At What Point Is This Harrassment?

This year's signing day was unprecedented in its wackiness. Notre Dame now hates the last name "Little," as both Chris and Greg decommitted for more southerly climes. Indiana safety Jerimy Finch was going to Michigan, then IU, then Florida. Markish Jones and Robert Broyles battled for the title of Least Decisive Person in the Universe. All told, dozens of committed recruits ended up signing with teams other than the ones they had "committed" to. You can chalk this up to cutthroat boys being cutthroat boys, but how irritating must it be to be a guy like UCLA recruit Brian Price?

The black car idled outside Crenshaw High, waiting to whisk Brian Price to USC.

Price, a highly regarded defensive lineman, had committed to UCLA months before and had told USC coaches he was not interested in an official visit to their campus.

USC scheduled one anyway - and sent the conspicuous vehicle to deliver Price to Heritage Hall last month.

No means no, Pete Carroll. (Unless you're a running back, in which case "no" means "take me, Pete, and ravish me like I've never been ravished before!") College coaches increasingly resemble jilted ex-girlfriends. My favorite unsupported-but-not-entirely-implausible rumor from the last few days was the one where two Notre Dame assistants show up at Martez Wilson's house and refuse to leave until Wilson's mom calls the cops. Did that actually happen? Probably not. Could it? Uh... yeah.

It's time for an early signing period, or better yet, an extended signing period that stretches from September to February. Are you committed? Okay: sign this piece of paper and see you in the fall. No more last second shocking decommits, as anyone who's still on the market isn't a commit. No more sweet serenades outside the homes of coveted recruits who have tried to tell you that it's, like, over, okay?