Booty Is Nearing Decision on School

A day after speaking with USC Coach Pete Carroll, the father of Louisiana high school quarterback John David Booty said his son is on the verge of deciding whether to bypass his senior season and enroll at USC in the fall.

“We’re getting close,” John Booty said Sunday. “We just want to make sure we’ve dotted every ‘i’ and crossed every ‘t.’ ”

John David Booty made a commitment to USC last month. With only one credit needed to graduate from Evangel Christian Academy in Shreveport, he planned to play his final high school season, graduate early and enroll at USC next spring.

That timetable potentially changed when the chancellor of Evangel Christian relieved John Booty of his duties as quarterback coach Friday, throwing the nationally ranked Evangel program into disarray.

NCAA rules forbid coaches to talk publicly about recruits until they receive signed letters of intent or are enrolled in school. The Bootys spoke with Carroll on Saturday to get his feedback.

John Booty said his son would meet with Evangel Christian counselors today for confirmation that he can fulfill graduation requirements in the next few months. He said the family also would contact the NCAA Clearinghouse.

Tom Hansen, commissioner of the Pacific 10 Conference, said athletes are eligible to compete if they complete the required core high school classes, receive a qualifying score on a college assessment test, graduate from high school and are certified by the NCAA Clearinghouse.

If Booty enrolls at USC, he probably will be given the opportunity to compete for the starting quarterback job, though he would have only three weeks of training camp before the Aug. 30 opener against Auburn.

-- Gary Klein