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Robert Turick's Thesis.pdf (892.76 KB)

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Coaching Motivations Behind Over-Signing in College Football

Turick, Robert Michael
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=bgsu1400199034

Abstract Details

2014, Master of Education (MEd), Bowling Green State University, Human Movement, Sport and Leisure Studies /Sport Administration.
This study sought to determine what factors influenced the decision making processes of college football coaches when over-signing a recruiting class or their returning roster. The NCAA Bylaws limit Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) football programs to a total number of scholarships to 85 "counters" annually including 25 scholarships for "initial counters." Over-signing is the term used to describe the practice of college programs signing prospective collegiate athletes to a National Letter of Intent (NLI) that may exceed the maximum number of athletic scholarships permitted by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), or when a team brings in a recruiting class that pushes the team's amount of counters past 85 scholarships. This action results in that coaching staff taking a scholarship away from a returning player or later informing an incoming freshman that the school is not able to honor its commitment and provide him with a scholarship. Sport media writers have commented that there are many reasons/concerns for which a coach might over-sign a class such as the fact that recruits often sign a NLI and then do not qualify academically, indecisive recruits, general attrition, and that football has a high transfer rate amongst its athletes (Bachman, 2011; Doyel, 2010; Feldman, 2007; Gordon, 2011; Johnson, 2011; Machen, 2011; Towers, 2011; Whiteside; 2011). Any of these occurrences could leave a coach with a shortage of athletes, but by signing extra prospects a coach can avoid being left short/devoid of talent. Although these ideas have been written about they have not been examined through an empirical study. This study used 19 interviews with college football coaches and personnel staff to determine that over-signing occurs because of general attrition, fickle recruits, it is seen as an accepted practice, teams can gain a competitive edge, and that coaches feel pressured to win consistently.
Amanda Paule-Koba (Advisor)
Ray Schneider (Committee Member)
Sungho Cho (Committee Member)
117 p.
Sports Management
intercollegiate athletics; college football; recruiting; coaching behavior; over-signing; coaching actions; sports; student-athlete issues

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Turick, R. M. (2014). Coaching Motivations Behind Over-Signing in College Football [Master's thesis, Bowling Green State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=bgsu1400199034

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Turick, Robert. Coaching Motivations Behind Over-Signing in College Football. 2014. Bowling Green State University, Master's thesis. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=bgsu1400199034.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Turick, Robert. "Coaching Motivations Behind Over-Signing in College Football." Master's thesis, Bowling Green State University, 2014. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=bgsu1400199034

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

bgsu1400199034
1,978
© 2014, some rights reserved.Creative Commons License Coaching Motivations Behind Over-Signing in College Football by Robert Michael Turick is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License. Based on a work at etd.ohiolink.edu.
This open access ETD is published by Bowling Green State University and OhioLINK.