It's pretty crazy isn't it? This is by far not an unusual practice though. You are right it is not binding but the hope in college is that once the word gets out there then some of the recruiting material that he would be receiving will be cut down some. It is a very risky chance a coach takes by making the offer because will they continue to develop, will they grow, will they meet the academic requirements, etc. But they are willing to take that chance because just like in the NBA who will be the next Kobe? They don't want to miss out. Like I have posted on here before, coaches are getting fired for losing not for sub standard academics. Hopefully the APR can put the emphasis back on academics but only time will tell. This is by far not the only case where this is happening. Women's basketball is just as bad if not worse. At least half of all DI schools will have a coach at the girls 14 and under AAU national championship this July. Right after July there will be probably 20 kids who will get a scholarship offer off that one tournament. It is not nearly as publicized as the men's but it is taking place. Only massive changes in the recruiting rules will limit this practice. Coaches are competitive beyond imagination and they are looking for the Kevin Durant's of the world and that one year that kid can take them to the top 10 and possibly to the Final Four (Greg Oden). Hopefully for all involved, things will slow down before there is an implosion.

Shades of Sade Wiley-Gatewood who "... gave a verbal commitment to Tennessee after her sophomore year."

"Tennessee has been my dream school while I have been growing up," Wiley-Gatewood says. "I like Tennessee's style of play and Coach Summitt's coaching style, but I never thought she would recruit me. Then when I heard she was recruiting me, I wanted to commit to her because that is where I wanted to go. Also, I committed so early to take the pressure off. I don't have any reservations about leaving home."

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa4112/is_200310/ai_n9318210/pg_1

Sade transferred from Tennessee to Maryland in the middle of her sophomore year of college.

I'm more surprised that USC athletics let this get out without denouncing it.

You would think that a large program like that one would have better sense of PR than to tout getting a verbal commitment from someone who hasn't even enrolled in high school.

What I do not understand is how an eighth grader knows what he wants? In eighth grade you would think any large college would be great to go play for, I know I would. By the time this student gets to his senior year in high school he might not want to go to USC. All this does is give the student a big head. He also might get worse over the years or even injured.

Just because the student gives USC a verbal commitment doesn’t mean that he will choose to go there in the future. Now that this student probably has a big head because of USC offering him a scholarship so early, maybe he won’t try as hard in school. His grades could drop, and just because he is great at basketball doesn’t mean that they will take him.

That’s crazy for kids that young to be verbally committed to a college. I can understand scouting a young player. I believe they are taking it too far offering a scholarship. That is too much responsibility for a person that age.

I don’t think a kid that age knows what he's committing to. Going on a college visit you want to look for certain things other than sports. It is very easy to influence a person of that age. The NCAA should make a rule concerning when a player should be recruited.

An 8th grader getting a scholarship offer is ridiculous in my opinion. Anybody that receives any type of scholarship should at least finish their freshman season of what sport that person is playing, for example, if my little brother was offered a scholarship after he finished his freshman year on the football team, then yes I agree with that, but if that certain school offered him a scholarship before he even graduates from middle school, then I disagree. That should be a strictly enforced NCAA rule in my opinion, because of that certain athlete’s athletic ability on the field, he should not be offered a scholarship before he even enters high school, and he hasn't even started any high school courses yet. It is mostly basketball players with exceptional height and athletic ability that receive scholarships in the 8th grade because coaches want to beat other recruits to that specific player before he gets to the high school level, and ends up being what they expected.

When I was reading the last line, I think it is straight crazy for an 8th grader to get a scholarship and he hasn't entered high school yet. When a player is in high school, I believe a scholarship should be offered then, probably during the end of sophomore year or junior year. Having a scholarship in 8th grade makes a player slack during their high school years. They won't be able to perform well.

I think that is way too early to even have a verbal commitment to college in eighth grade. Ryan Boatwright has not even entered high school yet and the four years someone is in high school, people a lot goes on. A person changes and matures a lot in those four years. Having Boatwright verbally commit in eighth grade, he is going to have the mentality of already being in college and just slack off a lot in high school not only in school work but he probably won't work to his full potential in basketball either. How does Boatwright know he even wants to go to USC, his perspective on college can change a lot from eighth grade until the end of high school. It is just a verbal commitment but it is still the idea of a college is looking at you for sports and you are only in eighth grade, so that means a lot.