On Tuesday he arrived at school with 11 new voice mails, returned them, and then had a 90-minute doctor appointment. Eight more messages were waiting when he returned. He got to half of them, went to class and came back to the office with 11 more messages.
That’s what happens when your prized football pupil – MaxPreps 2009 National Player of the Year Dillon Baxter – announces he is re-considering his plans to attend the University of Southern California.
"TV stations, newspapers, the L.A. Times and coaches – they’re all coming at once," Matson said good-naturedly for a guy suffering from phone ear.
But if Matson is getting torpedoed as the liaison, imagine the 6-foot, 205-pound Baxter, who probably avoided less tacklers this year while accounting for a state-record 76 touchdowns or 2,974 rushing yards and 50 scores on the ground alone.
Mission Bay's Dillon Baxter (28), shown this past season, had one of the most prolific careers in California history.
File photo by Steven Silva
"He’s getting bombarded with texts (messages)," Matson said. "Honestly, at this point he’s probably feeling a little like a ping-pong ball."
The problem, as the football planet knows, is that USC coach Pete Carroll announced his resignation Sunday night and that he accepted the same post for the Seattle Seahawks. Baxter, who had a terrific showing at the U.S. Army All-American Bowl in San Antonio over the weekend, made it quite clear he felt betrayed by Carroll and the Trojans and announced he was re-opening his college plans.
Any recruit whose future coach goes to greener pastures is going to be rocked – especially Baxter, who is on target to graduate in a couple weeks. He made that large commitment so he could enroll at USC early and attend spring practice so he could contribute right away.
Add in the fact that Carroll had reportedly planned to implement the wildcat offense next season to utilize the many skills of Baxter, who played quarterback at Mission Bay but is also suited for running back or slot receiver in college. He completed 102 of 166 passes (61 percent) for 1,736 yards and 25 TDs last season.
With all those plans and expectations, Baxter felt blindsided. But, just like the gridiron itself, Baxter had to get over the sting and start making new plans.
He firmed up a recruiting trip to Oregon this weekend and re-connected with many of his other finalists, including Florida, Michigan and Oklahoma.
In the meantime, Lane Kiffin, a coach with many USC ties, quickly moved into Carroll’s spot, and there are strong rumors another former USC man, offensive coordinator Norm Chow, is ready to jump UCLA’s ship to return to the Trojans. Suddenly, the USC program which Baxter felt spurned by and wanted to burn, is perhaps back in the picture.
According to Matson, Kiffin texted Baxter on Wednesday and set up a phone conversation later in the afternoon.
"Since (San Antonio) he’s calmed down quite a bit," Matson said. "Frankly, he didn’t know much about coach Kiffin other than he was an ex-USC coach and coached the Raiders."
So, where does Matson think Baxter will end up?
"Honestly, honestly, honestly, I do not even have a gut feeling right now," he said Wednesday afternoon. "It’s totally up in the air."
Matson did offer some key information: Baxter isn’t tied to California or any coast, though his father lives in Florida.
With a pigskin pointed to our head, here’s what we think will shake out.
USC (40 percent):
Kiffin is a master recruiter, but his change-of-direction career might scare off recruits somewhat. This does appear truly to be his dream job, however. USC has fought off recruiting investigations in the recent past, and Kiffin had his own share of small infractions over the years. Again, that could concern Baxter somewhat. The recent "betrayal" he felt, however understandable, is probably a bigger reason Baxter would stray beyond Southern California.
Ultimately, his plans and dreams to leave school early and attend USC and carry the ball for the Trojans are all in place. Just with Kiffin replacing Carroll. The new staff Kiffin is stacking up appears formidable. If the Trojans land Chow, I’d say the chances Baxter keeps his original commitment is about 80 percent. As it is today, I still think his choice will be at USC.
FLORIDA (20 percent):
Connection to family is always key, and Baxter has been ear-marked to take Percy Harvin’s old dual role with the Gators.
OREGON (20 percent):
On the West Coast with a proven winner and a high-octane offense that features explosive quarterback Jeremiah Masoli, a player Baxter could perhaps one day replace.
OKLAHOMA (10 percent):
Bob Stoops in awfully convincing, and Oklahoma and Norman is football-crazy. Lots of points and yards.
MICHIGAN (10 percent):
Baxter has already visited Ann Arbor and had an excellent experience. A chance to get the Wolverines back into the national mix would be a great pull.
