Video: Four-Star WR Jacob Copeland Committed to Florida and His Mom Was Not Happy
National Signing Day is supposed to be an overwhelmingly joyous occasion for the parents of recruits. It's the summation of a process years in the making and a guarantee that their son will play football and go to college for free.
Someone forgot to tell Jacob Copeland's mother that.
Copeland, a four-star wide receiver, committed to Florida over Tennessee and Alabama on Wednesday in one of the more bizarre manners you'll see. He was sitting at a table with multiple people around him, some of whom were wearing Alabama sweatshirts. The man directly behind him was wearing a Tennessee windbreaker hat and his mother, who was one of the people wearing an Alabama sweatshirt, also had a Tennessee beanie on. Notably, no one was wearing Florida gear.
When Copeland put on the Florida hat, his mom got up and left without saying a word. The ESPN announcing crew then put Copeland on the spot by asking him who the person who left is. Credit to Copeland for answering the question straightforwardly; he told them that it's his mother and that he didn't know why she left, but that he felt good about his decision.
Obviously we don't know the circumstances surrounding Copeland's decision or why his mother was so seemingly disgusted with it, but certainly a little odd to see the parent of a high school senior storm off after he announces where he'll be going to college for free. It is, however, not the first time we've seen this. In 2012, a five-star safety committed to Alabama over LSU and his mother said it was the wrong choice. His name? Landon Collins.
Update: The mother came apparently came back, gave him a hug and signed the Letter of Intent.
