Final NCAA Signing Period Starts Wednesday, April 12

The final NCAA signing period starts the day after tomorrow, April 12.  There will be a whole lot of happy high school seniors.

Time to celebrate

Signing parties will be held in gymnasiums and libraries across the U.S., as well as in many foreign countries. Families, teammates, friends and fans will join to celebrate.  Parents will be beaming with pride.  And teenagers, finally signing their national letter of intent, will take a massive sigh of relief.  They have reached their long-held goal of becoming college student-athletes. Subsequent festivities follow for many recruits well into the summer as the signing period lingers.

More good news for seniors

There is more good news in this penultimate signing period.  Unsigned seniors are permitted to sign NLIs through August 1 in every sport except football.  Their signing period ended April 1.   That is, except D-I basketball prospects whose last signing day is May 1.

This four-and-a-half-month-long signing period gives many seniors additional time.  They can further impress coaches, bump up their GPAs and test scores.  A good many coaches are still looking to finish off their 2017 recruiting classes.  That is good news for athletes in bad spots.  For those who entered the recruiting process late, flown along under the radar or needed to clear their grades with the NCAA Eligibility Center, this is their last chance.

The “late” signing period

It’s widely held by NSR scouts that 50 to 70 percent of all NCAA signings occur during “the late signing period.”  Since the NCAA doesn’t release figures, however, we can’t be sure.  And it may not be accompanied by the hoopla of the November early signing period, but it is just as important. A scholarship offered, accepted and signed in April, May, June or July is as meaningful and legitimate as any penned on the first Wednesday in November. After all, a signing period is a signing period.  The date dreams come true is not nearly as important as the fact that they did come true.  And the cake is just as tasty.

A few other key details

• The National Letter of Intent (NLI) is a legally binding contract between the athlete and the college. It is not an agreement between the athlete and coach.
• The NLI stipulates only the athletics financial aid. Additional institutional money, such as academic scholarship awards, grants and loans are not included.
• The NLI requires that the student-athlete must be a full-time student.
• Parents (or guardians) of the prospect must also sign the NLI.
• The NLI covers one academic year.
• A select number of Division I colleges provide multi-year athletics scholarships. In those cases, the coaches provide details.
• Seniors must sign and return their NLIs within seven days of when the school issued them.
• After signing the NLI, no other NCAA or NAIA college is permitted to continue recruiting the student-athlete.
• There are penalties for reneging on an NLI contract.  If the athlete chooses instead to attend another NLI-affiliated college, he or she is required to sit out a year before participating in athletics at a second NCAA institution.