A World Gone Mad

A news conference is called for 5pm. Three tv stations and at least 2 newspapers will cover the event. A radio station may even carry it live. A foiled terrorist plot? Joe Riley stepping down as mayor? Has Google decided to move their headquarters and add 3,000 high paying jobs to Berkeley County? Nope. A teenage football player is announcing where he INTENDS to sign to play his college football. Such is life in the recruiting game. Teenage kids made to feel like the most important thing since.....Demetris Summers. Remember Summers? The all everything runningback from Lexington HS who never finished school or his 4 years of eligibility at South Carolina?
Now I realize I'm not exactly part of the solution because yes, WCIV is one of the tv stations that is covering this announcement. It's certainly nothing against Carlos Dunlap, the 6 foot 6 defensive end from Fort Dorchester who has called the news conference above. He just happens to be the latest example of a college football world gone mad. He's rated as a top 5 player in the whole country by a few recruiting "experts." But you have to wonder how screwed up the "experts" are when he's not even ranked in the top 100 by another national publication. I suspect he'll have a great college career, there aren't many guys his size returning kickoffs 95 yards for a touchdown. That's not the point. Back to Google. Do a search of football recruiting and 2.8 million results pop up. All the message board readers and experts out there who rank recruiting classes just like the Top 25 during the season. I used to say talk to me in 4 years when that class is in their senior year. Changing with the times and kids leaving early for the NFL, I now say talk to me in 2 years. You get the point. With all the players who don't make test scores, never really pan out, or get in trouble before they step foot on campus how can we know who has the 13th best class in America?
I look forward to watching Dunlap and all of the local signees in their college careers. I just wish there weren't so many people glued to their computers at 5 oclock just waiting for news to come out of a local high school.

Have an opinion? Email Josh at jmorton@abcnews4.com