By By Adam Robinson – Sports Editor
W.S. Neal football player Jamar Travis may have finished his football career for the Blue Eagles, but he soon may be suiting up for another set of Eagles-the University of Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles.
This past Sunday night, Travis verbally committed to play for the Golden Eagles next season.
Lanny Mixon, publisher of BigGoldNation.com (a USM fan site) said people in Hattiesburg are excited about Travis.
Travis said that it was great to hear that from Southern Miss.
While Travis has committed to Southern Miss verbally, nothing is certain until National Signing Day on Feb. 4, 2009. National Signing Day is the first day a high school senior can sign a binding National Letter of Intent for college football.
Although there are numerous early signing periods for college sports, the one which falls on the first Wednesday in February is the most highly followed (since there is no early signing period for football recruits).
Typically, nearly every player offered a scholarship will sign on National Signing Day. Most players will have verbally committed to a school prior to this day; however, verbal commitments are non-binding and there have been several cases where a player will sign with a team other than the one to which the verbal commitment was made.
“As of right now, I am a verbal commit to Southern Miss,” Travis said. “I chose Southern Miss because Southern Miss is a program that looks like it is still coming up and it's a good program running and I think I can excel there more than all the programs I have on me now. I feel the most comfortable at Southern Miss.”
Troy University came into the picture also on Monday, seeking information about Travis. Southern Miss and Troy will face off against each other Sunday night in the New Orleans Bowl.
Travis was considered a strong Auburn commit, but recently the changes up on the Plains in Auburn have played an impact on his decision. Longtime coach Tommy Tuberville is out, and former assistant Gene Chizik is the new coach.
Travis said he is still a lean towards Auburn, but he wants to get to know the coaching staff more and see he likes them.
As to when a decision will be made, even Travis does not know who or when.
Travis is set to schedule official visits to both Southern Miss and Troy soon.
While Travis has been busy with being recruited and talking to coaches, he was busy this past week playing in the Alabama-Mississippi All-Star game in Mobile.
While the game was an All-Star game, one thing was missing.
So between now and Feb. 4, Travis will be busy in the weight room, talking to coaches, making visits and trying to decide on which school he will put his name on the dotted line and play college ball for.