Leavitt's Recruiting to Be Graded

Getting recruits into South Florida has been easy, even if they had not met the NCAA’s initial eligibility requirements. Coach Jim Leavitt, who just completed his 11th season, merely had to collect the signatures on national signing day each February, then, if the recruits met the NCAA’s qualifying mark later that year, they would apply for admission to South Florida.

"We've gotten every one in," Leavitt told Brett McMurphy of the Tampa Tribune.

All that is about to change. A newly formed academic committee is now deciding the admission status of recruits who are academically at-risk.

Leavitt appeared before the committee last Thursday, six days before signing day, and neither South Florida provost Ralph Wilcox or associate vice president for enrollment planning and management Leellen Brigman would say whether they denied admission to any of Leavitt’s recruits. Leavitt declined to comment Monday.