Carver-Columbus football coach bans UGA recruiters
The coach of Columbus’ Carver High has “banned” Georgia’s coaches from recruiting players at the school.
As first reported by former AJC staffers Todd Holcomb and Chip Saye in the e-mail newsletter Georgia High School Football Daily, Carver coach Dell McGee is upset because he says the Bulldogs withdrew a scholarship offer to quarterback Devin Burns while Burns was on the UGA campus this past Saturday night. What made it worse was, according to McGee, Burns had come with his entire family with the plan of committing that very day to Georgia coach Mark Richt.
“To protect our kids and my program, Georgia won’t be welcome on my campus,” McGee, a former Auburn player, told the GHSFD. “They’re not going to recruit anybody.”
McGee reaffirmed that stance to the AJC at lunchtime Tuesday and said he stands by his decision.
“Rescinding a scholarship is not uncommon; that’s not my problem,” said McGee, who said his school’s principal is in agreement. “It’s really about how the situation was handled. It’s the manner in which it was done.”
McGee said Georgia offensive coordinator Mike Bobo offered Burns a scholarship this past spring. He said Georgia coaches knew Burns was coming to Athens for “Georgia Night” this past Saturday and they knew he was bringing his whole family with him. McGee said Burns defensive end Corey Crawford was also going to commit. Now both players are looking “at other offers,” McGee said.
“Devin’s going to be fine. His family’s going to be fine,” he said. “But there’s some hurt and some embarrassment there.”
Calls to Bobo and recruiting coordinator Rodney Garner were not returned Tuesday. Georgia’s coaches are in the midst of their annual “hideaway” before summer camp. But they probably couldn’t say anything anyway. According to UGA spokesman Claude Felton, “as per NCAA rules, Georgia is not allowed to comment on that situation,”
“Banning” certain colleges from recruiting a school is a drastic measure but not entirely uncommon in the emotionally-charged business of football recruiting. Earlier this year Tennessee coach Lane Kiffin was banned from recruiting Pahokee High in Florida after Kiffin accused the Gators of “cheating” to try to land one of its players. That ban was eventually lifted by the high school principal after receiving a formal apology from Kiffin. Also, Tucker High banned South Carolina for a similar situation this past January.
McGee being upset certainly is understandable. He feels bad for his quarterback, who clearly has to be disappointed and more than a little bit embarrassed. It certainly appears that Georgia mismanaged this situation and I’m sure the Bulldogs’ staff is moving quickly to rectify the situation.
But am I the only one who wonders if a high school coach should have the right to determine what schools recruit his players? Shouldn’t that be determined by the player and his or her family? At least two juniors at the school, running back Isaiah Crowell and defensive tackle Gabriel Wright, are high on the Bulldogs’ lists for 2011. What if it’s the dream of either of those players to attend the state university? Does McGee’s stance mean Georgia coaches can’t come evaluate them even if it’s the players’ hope that they do?
McGee said he talked to Richt Sunday morning. “He explained the situation and said they did a bad job of communicating,” McGee said. “He said he totally understands why I’m doing what I’m doing and said he’d do the same thing.”
McGee said the ban was not permanent but that “it’s going to take some time” for the relations to heal.
What do you guys think about the situation?
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409 comments Add your comment
gtfanfrom1951
July 21st, 2009
11:35 am
BOBO the clown…great move
Darius
July 21st, 2009
11:39 am
The Columbus coach seems to have this nailed with his comments in the Georgia High School Football Daily. Offers are rescinded all the time, UGA simply handled this one very, very poorly.
WreckIt
July 21st, 2009
11:39 am
More than anything, I find it interesting how the media seems to be showing GT as the in-state recruiting darling and UGA as falling flat on its face. I don’t think that’s the whole truth of the issue, but it’s not what I’m accustomed to seeing. As for the “ban,” I would support a coach determining who is welcome at his actual practices, but that’s about it. Who’s at games, who’s at the homes of his kids, and who’s at his school but not at practice? Not his call.
brick
July 21st, 2009
11:41 am
At some point kids are going to realize if they want to go to a particular school they best pulled the trigger instead of shopping around trying to build of a resume of offers from different schools. Hate it happend, but he had an offer for 5 months, our numbers filled up and he got left out.
GTville
July 21st, 2009
11:45 am
H.S. Coaches should be there to guide and assist, but they can’t ban a school or prohibit a kid from going to a specific college. It would never hold up in court. The school could prohibit use of their facilities, but would likely need school board to make this ruling, not a coach.
Too bad for Burns, but we don’t know any of the reasons or details. Also, if it was not published here, most people would not know about it.
Question: What does an offer look like? Is it just verbal or is it written? Obviously schools give more offers than they have spots for, but what if someone lower on the list wants to accept early but someone higher on the list does not plan to commit until the last minute…how is this handled with the offers and recruits?
CT
July 21st, 2009
11:50 am
Definitely out of his control and authority to do so. I would imagine he CAN make it quite difficult for Georgia to land anyone if he doesn’t get over this quickly. This coach spends far more time with his players than any prospective college coaching staff. If he sheds negative light on any coach, staff or school, then I would think it would be tough for a school to overcome that – especially when other colleges are coming hard after these kids and will play that card against UGA all day long. There is no way he can ban it. It’s not his call to make.
mq
July 21st, 2009
11:51 am
This coach is a Auburn grad and I am not surprised he is bashing UGA. When a kid gets an offer they better commit pretty soon or their slot may be taken .
mts315
July 21st, 2009
11:51 am
Wait, what? UGA Fans have been telling me that UGA honors all of its scholarship offers and never pulls and offer from a recruit. How can this be?
BG
July 21st, 2009
11:52 am
Mr. Burns when you snooze you lose!
dawg mc woofterson
July 21st, 2009
11:57 am
WE DON’T NEED RECRUITS FROM COLUMBUS ANYWAY. WE RECRUIT NATIONWIDE. ITS NOT LIKE HE HAD FIVE STARS OR ANYTHING.
Ga Fan
July 21st, 2009
11:58 am
Hold up Chip! Take a deep breath. No one is saying that any of these – or future – players can’t be contacted off campus. UGA coaches can purchase a ticket and scout games just as any other individual so that doesn’t stop any evaluations of players or keep colleges from offering the student. High school kids dreams aren’t dashed just because the UGA coaches aren’t allowed to contact a player on campus. If coach McGee has determined that a school has mistreated his players, it’s his right and responsibility to protect them from recruiting abuse to the extent that he can. No one is lessening the kids chances of getting exposure – on or off the field – just not being able to contact them on the high school campus. Don’t make this into a traumatic situation when none exists other than for the young man who had his offer rescinded on his chosen campus with his family present.
CJJScout
July 21st, 2009
12:01 pm
Something deeper is going on here. CMR is notorious for honoring the offers they make. Maybe this kid told them no previously or something. Maybe it wasn’t an offer, just an expression of interest. It will be interesting to see how this unwinds.
macrotech
July 21st, 2009
12:01 pm
No high school coach has the ‘power’ to stop a school from recruiting one of his players….they can make it tougher…but, they can’t stop them. Sounds like this kid didn’t do his homework…a phone call before his visit would have been wise.
Gold and White
July 21st, 2009
12:04 pm
Yes he does have the right. He only banned recruiting on the schools campus. That does not prevent them from contacting the recruite directly off campus or the recruite contacting UGA.
Recruiting is almost out of control now and something has to be done to reintroduce some integrety to the process. It sounds like this HS coach is looking out for his players like he should and I commend him for it. If the UGA coaches do not pay some price for their actions they will not think twice about doing this in the future. They are adults and the professionals in this process, their word should mean something!
I know, I”m a Tech fan and people will say that I am just bashing UGA but I am not. I would be just as angry if Tech did this to this young man. I wish him and his team mates the best, and I hope they end up playing for some coaches with better integrity at the next level!
dawes
July 21st, 2009
12:07 pm
georgia want just the best players
JACKETfan
July 21st, 2009
12:08 pm
I remember when CPJ pulled the scholarship from a recruit last year, every UGA fan says how low that was and how UGA would never do that and how they treat their recruits with class. Funny how things work out…
FDawg
July 21st, 2009
12:09 pm
macrotech…I agree
JACK PICKREN
July 21st, 2009
12:10 pm
I think that this coach should have encouraged the player to accept Georgia’s offer sooner if he wanted to go there.
If he had of decide he didn’t want to go to Georgia, would he or his coach, or his family have worried about what the Georgia staff thought about it.
It looks like the coach drop the ball.
SimplySaying
July 21st, 2009
12:12 pm
I feel sorry for the young man and his family but always remember that there are other schools. Georgia is the pride of the Peach State but GT is fastly rising, go where you are wanted and needed. Get the education!
Downtown Dawg
July 21st, 2009
12:16 pm
The coach is being a prima donna. Sure, you feel for Burns, who shows up with his family expecting to verbally commit. But, life’s tough. The coach is ultimately going to hurt his program by doing this. I guarantee some of his highly recruited players are unhappy by this supposed ban.
Class of '98
July 21st, 2009
12:20 pm
“the media seems to be showing GT as the in-state recruiting darling and UGA as falling flat on its face”
Huh? Have you seen UGA’s commitment list? We are cleaning up, bro. This is shaping up to be one of the best classes in UGA history, and that is saying something.
I don’t know what “media” you read, but you may want to find alternate sources.
Pete
July 21st, 2009
12:21 pm
s#!T HAPPENS!
Puddin'
July 21st, 2009
12:22 pm
The comment the coach made about coaches “won’t be welcome on our campus” is asinine. It is not “his” school. That school belongs to the taxpayers of the state of Georgia and Muscogee (sp?) County. The BOE might have the authority to ban people, and maybe the administration. But for a coach to make a statement like this is way over the line. He was obviously embarrassed for his player, and I respect his need to protect this players. But seriously, why wouldn’t Mr. Burns call or talk to the coaches to make sure his offer was still good? Could be Garner dropped the ball here, but I definitely think there is more to the story.
I feel sympathetic for Mr. Burns, and I hope he is successful wherever he goes. Good luck in the future!
MrHughes
July 21st, 2009
12:22 pm
I think pulling the offer while the young man was on campus visiting with his family was tacky. This isn’t a snooze/lose situation. I hope this young man goes elsewhere and has a couple of fielddays against the Dawgs. This coach has every right to say that he doesn’t want his kids exposed to trashy behavior. I applaud him for looking out for his kids. Recruiting has gotten completely out of control.
Tech man 69
July 21st, 2009
12:25 pm
Why would anyone discourage a free education from any college for their students? As a parent I would be pi$$ed.
Dawg1
July 21st, 2009
12:25 pm
Sure, any high school coach has that right. UGA blew this and knowing CMR, he will own up to the mistake. You hate it for the kid and you wish him well and hope that the school he ends up at – is actually a better fit for him academically and athletically.
That’s about all you can do or say.
not a prob
July 21st, 2009
12:26 pm
The coach will cave. With Georgia claiming that this was virtually a clerical error and all the dawgs in the community pressuring the coach, this goes away quickly. Look for a media statement soon.
Georgia Coach
July 21st, 2009
12:26 pm
As a former high school head coach I can assure you that colleges frequently rescind offers. And they do it at inopportune times in the recruiting process. I applaud Carver for taking a stand because there is no excuse for Georgia doing this unless the player is involved in some kind of major misconduct. Many colleges treat kids like pawns and they should be held accountable.
George Pugh, now coaching at Georgia State is one of the worst.
Glenn
July 21st, 2009
12:27 pm
I think that the high school coach has every right to try & protect his players . I think the coach is handling this well . Bring the story out in the forefront & let it be known why he is taking the action he is . I’m a big Georgia fan but for this young man & his family to be treated like this is totally unacceptable . He might not be able to stop certain recruiters from doing their job but the publicity generated should atleast be able to curtail some of these actions from taking place in the future .
Kneejerk reaction by Coach
July 21st, 2009
12:27 pm
Simply put – we don’t know the details of the situation or how it all played out. But if I was a rising senior being recruited to play D1 football, I would transfer schools before I would let my coach limit the schools I could potentially consider. What the coach should have said is that he will never “recommend” UGA as a potential school for any of his players. For him to say “They’re not going to recruit anybody” is way out of line. Be careful what you wish for Mr. McGee!
RxDawg
July 21st, 2009
12:28 pm
We already went through this with Kiffen and that Florida high school. It’s EXTREMELY unfair to all the kids. Are they forgeting that having scholarship offers is a privilege, not a right? It will be interesting to see how all this unfolds. Head football coaches tend to have big egos. Think someones feelings got hurt?
It’s too bad for the kid in this though.
spider
July 21st, 2009
12:29 pm
who does this high school coach think he is? GOD? i would never let my sons play for a coach like him, and no im not a DAWG fan at all
MattDawg
July 21st, 2009
12:29 pm
I really don’t understand why we offered in the first place. We do NOT need a QB in this class. Also, people need to grow up and realize that Georgia as well as many other schools put out more offers than they have scholarships. If you don’t commit early, it is your own fault that an offer gets pulled. I feel bad for that kid, but if you want to play for Georgia you better take that offer as soon as you get it.
Tyger
July 21st, 2009
12:32 pm
Well the coach does have the tapes, while he can’t prevent total recruition, he can discourage it by not cooperating. Its a double edged sword, the coach wants to protect his players from grossly negligent, unprofessional and unscrupulous acts – they’re his kids too – he feels.
However, to ban the flagship state football institution is bold, to say the least, but maybe its about time someone stood up to these football mills. How many kids have gone up the road to come back no better off than they left?
UGA cant blame anyone but themselves. Its tactless, reckless and demonstrates a total lack of sincerity in its promises to these impressionable young men. How difficult was it to pick up the phone call prior to families visit?
Clearly, UGA doesn’t HAVE to give the player a scholarship. They don’t HAVE to do anything, but that doesn’t mean they shouldn’t. If they are this disrespectful in the recruiting process, I cant imagine what its like once you hit campus.
I won’t even get into the Black QB situation at UGA. I recall recently a GA AAA state champ going there, being moved to receiver and never being heard from again. It may in the kids best interest to take his skill set elsewhere – FAMU, Grambling, SC State, Howard, Hampton, etc. – where he will actually get a real, fair chance to play and get an education.
Huh?
July 21st, 2009
12:32 pm
Sounds like coach McGee is on a power trip and needs to get over himself. The only people that will get hurt by this ban are his own players. Georgia will just go down the road and get some other top prospect. This accomplishes nothing other than stroking his own ego more than likely. What a joke.
Wes
July 21st, 2009
12:32 pm
So what keeps the kid from going to UGA? if I’m a high school kid in the Columbus area and this coach says that certain schools can’t come and recruit, I’m going to go through whatever hoops there are to attend a different high school and to heck with that coach and that school. he’s only hurting the kids chances by “banning” any school from coming on to campus. Sounds like the Carver coach needs to grow up and not be so quick to jump to judgement on this, he’s embarassing himself and Carver-Columbus. I can understand he’s looking out for his player, but does that mean penalizing the rest of the team because of some issue that was mishandled?…..Unbelievable. I don’t think he can ban anyone from watching an athlete at the school, the BOE will decide that not the coach.
jimmy
July 21st, 2009
12:32 pm
we don’t know both sides of the story until we do,we csn’t make a sound decision
steveh
July 21st, 2009
12:32 pm
The whole recruiting process has gotten completely out of hand. However, we do not have all of the details so it is tough for any of us to make judgments about what Georgia did was wrong or not. However, if I was a football player with college level skills on that team, I would be pretty upset with the coach for effectively eliminating one of my possibilities. Where a player goes to college is not up to the high school coach.
BS Patrol
July 21st, 2009
12:34 pm
This coach may as well be commanding the Red Sea to part. Would that also be newsworthy? Must be the slow season for football.
Ben
July 21st, 2009
12:37 pm
Chip,
Ask Ol’ Dell McGee if he banned players from going to his Alma Mater for what happened with DeRon Furr? Probably not is my guess…
Blackberry Cobbler
July 21st, 2009
12:37 pm
Colleges just don’t pull an offer out of the clear blue sky.
Student-athletes are given a scholarship offer and given a deadline by which to make a decision. Communication is constant.
If the student doesn’t or can’t make a decision by the agreed upon date, then the offer is pulled. Even then, a school wouldn’t necessarily pull the offer unless the pool is getting full and/or unless they’ve got someone else to go to.
Both the student and high school coach should understand this process. Coach needs to get off his high horse and realize what’s best for the students and the school.
CommonSenseRules
July 21st, 2009
12:38 pm
Your question: Does a coach of any high school have the right to determine what school recruits one of his players?
Answer: Coaches don’t determine who’s after their players, but they do control who comes onto their field/gym while practice is underway. If the h.s. administration believes that such a prohibition disadvantages their studetn-athletes, then let them take that issue up with the coach.
The field/court is the coaches domain to rule.
GA Faithful
July 21st, 2009
12:39 pm
CPJ pulled that scholarship last year out of spite b/c the recruit went to go look at another school after he had committed to ga tech. TOTALLY DIFFERENT. This happens all the time, this coach is just whinning and the school has every right to rescind a scholarship offer . Unfortanetely he was on campus but that was most likely coincidence and they had to do it before he committed or that would look even worse. So it is totally different from what Tech did last year.
Tony
July 21st, 2009
12:40 pm
Since this coach is From Auburn, he was probably expecting a kick back that UGA refused to pay. That being said no coach has the right to deny a kid the opportunity to be evaluated by a college. He should open his arms wide to any college that would give his players the opportunity to play at the next level. It could have been handled better by UGA, but I’m sure they did what was best for UGA. Carve-Columbus coach and recruit welcome to the real world. Now you suck on a lemon or make lemonade.
sj
July 21st, 2009
12:41 pm
1. It’s not like the player had already accepted the offer and UGA rescinded. Do we know he even had a legit offer???
2. Three sides to everything (his, hers, and what really happened)
3. Recruits do it all the time AFTER verbals..NuKeese, Chris Little, Dwayne Allen, etc….
4. When Auburn is in the mix there is always trouble…this HS head coach drives a large SUV, wears his ballcap backwards, has facial hair and likes to act self righteous…Scr$w him, he will be moving on soon anyway.
Carver-Columbus Coach Bans UGA Recruiters - VolNation
July 21st, 2009
12:42 pm
[...] Carver-Columbus Coach Bans UGA Recruiters "Carver of Columbus coach Dell McGee is upset because he says the Bulldogs rescinded a scholarship offer to quarterback Devin Burns while Burns was on the UGA campus this past Saturday night. What made it worse was, according to McGee, Burns had come with his entire family with the plan of committing that very day to Georgia coach Mark Richt.
marcus
July 21st, 2009
12:42 pm
to hades with the coach, irf uga or any other “banned” school wants a player, then the best way to recruit him/her is to invite the student/parents down and go from there. some of these coaches are overboard. what happened a coordinator position was not offered also?
AltamahaDawg
July 21st, 2009
12:42 pm
I’m guessing the period this BAN will hold up is hours and not days.
ttom
July 21st, 2009
12:42 pm
How can the coach justify penalizing the rest of the kids in his program that would have a shot at UGA? If I’m a parent of one of these athletes I’d be alarmed by this.
Also, if UGA pulled the scholarship they had a good reason. CMR and staff do their due diligence.
mudcat
July 21st, 2009
12:43 pm
The coach is protecting his players and that’s EXACTLY what he is doing. You boneheads that don’t understand that, I feel sorry for you. This was a royal screwup by the UGA staff and they need to rectify the situation. You don’t blame God if it rains during your picnic.
co dawg
July 21st, 2009
12:43 pm
Let’s get both sides of the story. We are only hearing from a high school coach that’s closer (physically and emotionally) to his alma mater than UGA. Who knows. This coach could simply be grandstanding. Kiffin and Company put that Florida coach on the national stage.
If, in fact, this kid lost a scholarship after waiting five months, he’s learned a valuable lesson. Time kills all deals.
RFP
July 21st, 2009
12:45 pm
I feel bad for Burns, but I think the coach is over stepping his bounds. The coach should be involved in the recruiting process, but he should not hinder some of players from getting an offer at UGA. I’m sure Burns will land on his feet with another program very soon.
JMar
July 21st, 2009
12:45 pm
My opinion of this would be based on the underlying facts that we don’t know yet. The fact is, every scholarship offer should come with a stipulation that it can expire if other players accept their offers. It’s a first come, first serve process, and if you’re playing WR, UGA can spare two scholarships for WR, and two players commit before you do, the team should not be blamed for pulling the offer. If the Falcons make a free agent offer to a QB, they can’t be expected to wait around for that QB to decide, and they can’t be blamed when they pull that offer down the road because they’ve signed another QB.
BobDog
July 21st, 2009
12:46 pm
There are still a lot of facts to come out on this. Unfortunately, UGA cannot comment on what they did with this or any other recruit.
No doubt, we don’t want to be on bad terms with a HS coach. He welds a lot of influence with his kids.
Tyger, what do you mean about black quarterbacks at Georgia? Do you remember D.J. Shockley? Also, at FSU, Coach Richt had a young man named Charlie Ward who was a pretty decent quarterback. Get real.
rbrmoc
July 21st, 2009
12:46 pm
As far as I know, that is a government school and a public facility, therefore I know of no one, unless the have a criminal background that can be denied entrance to that school. Someone please clarify that, the coach is a power hungry clown.
Dell (dont you know auburn sucks) Mcgee
July 21st, 2009
12:47 pm
UGA handled the situation bad as far as letting Mr Burns know that he no longer had a valid ship. If i was a recruit and read or saw that the school that i wanted to go to was almost full I would contact them just to make sure i could still commit. The kid still has almost 7 months to figure out what he is going to do.
Dana
July 21st, 2009
12:48 pm
If the kids any good then SC or Tennesee or other SEC teams won’t leave him homeless
dap01
July 21st, 2009
12:50 pm
Wow, that HS coach feels good about his own power.
K-Town Dawg
July 21st, 2009
12:50 pm
It’s always a racial issue with some people, huh Tyger?
Bank Walker, Texas Ranger
July 21st, 2009
12:50 pm
UGA offered a scholarship to a unrated, dual type quarterback when basically they use only Pro Style….something just doesn’t seem right about all this. As for the Carver coach, I think this is a great opportunity to push his players to Auburn.
TampaGator
July 21st, 2009
12:51 pm
I am not understanding how you can let the kid show up on campus and recind the offer while his parents are there. Obviously, the kid was going to commit and the coaches had to tell him, but you would have thought they would have told him in advance so he and his parents would not have been put in such an emabarrassing position. You can’t blame Georgia for recinding the offer. Obviously, they have a better player in mind. However, the handling of the situation should receive a lot of review from both coach Richt and the Georgia AD so as to make sure it does not happen again. Also, I think the HS coach is overreacting. He obviously is coming to the defense of his player, but I think there is a better way for him to handle the situation as well. I am sure all will work out and all will be forgiven. But this in an embarrassing situation for all concerned.
K-Town Dawg
July 21st, 2009
12:53 pm
The problem here is we don’t know the whole story.
The Georgia Football staff won’t be allowed to comment on it, so all we hear is the grandstanding of the HS coach.
I will withhold judgement until more of the facts are known.
jdawg
July 21st, 2009
12:54 pm
Until you have been a college recruiter you are basically unaware of the many facets of working with a high school athlete and parents, and sometimes the whole family. It is unfortunate that this occurred, however, I pay taxes in this state, and the last time I checked a taxpayer who signs in properly at a school should be allowed to visit a student. Let’s hear Ga’s side to the story….and then make a determination….jdawg
Duh
July 21st, 2009
12:55 pm
Richt never takes back an offer. Either our recruiting class is full or we already have a silent commit from another qb.
Tyger the racist
July 21st, 2009
12:55 pm
Why was there any need to bring up race, you piece of trash
Dorsey Hill
July 21st, 2009
12:56 pm
When they found out that there was a screw up they should have just happily accepted his commitment. The accountability is on the coach who should have communicated this to the kid and didn’t. When you screw up you accept it and move on, you don’t make it worse by saying you aren’t welcome. They would have never offered if he wasn’t good enough so we are saving his spot for someone marginally better? It wasn’t worth it.
Bank Walker, Texas Ranger
July 21st, 2009
12:56 pm
Tyger, as far as A J Bryant is concerned this is why it was in the best interest for Burns not to go to UGA in the first place. He is not a Pro Style QB. He would have never played a down at QB even if these stories are true. I find it ironic that the same thing happened with Spurrier at Tucker H S and everyone was in the Tuckers coach’s corner. Funny how the worm turns.
ugaman
July 21st, 2009
12:59 pm
i hope the coach will not stay angry. i understand they are just protecting their players. but let’s just say uga is completely sold on the guy and the kid backs out on signing day after uga had not recruited another qb. is uga not going to ever recruit another kid out of the school?these things do happen also. maybe things will calm.
beej
July 21st, 2009
12:59 pm
Stay classy Dawgs! Keep those disparaging comments against high school kids and high school coaches coming! I’m sure they’re eating them up!
gdawginkalamazoo
July 21st, 2009
1:00 pm
Pull up in a limo and I bet the coach has the kids out there talking all afternoon with UGA.
Something else going on here can’t wait to hear “the rest of the story”.
Tiger
July 21st, 2009
1:01 pm
Hey Tyger,
Way to pull the race card, why didn’t i think of that first??? I mean if your a minority and something doesn’t go your way it has to be b/c of your skin color. YOU my friend are tactless, classless, and lack any sense of reality. First of all you only know one side to the story, and that side still lacks several details. So if you don’t mind keep you DAMN opinion to yourself, and try to get it through your thick skull that UGA would never give a scholarship to a player if they didn’t intend of giving him a shot to contribute.
LAUGHABLE!!!
george
July 21st, 2009
1:01 pm
what an incredibly arrogant public high school football coach. i suppose if microsoft failed to make a formal job offer to someone they had spoken with then georgia tech should just ben them from the campus. nice lessons “coach” is teaching on how to deal with adversity. thank god my kids excelled in so called olympic sports and won their scholarships via academics not because of some bubba from army town usa.
Red and Black Attack
July 21st, 2009
1:02 pm
Hey, the kid should have commited earlier and stop playin around during the recruiting process. We only take the best in Athens so jump on board and lets ride!!!!!!!
KNelson
July 21st, 2009
1:03 pm
Typical comments from Ga fans. When this happened to Tennessee it was cause to bash the Vols. I dont agree that any coach has the right to allow nor to disallow any school from visiting, but you fans are so one sided that if it doesnt go your way its bad. If you lose to Florida 18 out of 20 its because they are scum, and you want to discuss the previous 20 years. When you beat Tennessee 2 out of 4 you dont want to discuss the previous decade when you didnt beat them at all. No unless it goes your way then hit the highway. So typical and hyp’
FLDAWG
July 21st, 2009
1:03 pm
The kid had an offer and UGA is only allowed 15-18 kids this year and UGA is at 16 with Mack Brown and Stripling still out there who might be silent or have given some sort of clue to the coaches that they might come to UGA. I hate what happened to this kid, but the NCAA sets how many you can take and bottom line is if you have an offer from a school that you want to attend it’s best to pull the trigger or you take the chance of getting left out. This happens all the time and it’s a shame, best of luck to Mr. Burns.
Fort Worth Dawg
July 21st, 2009
1:04 pm
Coach Richt will apologize, and then get on the phone and line up a scholarship for the kid – possibly at Ole Miss or Arkansas (like Coach Richt did for that other kid that had questions regarding his jump in SAT scores or some other issue).
ugaaccountant
July 21st, 2009
1:04 pm
Just like the AJC, report first, ask questions later or never. You guys are terrible.
Rev. Jesse Jackson / Al Sharpton
July 21st, 2009
1:04 pm
I think this case needs to go before a higher court!!
ThaMan
July 21st, 2009
1:05 pm
Are there any white guys on the UGA team besides the quarterback?
Red and Black Attack
July 21st, 2009
1:05 pm
That clown coach cannot keep the kids from playin for a class program and class Coach. Maybe a mistake was made somewhere in the process, but that doesn’t mean that the program is bad! Best program in the Country, let your players be a part of it! Go Dawgs!!
Smashmouth
July 21st, 2009
1:05 pm
he said “my campus”… he’ll soon find out who the campus belongs to…
DawginLex
July 21st, 2009
1:05 pm
Having met Coach richt, I am sure he will make things right.Second, everyone needs to remember that these are verbal commitments.
Didn’t this just happen last year at Tech? Tech folks bashing?
Pot, meet kettle.
LP21
July 21st, 2009
1:06 pm
when you get 12 committments in 8 weeks, this type of stuff happens. I hate it for him but or class has really taken off AND more importantly we are tight on #s.
We werent 100% sure on taking a QB this year (since we signed 2 Elite 11s last year) anyway. Its prolly better for him to go somewhere else, i dont see him beating out Logan, Murray, or Mett (or quite possibly whoever we sign in ‘11).
Like i said, i hate it but his position is not what we are looking for, i wish him the best whereever he goes. I seriously doubt this effects UGA’s chances with the 2 Juniors and expect it to blow over. It is not a HUGE deal especially considering its 6 months a his senior year before signing day. He will have plenty of oppty to enjoy the recruiting process and find the school thats best for him.
NewnanDawg
July 21st, 2009
1:07 pm
Tyger – you are a moron – go to a Terrence Moore blog, if you can find one anymore. Have you ever heard of DJ Shockley, one of Richt’s favorite quarterbacks, who even before Greene was gone, Richt found ways to get in the game against the grumblings of a lot of fans (who, by the way, were wrong.) Or maybe from the FSU days, a guy by the name of Charlie Ward, who Richt talks about in almost every interview he ever does where QBs are discussed? No, you find one case of an athlete where things didn’t pan out (happens a lot with 85 scholarship players) and now everything’s about race. Knock the boulder of your shoulder and maybe you can see things more clearly.
There are way to many details unknown to make a judgement call yet. I do recall several years ago that Coach Richt was given high praise by many HS coaches for helping a kid that we could not give a scholarship to find another school, Arkansas maybe? I don’t remember the details, but I remember he handled the situation very well. I would be very surprised if that does not eventually happen in this case as well.
Good Luck to Devin Burns and Go Dawgs!
Sanford Drive
July 21st, 2009
1:07 pm
KNelson, you probably shouldn’t smoke crack before you blog.
Drew-G-A
July 21st, 2009
1:09 pm
Everyone on here is saying snooze/lose or that this is a travesty. Guess what people, we don’t know what happened yet, so take a break from all your judgements on way or the other.
Dawgnation
July 21st, 2009
1:11 pm
Man These high school Football coaching are starting to act like they have to much power the Ghsa will handle that trust me because did georgia get mad when they spent all that money trying to recruit that linebacker last year and he went 2 USC? NO. A football coach will not be able to speak for these kids like that because he’s mad because he’s mad and if it did happen like that I do agree that it was wrong but as a head football coach that’s not your call bro so you need to coach football and not try an be Columbus superintendent And who ever Georgia lead that kid on like that needs To have some kind of Disiplinary action done to them because that’s a embarassment to the program and also to the high school kids thats wanting to come to georgia and to that kid sorry that happened you just continue to shine.
ugaman
July 21st, 2009
1:11 pm
bee j and the techies must not have any movement on their blogs. i have never been on a tech blog. not everything stays spitshine in the atl either.
m
July 21st, 2009
1:12 pm
A good thing he didn’t commit because the Cesspool is active again.
Texan
July 21st, 2009
1:13 pm
The high school coach doesn’t speak for the high school. That would be the principal or school board. So, the high school coach can presumably only deny UGA coaches the right to come to his office or practices. They still can recruit kids through their parents, guidance people, or principal if they so wish.
They also could continue to invite the kid to their camps, etc. No high school coach can prevent that. Now, if the high school coach feels UGA coaches have been wrong, he should contact the GA AD and let him handle it. Or, let the parents handle it.
UGA Fan
July 21st, 2009
1:13 pm
There is a big difference between “pulling an offer” and telling a kid that “all spots have been taken.” My understanding is that coaches told the player that there were no longer available spots (period, or at his position . . . doesn’t really matter). I’m certain this young man is disappointed, but if it was THAT important to him he probably should have made a phone call and asked the coaches to hold a spot because he intends to commit.
I certainly don’t know how the conversation when between the player and the coaches, but I think it is highly unlikely that the coaches (or any coach) who be anything less than polite, and appreciative that the person would want to attend their school.
High school and college is ultimately about growing up and learning to deal with the real world. In the real world spots (for anything: job, club, activity, team, etc) are limited, circumstances change, and things don’t always go your way.
The coach’s response was immature and unproductive. That sort of behavior won’t help the player join the UGA team and I could foresee a situation where this sort of behavior causes schools to shy away from recruiting marginal players in the first place. Why risk recruiting a marginal player if you might be “banned” and unable to recruit a star?
mcdawg
July 21st, 2009
1:13 pm
I understand where the coach is coming from I’m sure this ban will be lifted in due time-i can’t imagine a HS guidance counselor making it more difficult for a student to get into his school of choice
Barack Dawg
July 21st, 2009
1:15 pm
Are you kidding really? Who cares? The coach is out of line. First off, what about the recruits who commit then change their mind on signing day? The schools get screwed then. I would say if you have an offer and you want to go to school there,then you take it. A bird in the hand is worth 2 in the bush. I am sure that UGA did not just flip over on this kid as it is being played out. Look at Murray, he broke his leg and CMR still told him he stood by the scholarship offer even if he never played a down at UGA.
UGA has been upfront all along about how many slots they had open. If he wanted one, he should have committed sooner.
That should be the end of it. The coach should have done a better job of making sure the kid made his decision quickly if he really wanted to go to UGA. Any other school would have done the same thing.
1eyedJack
July 21st, 2009
1:15 pm
I would be almost willing to bet that this kid was being recruited to play a different position such as safety and we now have all the safties we want.
Tampa Wreck
July 21st, 2009
1:15 pm
The fact that the dawgs rescinded their offer is no big deal.. As others have said, it happens all the time and is perfectly appropriate. Schools can’t just wait until the 1tth hour for all their recruits to make decisions and then scramble when players decide to go elsewhere. they have to make offers, and when the spots get filled, they really have no choice but to rescind offers that were not accepted. the kids and their parents should understand this.
The fact that they did this while the kid was on campus with his family wanting to commit is the point of issue here, and we really don’t have all the facts regarding that. Was he invited by coaches? Did they know he was ready to commit? I hate the dawgs as much as anyone, but I’m sure they didn’t do this purposefully.
And to your question, yes, he can keep them away from practices, but nothing prohibits anyone from recruiting off campus.
GA Tech Insider
July 21st, 2009
1:15 pm
The most unfortunate part of this story was that the young man and his family took the trip to Athens, all the way from Columbus, with the prior knowledge of the UGA Coaching Staff, and Georgia had already planned to pull the Scholarship.
I’m sure that had they notified the young man in advance of the trip, he wouldn’t have made it in the first place, and everyone would have been able to save face.
It’s an unfortunate situation and one that shows how a lack of communication can snowball into a major event.
Devin’s a quality young man from a good family and deserved far better treatment than he received this past weekend. However, I’m sure he will rebound, as usual, and find his place in College, and be as successful their as he has been in High School, continuing to make his family proud.
Finally, regarding Devin’s Coach; I applaud him for standing up for his player, however cutting off one’s nose to spite his face is never the answer. There are other fine young men following in Devin’s footsteps who might have the opportunity to play at UGA; their College of choice, and blocking the Coaches from visiting is a disservice to the other players.
tmac
July 21st, 2009
1:15 pm
Sounds like the kid had more than enough time to sign the scholarship. UGA might of been able to handle the recision better, but something tells me the kid could have to.
I know the coach of Carver-Columbus could handle his comments better.
If I go to that High School and want to get a scholorship to UGA, I walk in the coaches office and tell him blow it out his port hole.
Cincinatti Bowtie
July 21st, 2009
1:16 pm
Someone help me here; was this an offer to play this year or next?
gbal
July 21st, 2009
1:19 pm
He had 5 months to commit….
Recruiting class has come close to fillig up since that offer was made and priorities have changed…
If a kid can retract a verbal commitment up until signing day, a school should certainly be able to retract an offer to a kid prior to the kid commiting.
What happens in life is the result of your actions ….ACTION – He waited playing the game …. RESULT – he missed the opportunity.
Good luck to ya – I trust a lesson was learned -
Volman
July 21st, 2009
1:19 pm
Mark Richt= the next Philip Fulmer.. Good luck with that, UGA fans. The program is going downhill… He can’t win anything significant with all of that talent? All of those stars?