Reader Poll: Craziest Recruitments of 2011

The modern day recruiting process is nothing if not a mind-numbing melodrama, but even so some master the art of the insanity better than others, and a select few achieve such a level of lunacy that you just have to stand back in awe of their utter madness. To that end, we'll honor the apogee of the delirium by selecting, via poll vote, the craziest of the craziest recruitments. I submit to you six candidates for this prestigious honor, with some background information for those who are unaware of what happened, so read through the options and make your selections in the poll provided below.

Brent Calloway: A lifelong 'Bama fan, Calloway was committed to Alabama for 18 months, and even though Auburn continued to recruit him as a tailback there were no real concerns. During the week of the Army All-American Game he was recruiting others to 'Bama, but after a late night conversation with an Auburn commitment he shocked everyone by committing to Auburn live on NBC, with the announcement having the general mood that he and his family had just been diagnosed with cancer. A visit to Auburn followed a week later with him sporting the Auburn garb, and he looked to make a return trip the following week. Except that when it came close to putting ink to paper and the Auburn signing looked imminent, apparently his father shouted something to the effect of, "Bitch, please!" A surprise visit to Tuscaloosa followed, which I'm pretty sure had the general tone of, "Boy, have you lost your damn mind?," and on National Signing Day Calloway signed with 'Bama.

Spencer Region: Another lifelong 'Bama fan, Region showed up to a public announcement ceremony to commit to Alabama, all the while he and his parents were decked out in 'Bama garb. At that point, of course, he shocked everyone by committing to Auburn, and the place quickly inherited the atmosphere of a funeral. He later dumped Auburn -- or, more likely, they dumped him -- and despite continued niceties from the 'Bama coaching staff, the Tide never really gave him any more serious consideration. He tried to catch on at LSU, Texas, and Wisconsin, but they all passed, and ultimately he signed with Clemson, which was presumably the only school keeping him from having to go to either UAB or Troy.

Cyrus Kouandjio: Long considered an Alabama lock, Kouandjio was higher on the Tide throughout much of the recruiting process than even his brother, Arie, who signed with Alabama the previous year. In the end, he decided to take an official visit on a whim to Auburn, canceling a visit to Miami because 'Bama hired former Miami OL coach Jeff Stoutland away from the Canes, but then shocked everyone by announcing on ESPNU that he would sign with the Tigers. Only problem was, about 30 minutes later, word came in that he thought he made the wrong choice and did not sign his letter of intent. A three-day circus ensued, complete with conference calls between coaches and innuendo of improper influence from his high school coach, at which point it was released that he would announce his decision the following Monday. What happened? Arie Kouandjio randomly posted the news on his Twitter page Saturday afternoon that his brother had indeed signed his letter of intent with Alabama.

Jeremy Hill: A highly-touted and heavily-recruited prospect out of Baton Rouge, Hill committed early to LSU, but nevertheless generated significant interest from Alabama and Auburn, among others. He later de-committed from LSU, looked ready to leave the state, then surprisingly re-committed to LSU weeks later. Four days after, he was arrested on a sexual battery charge after he and a classmate pressured a 14-year old girl to perform oral sex on him (and, of course, he put the whole thing on video). Not surprisingly, LSU did not list him as a signee on National Signing Day, though he is apparently being heavily recruited by Angola U.

Marcus Roberson: A heavily recruited DB prospect out of Florida, Roberson was long considered a heavy Auburn lean, but surprised many by committing to Texas Tech two weeks before National Signing Day. He de-committed shortly thereafter, and committed to Auburn three days before Signing Day. That, however, didn't last either, and it appeared that he was waffling on his Auburn commitment almost immediately, but nevertheless many thought it was Auburn v. Texas Tech down the stretch. So, come NSD, what does he do? Naturally... signs with Florida.

Floyd Raven: A Louisiana DB prospect who clearly wanted an LSU offer to stay home with the in-state Bayou Bengals, Raven committed to Ole Miss in December, but later wavered on that commitment. From there, after Alabama missed on Malcolm Mitchell, many had him going to the Tide, but a couple of days later there were reports of him committing to Texas A&M. That didn't stick either, though, and several days later he re-committed to Ole Miss. Then it became apparent that he was choosing between Ole Miss and Texas A&M on National Signing Day, and when that day arrived his letter of intent arrived in Oxford. Only one problem.. his mother had forged his signature and faxed in the LOI. In reality, Raven wanted to sign with the Aggies. Hours later, Ole Miss voided the letter of intent, and Raven signed with Texas A&M.