The San Diego State football team’s bye this week means SDSU players get the weekend off. Such isn’t the case for SDSU coaches, who will be busy traveling to see future Aztecs play in their high school games.

SDSU has received verbal commitments from more than a dozen players. It includes five local players — San Marcos linebacker Josh Bornes, St. Augustine athlete J.R. Justice, Steele Canyon defensive end Mikel Oliver, Helix athlete Rashad Scott and Carlsbad defensive end Cameron Thomas — as well as commitments from several California players outside the county and players in Nevada and New Mexico.

“We’ll get to a lot of games and get to see some players in person,” said SDSU head coach Rocky Long, who plans to attend a game in town this weekend. “The players will know that we’re there ... A lot of it is going to games of kids who have committed just to make sure they know that we care.”

Soon enough — and sooner than usual — the Aztecs will be looking to confirm that the feeling is mutual.


In the spring, the NCAA approved an early signing date for football. Recruits will have a 72-hour window to sign national letters of intent from Dec. 20-22.

The regular signing date the first Wednesday in February remains in place, although Long said he expects more than half of the 2018 recruiting class (which should number about 25 players) to sign in December.

The most significant thing Long said was this: “The kids that are committed to us, if they don’t sign in December, we’re dropping them, because that means they’re not sure.”

That was news to at least one recruit. Daniel Bellinger, a linebacker at Las Vegas Palo Verde who committed in July, said he was planning to sign in February.


Informed of the Long’s comments, Bellinger said in a text: “Oh, I didn’t know about that. I don’t even know when my official (visit) is yet, but I’ll talk to coach and if that’s the case then that will certainly change my decision.”

Bellinger said he will sign in December and, in fact, has decided it’s better to sign early.

Long said he welcomes the early signing period.

“I think it’s great for us because we get to find out that the kids who are committed to us, they’re really committed or they’re not really committed,” he said.


Long believes it will eliminate six weeks of indecision from December to February when some players have a verbal commitment with one school but continue to consider the possibility of decommitting and going somewhere else.

“I’m sure we might lose one or two in December who say they want to think about it a little bit longer,” he said. “Well, they can think about going somewhere else then.”

The early signing period also reduces the amount of time Power Five schools have to assess where they stand in recruiting and, Long said, “it eliminates the time that they can come running back and try to steal our guys. So I don’t know if it’s good for them, but it’s really good for us.”

No early enrollments

While some schools encourage high school recruits to graduate in mid-year, Long said SDSU is not among them.


“There’s some schools that like that idea that they can graduate in December from high school and they bring them in in January,” Long said. “That way they can compete and go through spring practice and maybe play for you the next year.

“We discourage that because I think the most fun that I’ve ever had in my life was my second semester my senior year in high school. … It benefits those young men to stay in high school for their last semester of their senior year because they will always remember it.”

Notable

• Junior defensive end Noble Hall did not make the trip to San Jose State for disciplinary reasons, but returned for Tuesday’s practice and is again in good standing.

• Long said practices this week will be in preparation for the team’s two remaining games — at home against Nevada (Nov. 18) and New Mexico (Nov. 24) — although the second half of Thursday’s practice will include a game against the scout team offense against the scout team defense.


“The GAs will be their coaches, our coaches will be the officials and usually it’s a lot of fun to watch,” Long said. “There are a lot of mistakes being made out there but there, are a lot of crashes going on out there. There are a lot of people running into each other which is really fun to be around and watch because that’s why all of us like football in the first place.”

• Nevada (1-8, 1-4 MW) plays San Jose State (1-9, 0-5) this week before coming to play the Aztecs (8-2, 4-2).


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kirk.kenney@sduniontribune.com / on Twitter: @sdutkirKDKenney