Completely, totally disagree. ND has been more than accommodating of Keeley (and Bowen). Taking a visit to OSU on the day they're playing ND is a complete slap in the face to the coaches and recruits that he supposedly has good relationships with. Also, think of the message that sends to ND's other 23 recruits that have respected the wishes of the coaching staff.....and the message being sent to the 2024 class too. No single recruit is worth that, not even a 5 star player like Keeley.
I get where you're coming from... you're trying to build a cohesive class of guys that are bought in, and you don't want to risk bad vibes among the guys that are fully committed and abiding by your "no official visits" rules, even though I'm sure they'd all like some free trips across the country to big games. At the same time, though, this is what holding onto a top-10 recruit is going to take for ND moving forward. It's not enough to present the athletic/academic package with the NIL offers out there. You have to compete somehow. And that means giving some recruits special treatment. There are guys on the roster that will get special treatment within the program because of their abilities... it's going to have to be the same in recruiting if Freeman wants to keep going after top-50 prospects.
I don’t disagree but there is multiple points that have a devils advocate here. He did not commit as a Top 10 prospect. They’ve also been fighting like hell for 8 months now. At some point you’ve lost. Last and irish4life mentioned this I believe from Loy, taking a hard stance is possibly re-recruiting your commits, just not Keon. They don’t want the whole class thinking where are we going this weekend guys. I think the threat of it is also a tactic too.
He began pretty highly rated, it's not like he was a three-star guy that suddenly gets to experience a red carpet recruitment for the first time. And fighting for 8 months doesn't mean they've lost, as he hasn't even decommitted yet. If he *were* to decommit, this still feels more like a Tuitt/Colzie thing to me than a "no longer considering ND" thing. Maybe that's too optimistic? Idk, but if it boils down to Keeley wanting to see more NIL juice, either from ND or other places, I'm encouraged that he hasn't just cut the cord already.
I think we’re all aware the engagement is on the rocks. The question really is whether it’s salvageable. If it is, I think you have to keep working. Though, yeah, if he OVs to Ohio State for our game, maybe that ship has sailed.
That will be the true 'shit or get off the pot' moment, both for Keeley and for Freeman's no-official-visit policy. If it's an OV, Ohio State will report it as such. I don't think their media have any need to muddy the waters just to stir up the drama like BC's media guys did.
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