At 7 a.m. Wednesday, two and a half hours before her signing ceremony at Southeast Polk High School, Kadyn Proctor met with her mother and stepfather at their home in Altoona to quietly but officially take the next step in his football career.
The letter of intent documents for Alabama arrived in the mail Tuesday. Proctor signed them, took photos and texted members of the coaching staff to let them know his engagement was a done deal.
“So, I’m not going to lie, I went back to bed,” Proctor said with a smile.
Proctor could finally breathe a sigh of relief. The high school football star, one of the most coveted players in the country, was now part of the Crimson Tide program. The signing, snaps and symbolic ceremony that took place later that morning in front of friends, family and teammates at the Southeast Polk Auditorium capped a rocky recruiting for the star offensive tackle.
“It’s been a little stressful,” her mother, Sarah Proctor-Perkins, said of the past few days.
It was a wild ride for the 6-foot-7, 330-pound offensive lineman, who has long been heralded as one of the best players in the state and the country. He drew scholarship offers from all the big names, including Arkansas, Auburn, Florida, Nebraska, Notre Dame, Alabama, Oregon, and Ole Miss.
Proctor, listed by 247Sports as a five-star recruit and the top offensive tackle in the nation, signed up for Iowa in June. He was considered a Day 1 starter and the biggest name in the Hawkeyes’ 2023 recruiting class.
That didn’t stop the teams from trying to get Proctor to change his mind. NFL Hall of Famer Deion Sanders, who recently took over the job in Colorado, offered him a scholarship. Oregon was on hand to watch Proctor guide Southeast Polk to its second consecutive state football title in November. Alabama coach Nick Saban visited him on one of the first days he got to see rookies.
Proctor traveled to Alabama last weekend and was eventually convinced to reverse his engagement and join the Crimson Tide.
“When I went there and got to see everything that was planned for me, I just thought it was a better opportunity for me,” Proctor said.
Here’s a look at some of the other major storylines surrounding Proctor’s change of heart.
Did NIL play a role in Proctor’s decision to reverse his engagement? He says no
Proctor’s commitment to Alabama came amid speculation over a lucrative NIL (name-image-likeness) deal the school has set up to woo him. He said Wednesday that was not what convinced him to back down from his commitment to Alabama. He said it was about the resources Alabama had and the opportunities playing for the Crimson Tide presented.
“It’s not about the money because if people knew the financial situation, they wouldn’t talk about it,” Proctor said. But I wanted to go and play football at a prestigious school. (There’s) a lot of competition there and eventually it’s going to make me better.
Proctor acknowledged there was money involved, but he did not say how much Alabama was willing to shell out in NIL dollars to secure his services. Proctor’s mother was adamant that things like dormitories, team doctors and facilities played a bigger role in his decision to change commitments. She said her son was also influenced by the opportunity to play with athletes his size early on and help him get to the NFL.
Proctor said Iowa is ready to pony up.
“I don’t get paid as much (more) as Iowa was going to give me,” he said. People didn’t know that. But everyone has opinions.
Proctor says he would have ‘made it right’ by staying in Iowa
Proctor said he informed the Iowa coaching staff of his decision to opt out last week and hinted he was giving it some thought. He admitted that Iowa’s offensive struggles over the past two years were part of his thought process but didn’t play a major role. In fact, he liked the idea of stepping in and helping to change a program. But he thought playing in Alabama could tap into his potential more.
“I was thinking of moving to Iowa and when I went there (Alabama) I saw all the guys who are as tall as me and have the same mindset as me and work like me,” he said. wanted to do. I don’t want to go to this school and everyone thinks I’m already one of the best players there. I want to grow. That’s not how I grow up. I have to get punched in the mouth before I can grow. And I think getting punched in the mouth is competition (I need it).
During the weekend visit to Alabama, Proctor met Saban, hung out with players, and watched the Crimson Tide practice for their Sugar Bowl game with Kansas State. When he got back to his hotel room Saturday night, he told his mom he wanted to play in Alabama.
“He absolutely wanted to go to Iowa and I just thought, ‘Are you sure? Are you sure?'” Proctor-Perkins said.
Fallout from Proctor’s late pledge swap generates social buzz and backlash
Proctor committed to Saban on Sunday. Word began to get out earlier this week that Proctor was potentially returning to Alabama. The fallout drew widespread criticism as people took to social media to criticize the decision. Proctor’s announcement on Twitter on Tuesday was met with a barrage of negativity from people who questioned his loyalty and motives.
“It made me feel a little bad, but I can’t listen to that stuff,” he said. “It’s just mind-blowing that people in their 40s or 50s call me the p-word and say ‘F-you,’ I’m going to hell and stuff like that. It’s just crazy to hear. But I’m not giving in not to that stuff because if they were really Iowa fans they wouldn’t have talked about it and they would have been happy for me to go to Alabama and represent the state.
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