bizzaro.....
Hazelton pulls back letter of intent to USC
Former Moore Catholic receiver now considering enrollment at Penn State
Thursday, February 02, 2006
By TOM DOWD
ADVANCE STAFF WRITER
The Vidal Hazelton recruiting saga apparently has a few chapters to go.
While high school seniors across the country -- including five other Staten Islanders -- were submitting their signed letters of intent yesterday on the first day of the college football signing period, Hazelton did not do so.
According to the player's father, Dexter Hazelton, the former Moore Catholic player will not be submitting his letter of intent anytime soon. Vidal Hazelton is currently enrolled at Hargrave (Va.) Military Academy, where he played last fall.
Hazelton had given the University of Southern California a verbal commitment at the end of December, but in the middle of January informed USC coach Pete Carroll that he was unsure of his commitment and was considering attending Penn State.
Vidal Hazelton was prepared to follow through on his December commitment and submit his letter to USC, but Dexter Hazelton would not sign the letter of intent. A parent's signature is required for all student-athletes under the age of 21.
"He's pretty upset right now that I didn't sign the letter," said Dexter Hazelton.
According to Dexter Hazelton, both USC and Penn State are still under consideration, though it will likely be awhile before either learns of the highly touted wide receiver's intentions.
"I'm going to hold back until the end of April," Dexter Hazelton said, referring to the end of the signing period. "I'm not going to sign the letter of intent until the end of April."
"(Vidal) can't sign anything unless I sign it," added Hazelton. "I have to sign it. I told (USC) I'm not signing it until the end of the period."
Hazelton emerged as one of the most highly recruited players in the class of 2006 after his performance at recruiting combines last spring.
ESPN ranks Hazelton as the No. 3 recruit in the country and recruiting Web site rivals.com listed Hazelton No. 7. Both ranked him as the No. 2 wide receiver in the nation.
Hazelton expressed discomfort with his son's selection of USC as well as the Trojans' recruitment of the player.
"There's a lot of things we don't know," said Hazelton. "The way they approached the recruiting process I wasn't happy at all. They went straight to Vidal. They didn't approach the family."
"I don't like the way they do their recruiting," he added. "I think it's wrong."
Dexter Hazelton said he informed USC at around noon the family would not be submitting a letter of intent. He said he spoke several times during the day with the school's coaches, including head coach Pete Carroll.
"They're not happy about it," said Hazelton. "They claim they spent a year trying to recruit Vidal. It didn't feel like a year. It feels like when they saw his ranking they started to recruit him."
Vidal Hazelton is currently at Virginia at school and was unavailable for comment.
"I don't want him to speak with anyone right now," said Hazelton. "Not the press, not anybody.
"Vidal's supposed to come here this weekend," added Hazelton. "We're going to have a talk with him. I think he's been blinded by a lot of this."
