The FBS Oversight Committee approved a package of recruiting calendar changes that has received less attention than the transfer portal window reduction. Two of those changes, taken together, have meaningful implications for families in the middle of an active recruiting process.
What the committee voted on
The FBS Oversight Committee recommended making the entire month of December an official recruiting dead period. Coaches would still be permitted to call, text, and email. But in-person contact (official visits, on-campus meetings, and off-campus evaluations) would not be permitted.
The same committee also recommended moving the earliest date for written financial aid offers from August 1 to November 15 of a prospect's senior year.
Both changes still require Administrative Committee approval, expected by October 1. They are targeted to take effect for the 2027 season.
The compressed pre-signing window
The Early Signing Period for football opens December 2. Under the proposed framework, official visits and in-person campus contact would need to be completed before December 1.
The combined effect of a November 15 written offer date and a December dead period compresses the pre-signing window considerably. A family could receive written revenue-share terms on November 15 and have roughly 15 days to schedule any remaining visits, review written terms, and compare programs before in-person contact is no longer permitted.
That is a short window for a consequential decision.
What families should take from this now
Coaches can still call, text, and email in December. What they cannot do is bring a recruit to campus or meet in person.
For most families, in-person experience matters most in a final decision. Official visits (the ones programs pay for, where families tour the facility, meet coaching staff, and assess fit) would not be permitted in December under this proposal.
The practical implication: plan official visits for September, October, and November. Do not treat December as a fallback window for visits that did not happen earlier in the fall.
Waiting until written terms arrive on November 15 to begin scheduling visits leaves minimal runway. The in-person evaluation that supports a confident signing-day decision should be well underway before written offers land.