“That’s how recruiting works. Verbal commitments are not binding, for the athletes or coaches. Coaches reneg on commitments as much as, maybe more than, athletes.”
I would like to see data on this claim. In our experience, albeit in a “niche” sport, this is simply not the case. While there are always cases where recruiting does not work out, it is rarely a simple case of the coach, in particular, reneging on a hard offer. And, to the contrary, our experience is that it is more often the athletes who change their mind than it is the coaches.
“It is difficult to manage time and get good grades as a student-athlete at any school. Many student-athletes end up dropping their sport to focus on academics and GPA, especially if they aren’t getting the playing time to warrant the trade-off. With that said, a student-athlete may prioritize their sport as one of the top factors of their desired college experience.”
This is simply not accurate, although it depends on the relative academic acumen of the student-athlete. As an Ivy League recruit, our student-athlete often envied the easier course load, courses, and paths to graduation available to students at non-Ivies/non-“elite” schools.
There is a clear track for top recruits that is both aggressive and early in the process. Speaking for ourselves, but aware of many others in similar positions, top recruits commit as far in advance as summer of sophomore year in high school. Yes, these commitments are non-binding, but any coach who reneges on a hard offer, whenever it is made, risks both reputation and recruitment ability in future years. And, as SD points out above, at least for Ivies and elite private schools, recruited athletes almost always apply ED/EA, in which case they will hear from their school far in advance of when regular admission applications are due for other schools.