On Wednesday, the NCAA Division I Council extended the recruiting dead period again, this time through Jan. 1. A dead period prohibits all in-person recruiting, but phone calls and other correspondence between college coaches and prospects can continue to occur.
The NCAA dead period was initially implemented in March, and the Division I Council has continued to extend the dead period under the guidance of medical experts. While the Council acknowledged and appreciates the growing desire to resume in-person recruiting by select coaches’ associations, Council members ultimately concluded the primary concern right now must be protecting the current student-athletes on our campuses.
Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney gave his thoughts Wednesday evening on the dead period being further extended and expressed his displeasure with the decision. Swinney sympathizes with uncommitted senior prospects in the 2021 recruiting class as many of them have been planning to enroll early at their school of choice in January after signing in December. Now, those prospects won’t be able to take any visits before they make their college decision.
Unofficial and official visits are a huge part of the recruiting process, and Swinney always says if Clemson can get a prospect on campus and show off what makes the school and program special, then they will have a chance to land said prospect. But because the Tigers won’t be able to host a bunch of big-time recruits throughout this season as they would under normal circumstances, Swinney and his staff are simply trying to make the best of the situation.
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