Jim Youngblood and

Cruz Williams could

have taken the same route that so many other talented prep football prospects have traveled in the past. It would have easily been more gratifying. They could have listened to hundreds of offers from some of the top programs in the country, fielded phone calls from some of the most recognized college coaches in America and savored every hand-written note telling them how great they were. But both Youngblood and Williams canceled their plans for an ego trip when they elected to commit to the Arkansas Razorbacks earlier this year. “ It’s a big relief, ” said Williams, a wide receiver at Pulaski Academy in Little Rock. “ There are all these schools trying to contact you. Once I committed to Arkansas, the pressure is off of me. No schools are trying to talk to me. That’s good, because I’m not trying to talk to them, either. ” Instead of having their lives disrupted by the recruitment process, Williams and Youngblood will be able to carry on as normal high school seniors when classes begin again in the fall. Not many of their peers will be as lucky. College coaches come at most high-profile recruits like blitzing linebackers. The rush is heavy and teenage stars across the country are feeling the heat. An hour rarely goes by without a representative from one of the major college programs contacting them. Whereas former Rogers offensive lineman Lee Ziemba and Fort Smith Northside quarterback Kodi Burns didn’t give verbal commitments to Auburn until after their high school seasons, Youngblood and Williams made their pledges early for a simple reason. “ I was ready to get it all over with, ” said Youngblood, a quarterback who plays at Camden Fairview. “ It was a big relief. ” Before they committed, both Youngblood and Williams received a flurry of text messages from coaches around the country. It didn’t take long before their cellphones became nuisances as opposed to the convenient communications devices they were intended to be. Fortunately, the NCAA has tried to resolve the problem recruits face by stepping in and banning coaches from text-messaging them. The new mandate will take effect August 1, about the time high school football teams across the South and Midwest will reconvene for preseason practices. By then, Williams and Youngblood will have turned their attention to what is important to them — football. The distractions that will ultimately follow a recruit who hasn’t made up his mind will not sidetrack either player. And neither will the external pressure that is applied to prospects who remain indecisive.

There certainly is something to be said for the ones who carefully weigh their options while considering every pro and con of the schools they want to attend. But if a hot-shot recruit is certain about his choice, then why not commit early ?

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That’s what Williams thought when friends and family were advising him to wait and see what other offers were extended.

In the end, Williams went with his gut instinct. So did Youngblood. And as a result they will most likely have a senior year they can enjoy without worrying about Steve Spurrier calling them during social studies.

Rainer Sabin is a sports writer for the Northwest Arkansas Times.