Better to Be Undecided Than to Be Unrequited

On rare occasions, a teenager can prove wiser than a 56-year-old.

Just compare how Erik Lorig and John Barnes handled big decisions this month.

Lorig, a senior tight end at Rolling Hills Estates Peninsula, has been ridiculed, laughed at and has left football fans exasperated by his tedious, seemingly never-ending odyssey of trying to settle on a college choice.

On Feb. 2, letter of intent day, Lorig declined to sign. Three weeks later, he still hasn’t finalized his choice.

He has stopped answering his phone at home because too many people want him to decide immediately, and he has stubbornly stuck to his deliberate evaluation process.

“It came down to that final day, and I really got anxiety and couldn’t handle the situation,” he said. “At that moment, I could have chosen one school, but I knew it wasn’t right. The thing to do was take my time and get it right.”

As for Barnes, the winningest football coach in Orange County history, he announced Tuesday he was moving from Los Alamitos to Anaheim Servite. He signed a contract with Servite. He met his new players and the media. Then, four hours later, he changed his mind and decided to stay at Los Alamitos.

Who looks more foolish, Lorig or Barnes?

In truth, neither should be criticized for doing what’s right for himself and his family, though Barnes’ reversal caused great embarrassment to Servite and might raise a credibility issue in future dealings with him.

Barnes did a favor to Lorig, who suddenly looks mature and every bit as smart as his 4.0 grade-point average suggests.

Lorig admitted, “I did procrastinate about the situation. I didn’t take it very seriously until the week before [letter-of-intent day], and it wasn’t enough time.”

But he has the courage to wait and be certain rather than make an ill-informed decision. He doesn’t want to be part of a debacle, and that’s what happened earlier this week in Orange County.

Lorig said he’s getting close to deciding from among UCLA, USC, California and Stanford. He has made unofficial recruiting visits in recent weeks. When he knows, he said he’ll make an announcement, and you can be certain there won’t be a second one four hours later.

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Lorig is a reserve on Peninsula’s boys’ basketball team, and he’s getting an up-close view of the Panthers’ next big-time college prospect, 6-foot-5 1/2 sophomore forward John Reed.

Reed scored 30 points in Peninsula’s Division I-AA upset of third-seeded Lynwood last week. He had 21 points Tuesday in a second-round victory over Anaheim Esperanza. Unseeded Peninsula (20-10) can establish itself as a true bracket-buster if it defeats host Diamond Bar in tonight’s quarterfinals.

Reed, the son of an elementary school teacher, is left-handed and cool under pressure. He played on the sophomore team last season and took his time adjusting to varsity basketball.

“Early in the season, I was like, ‘I’m a sophomore. I’m not supposed to do much for the team. I’m supposed to sit back and let the older people do it,’ ” he said. “Later, I realized I have a lot to put in to help us win and needed to step up to contribute.”

Coach Jim Quick couldn’t be more pleased with Reed’s development in the playoffs.

“What makes him special is he lets us coach him,” Quick said. “After the Lynwood game, he comes to the sideline, I hug him and tell him how well he did, and then he goes into the stands and hugs his mom. I wish I had 12 [players] like him.”

Reed is on the verge of joining the list of an outstanding sophomore class that includes Taylor King of Santa Ana Mater Dei and Chace Stanback of Los Angeles Fairfax.

“I think I’m good enough to be up with them and want a chance to play against players like them,” he said.

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Kevin Gibson, the boys’ basketball coach at Los Angeles Dorsey, faced one of his toughest decisions as a coach and father last week.

He suspended his son, Kyle, the team’s top player, from participating in the Dons’ playoff opener against Carson, a game Dorsey lost, 68-60.

“He didn’t take care of business at home,” Gibson said. “If I hadn’t been a coach and he had broken the same rule, the same thing would have happened. It was tough love, and he understood. I’m trying to raise him the right way.”

Gibson received pressure to play his son, but Kyle stayed on the bench during the game and never made an appearance.

“I know he loves playing basketball, and this would grab his attention,” Gibson said. “He’s getting ready to go to college and must understand that life will kick him in the butt more than I did.”

Eric Sondheimer can be reached at eric.sondheimer@latimes.com