Top recruit’s time to decide
Green-beckham weighs future
Dorial Green-beckham finally will be alone the next few days — at least as alone as the most sought-after high school football recruit in the nation can be with national signing day approaching.
Today begins the final football recruiting dead period, meaning Green-beckham can’t meet face-to-face with college coaches. It’s the latest recruiting calendar turn for programs that are wooing the 6-6, 220-pound wide receiver from Hillcrest High in Springfield, Mo., who is USA TODAY’S offensive player of the year and the consensus No. 1 prospect.
Green-beckham now will be alone with his thoughts to figure out where he wants to play before letting the world know Wednesday. His list includes Arkansas, Missouri and several other top schools.
“I think he’s looking forward to it being over and making a decision,” Dorial’s adoptive father, John Beckham, said last week before welcoming Texas coach Mack Brown and staff members to Springfield. “Dorial will be happy on Wednesday.”
Brown was not the only coach making house calls last week.
Missouri coach Gary Pinkel and Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops also used the final week for their one allotted in-home visit to John and Tracy Beckham’s house. Two weekends ago, Green-beckham made his official visit to Arkansas.
Beckham said the meetings went well but no new ground had been broken.
“Most of these coaches now have been recruiting him for quite awhile, and we’re very familiar with them,” Beckham said.
Missouri coaches have gone all out.
Pinkel showed up at Hillcrest in a helicopter two weeks ago and returned in a luxury bus with his coaching staff last week. Green-beckham made an official visit to Columbia during the weekend.
The place was under high security Friday afternoon.
“Security tried to stop me from getting into the football facility (parking) lot,” tweeted Kim English, a senior starting forward on the Tigers’ No. 2ranked men’s basketball team. “I guess some big recruit is coming in town.”
The last few weeks — and months, really — have been a lot for Green-beckham to process.
He set national career receiving records in the fall, leading the Hornets (11-2) to their best season ever. He decided to play basketball this winter. And now comes his decision. Last year, national analysts pegged Oklahoma as the favorite to lure Green-beckham.
Last week, six Rivals.com national analysts predicted Arkansas would be his college destination.
Beckham said the decision was in Green-beckham’s hands but the family would be involved in the discussions in the coming couple of days.
“I’m sure we’ll discuss it,” Beckham said. “We’ll talk about it, see what ideas are out there and go from there.”