.)
You might enjoy the madness national signing day brings each year. You might think it's a sad referendum on the state of our society as a whole, that we pay so much attention to the choices of teenagers. Or you might not give it a passing thought.
But one thing's for sure: It's not going away. In fact, it grows bigger and bigger each year. The good news, for those who relish the inanity of it all, is they have a whole year to get ready for 2016. And as the past few years have shown it, that doesn't mean just doing homework on the next batch of talented high schoolers.
It means bracing for another parent to steal the spotlight from their child thanks to childish antics.
Sports on 02/06/2015