Why is recruiting picking up now?

Michigan LB prospect Marvin Ham became the second player to commit to Addazio's 2019 recruiting class this week. He has a good mix of offers and a respectable rating from the services. He should be a good addition to the class. Although Addazio likes to lock in his class relatively early, the sudden uptick in verbals is interesting. There are probably a few factors in play.

1. BC has pushed the timetable. Addazio views BC as a "developmental program" so he is not trying to fill out his class with all five stars. Instead he is looking for committed kids who BC can get on early. Now that there is an Early Signing Period, BC's desire to get on kids early has moved up a month or two. Kids who used to verbal in summer are now likely to verbal in March.

2. There is momentum and promise during spring ball. Spring ball is when every program has hope and promise. BC -- with a new football building rising up next to Alumni -- can really sell that idea. So when a kid is visiting the school during his spring break and gets the hard sell from Addazio, he is likely to commit.

3. There is a bit of musical chairs among the kids. All the kids track each other's offers and commitments on social media. They see other guys commit. They have coaches tell them there are only X amount of spots at a position. There is pressure to find a spot and hold onto it. So when a good offer comes along, they take it. This leads to the occasional decommitment, but I think the coaches are willing to take the risk.