Airline wide receiver Kenny Darby will sign today, most likely with an SEC school, just like everyone has known for quite a while.
During the recruiting process, he’s maintained a good relationship with various coaches, which will pay off in the immediate and near future.
As a four-star recruit, he’s spent a lot of time thinking about what it was going to be like when he finally signs his name.
Welcome to Kenny Darby’s dream.
Welcome to Kenny Darby’s nightmare.
Yes, Darby is likely to sign with an SEC school. No, it’s not the one he thought he was going to sign with.
What you need to know before we get into the sordid details of all of this is that there are plenty of Kenny Darbys out there. All over the country, there are lots of top-of-the-line recruits who have made a commitment to sign with their dream school, only to be told at the last minute that the school no longer shares that same commitment.
In fact, Darby isn’t even the only case of this happening in Shreveport-Bossier.
Yes, decommitments aren’t a one-way street. There’s no shortage of examples of athletes who pull a fast one at the last minute on a university.
But Kenny Darby isn’t one of them.
Throughout the recruitment, Darby has never wavered on his commitment to LSU. He announced in January he was so committed that he was shutting down the recruiting process. On Tuesday morning, he posted on X “I will be signing Wednesday, December 3rd at 1 pm” with a Callin’ Baton Rouge graphic as the background.
Only 25 hours before that signing was to take place, he was told that LSU was no longer interested.
And he wasn’t even told by LSU.
LSU brought new coach Lane Kiffin to Baton Rouge on Sunday for an introductory press conference. A coaching change at any school always brings about turmoil in recruiting, especially with the calendar being what it is these days in college football.
But even with that, Darby got a call on that same day from one of Kiffin’s assistants, who had tried to recruit Darby to come to Ole Miss, telling the Airline product how excited he was to be able to get to coach him after all.
That sentiment was short lived.
Two days later, Darby’s advisor — every top recruit has an agent or advisor these days – got a call to inform him that there was no longer a scholarship offer. Left unsaid were the words “And could you please let Kenny know? Thanks!”
You may have read or heard that Darby had “decommitted” from LSU. Should you believe that, then perhaps it’s time we had a talk about the Easter Bunny.
Kids who decommit usually don’t have their emotions described as “crushed,” as one Airline coach described it.
But here’s all you need to know about Kenny Darby: The day after his football world was turned upside down, he didn’t run from it. Showed up at school. Attended every class. Chatted up everyone in sight as he walked the halls at Airline with that ear-to-ear grin he’s always been known for.
He may have been left at the station by one school, but everyone knew there was bound to be another train coming.
Next thing you know, Colorado’s Deion Sanders was on a Zoom call with him. Then more offers came in. Some were from places he was familiar with from early in the recruiting process. Others seemingly came from left field. But never doubt how many roads there are on the recruiting trail or where they can take you.
That’s why this really isn’t a Kenny Darby issue or an LSU issue. “Commitment” is a nice word to use by both parties in college recruiting, but what it really means sometimes is “hang on for now and let’s see of either one of us can find something or someone better.”
But that’s not what happened here. This was an old-school, can’t-wait-to-sign recruitment process almost from the beginning.
Nobody ever promised it was going to be fair. It’s always best to go into it with your eyes wide open, because anything can — and will — happen, given the right (or wrong) set of circumstances.
Unfortunately, it happened to Kenny Darby. Then again, when it’s all said and done, and it might not be unfortunate at all.
Contact JJ at johnjamesmarshall@yahoo.com