Oh, the perils of social media. College coaches probably wish they could just go back to the days of U.S. Mail and the telephone. Oklahoma coach Jay Norvell likely does, after he apparently failed to understand the difference between tweeting at a recruit and sending the recruit a direct message. The direct message feature of Twitter is private, but tweeting at an unsigned prospect is both public and a potential NCAA violation, though minor. Let's take a look at Norvell's tweets:
@10justscoredThis is Coach Jay Norvell from Oklahoma. Cel (405) 431-9954 Would like to offer you a Full Scholarship to Oklahoma. Call me!
— Jay Norvell (@CoachJayNorvell) February 21, 2012
That's Norvell tweeting at Rashaad Samples, a receiver out of Dallas Skyline High School. Norvell is considered an excellent recruiter for his work in Texas and California. He coaches offense for Oklahoma. And he's also going to need a new cell phone number after tweeting his out. The tweets have since been deleted, but not before screencaps were grabbed.
For more on OU football, visit Oklahoma blog Crimson And Cream Machine.