Last week, Penn State offensive line coach Herb Hand made a random but predictable comment about social media discipline in recruiting.
Do college football coaches really drop recruits because of tweets?
Sometimes!
Marvin Gentry-USA TODAY Sports
Dropped another prospect this AM due to his social media presence...Actually glad I got to see the 'real' person before we offered him.
— Herb Hand (@CoachHand) July 30, 2014 It was something we’ve come accustomed to seeing in the age of social media. Coaches warn prospects about using social media wisely all the time.
But Hand’s tweet caused a controversy on College Football Twitter. Some defended his policy, while others, like our own Bud Elliott, noted that social media is important for recruits to be aware of, but it’s rare for it to be the reason schools drop top prospects.
Some 2-star gets dropped for instagramming a blunt, while the 5-star is clicking rt & fave.
— SB Nation Recruiting (@SBNRecruiting) July 30, 2014 Everyone tells recruits to be smart on social media. That's really not even true. Just don't use exceedingly bad judgment.
— SB Nation Recruiting (@SBNRecruiting) July 30, 2014 Three easy recruit SM rules: Don't instagram yourself getting high, don't talk about gang affiliations, & no derogatory terms for women.
— SB Nation Recruiting (@SBNRecruiting) July 30, 2014 Still, social media has always been important among college football coaches, even if it’s simply to maintain the appearance of having a “clean program.” While Hand was tweeting about Penn State’s decision to stop recruiting a prospect, Georgia coach Mark Richt told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that he dropped a recruit who was committed to his school because of the player’s presence on Twitter:
"We told (the kid and) we told his coach (that) we don't condone that, and he was a guy who was already committed to Georgia. And he persisted. Well, actually he changed his (Twitter) handle and continued to do that kind of thing thinking we wouldn't find out. And we found out about it, and we cut him."
Alabama coach Nick Saban said he’s never done such a thing, though his staff pays attention:
"I do think social media transcends a transparency to what someone may be like," said Saban, "when you post everything you think, and what you know, and where you are. I do think what people post, as far as our own players, does reflect who they are in terms of their personality and character. I'd stop short of saying we've ever not recruited somebody because of how they represented themselves on social media, though."
While many examples of recruit misconduct on Twitter remain unknown, the story of Yuri Wright became public in 2012 and now serves as a cautionary tale. Wright was kicked out of Don Bosco Prep for sexually and racially explicit tweets, and he was subsequently dropped by Michigan, where he had already committed.
“To my knowledge this is the highest profile prospect to be dropped by a college program and expelled from school over Twitter,” Rivals.com national recruiting analyst Mike Farrell said. “This has ruined Yuri’s chance to attend the school he has labeled as his dream school in Michigan, and it could cause other schools to back off as well. Hopefully. this example will send a wake-up call to high-profile prospects moving forward to watch what they put out in cyberspace.”
The rules are different everywhere, and it’s likely they vary by the talent level of each player. But a good rule of thumb for recruits: don’t say dumb things on social media. At the very worst, it could cost you a spot at your dream school.
