Denver Kirkland, a top offensive line prospect out of Booker T. Washington High School (FL), committed to Arkansas. For a while it appeared as though Kirkland might end up playing for the Miami Hurricanes, but the team recently pulled his scholarship after he said he wanted to wait until National Signing Day to announce his intentions.
Denver Kirkland commits to Arkansas on Signing Day after Miami drama
After some controversy involving Miami, Kirkland moved on and pledged his services to the Razorbacks. Follow @SBNationCFB Follow @SBNRecruiting
A fine week for Bret Bielema so far, with RB Alex Collins also committing on Monday night.
That move by the Hurricanes created a bit of a stir, as Kirkland’s high school coach was extremely displeased with Miami for the way it handled the situation. But as State of The U wrote after the incident, Kirkland may simply have misjudged the whole thing:
He was a prospect whose decision they could wait until Signing Day to hear -- until he wasn't. Kirkland sees himself as a pure Signing Day recruit (like his teammate and friend Matthew Thomas), and that lead to him making a fatal mistake: he told Miami that they would have to wait. What Kirkland failed to realize is that with a handful of days left in the recruiting cycle, he holds the leverage. If he wanted to keep Miami as an open option, he should have just told Michael Barrow that he was in the class, even if Miami made him say so publicly. It still would have allowed him to choose whichever school he wanted on Signing Day, even if that school wasn't Miami.
Kirkland is ranked the No. 13 player at his position and the No. 161 overall prospect in the class of 2013. He is also considered the No. 13 player at his position by 247Sports, though he did not make their overall player rankings.
Vitals: He is 6’5” and weighs 333 pounds.
Other offers: Arkansas, USC, Louisville, Ole Miss, Auburn
Twitter: @15HARLEM_BOSKI
Recruitment timeline: Catch up on Denver Kirkland’s recruitment with this StoryStream.
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