Early signing period for Division I football approved

The Collegiate Commissioners Association approved an early signing period for Division I football on Monday, officially allowing recruits in the 2018 class to sign their national letters of intent as early as Dec. 20.

The traditional signing period that begins in February is still available, but now recruits can choose to sign during a 72-hour window from Dec. 20-22. The new period coincides with the first three days of the junior college transfer signing period. The NCAA Division I Council already approved the change in April.

UCLA has nine verbal commits so far for the 2018 class who could consider using the early signing period to lock down their spots in Westwood. The group is led by four-star quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson from Las Vegas’ Bishop Gorman and includes three safeties: four-star prospects Stephan Blaylock (St. John Bosco) and Cam’ron Jones (Mansfield High, Texas) and three-star recruit Jhevon Hill (Cajon).

Other UCLA verbal commits:

  • ATH Isaiah Johnson
  • DL Aaron Maldonado
  • OT Blake McDonald
  • WR Kyle Phillips
  • RB AJ Carter