End of recruiting pause has football programs catching up

FILE - In this Dec. 8, 2019, file photo, Florida State head football coach Mike Norvell speaks during an NCAA college football news conference in Tallahassee, Fla. The NCAA has lifted the recruiting dead period that has been in place since March 13, 2020, due to the pandemic. The NCAA returned to its usual recruiting calendar Tuesday, June 1, 2021, allowing prospects to meet coaches in person and for coaches to conduct live evaluations of recruits. Florida State was welcoming recruits to campus just after midnight as part of its “Midnight Madness” event to mark the end of the dead period.(AP Photo/Phil Sears, File)

FILE - In this Friday, Nov. 20, 2020, file photo, Minnesota head coach P.J. Fleck enters the stadium with the team prior to the start of an NCAA college football game against Purdue, in Minneapolis. Fleck spoke for many coaches nationwide in December 2020, when he noted he still hadn’t shaken the hands of about half the prospects who were about to sign with his program. Those days finally are coming to an end. The NCAA has lifted the recruiting dead period that has been in place since March 13, 2020, due to the pandemic. The NCAA returns to its usual recruiting calendar Tuesday, June 1, 2021. (AP Photo/Stacy Bengs, File)