Why I Hate National Signing Day

National Signing Day has come and gone and with it all the staged theatrics that have unfortunately become a part of the process.

Before delving into the mini-media circus it has become, let's look at the cottage industry it has spawned.

Websites like Rivals and Scout have made a business of grading the respective recruits and then compiling those grades into rankings for each school's incoming class.

That's fine.

In this era of instant information, fans have a thirst to know what to expect from their team's signing class. Recruiting websites are more than happy to oblige them by offering subscriptions to their premiere news coverage of who is going where and why. Obviously there is a fairly lucrative market for such information; otherwise these outlets wouldn't offer it.

Again, I'm not against these websites trying to make a buck. After all, the Internet as we know it exists primarily so that people can generate revenue.

Forget that grading high school talent (let alone pro) is an inexact science. Sure, you can post a player's stats from when he starred at Podunk High along with his 40-yard time and vertical jump, but to talk a little coach-speak for a moment, "you can't measure intangibles."

Obviously, many fans are painfully aware of how subjective these rankings can be and that they don't necessarily translate to success on the field. There are just too many variables to consider when it comes to building a successful program. Without proper coaching, be it a lack of discipline, motivation or simply the wrong system, many five-star prospects never reach their perceived potential.

And while some of the most highly-touted recruits wither on the vine, other players who received a lower ranking far exceed their expectations and blossom into super-stardom.

Let's take my Cornhuskers for example. In 2005, Ndamukong Suh was rated four stars by both of the above-mentioned websites, definitely a respectable grade. In that same class, Marlon Lucky was given five stars.

Not to disrespect Mr. Lucky, who was a serviceable running back, but we all know how their respective careers played out.

While perhaps not the best example, especially considering the larger-than-life player Suh became, it illustrates the point that these rankings are, in reality, just educated guesses, not much different than preseason polls (which I also hate) and can vary wildly from site to site.

Regardless, that doesn't stop some fans from bragging about their team's high recruiting class ranking months before any of those players ever have the chance to take the field in a meaningful game.

Now please don't misunderstand; I'm not trying to spoil anyone's party. If your school has netted a solid recruiting class, good for you. It can seem like the light at the end of the tunnel, especially for a struggling program.

And while those recruiting sites (and their rankings) can be fairly accurate, just remember that after two or three seasons, that light might end up being a train bound for disaster.

This however is not the main thrust of my article or the main reason why I hate National Signing Day.

No, it's the silly media circus surrounding these kids, an increasing phenomenon that's had its fire stoked a little more each year.

Again, with the increased coverage on the Internet and 24-hour sports channels, these youngsters have taken full advantage of their moment in the sun, surrounding themselves with family, friends and a bank of cameras, as if they were signing an NFL contract instead of a letter-of-intent.

I understand that, for some of these boys, it might be the only time they get this type of exposure and they want to have a little fun with it. No problem there.

However, for some, it becomes a huge production as they purposely delay making their decision public and hold the college football nation hostage. Then when the day arrives, they invariably have a row of hats from the different schools spread out before them, only to sweep away the also-rans and don the gear of their chosen program.

Or if they want to drag it out even further, they make a speech about how hard their decision was (even though they've probably known for weeks) or pull a Corso on us and act like they're going select one hat, then cast it aside and put on another. Or both.

It's become rather tedious and predictable. But don't plan on it changing.

When Nebraska recruiting target Owamagbe Odighizuwa chose UCLA over the Huskers and Oregon State Beavers yesterday, he made sure to have a Bruins cap at the ready, safely concealed in a shoe box, before making his announcement in front of ESPN's cameras.

No sour grapes here. Despite the hoopla, I wish Owa much success.

I've just grown tired of this perpetual media feeding frenzy that we've all helped create, in one way or another.

Again however, just like the paparazzi shots on all those so-called "entertainment" shows and in all the tabloid rags in the supermarket checkout line, they wouldn't exist if there wasn't a viable market for them.

So, simply put, the monster of National Signing Day belongs to all college football fans, whether we like it or not.