Texas A&M Recruiting Flashback: Floyd Raven's "Soft Signature" to Ole Miss

On the morning of National Signing Day, a LOI (letter of intent) for Floyd Raven rolled across a fax machine in Oxford, MS as expected. After an apparent issue with the letter not being legible, Ole Miss officials reached out to Raven requesting that he send another. As they waited for the second LOI, word began to spread that Floyd had never even signed the original. Apparently his mother, either because she selfishly wanted him in Oxford despite his wishes or because Floyd hadn't told her he changed his mind and wanted to play ball at Texas A&M, had forged his signature and faxed it to the Ole Miss football offices. Raven's official LOI, with his legitimate signature, meanwhile had been faxed to then-head coach at Texas A&M, Mike Sherman. The Rebel compliance office was left with no choice but to reject the LOI they had received due to the forgery, allowing the Aggies to accept the one they received. The strangeness of the situation even caused then-Athletic Director at Ole Miss, Pete Boone, to respond on Twitter where he coined the term "soft signature".

After pointlessly having his redshirt burned in 2011, Mike Sherman's final year, Floyd Raven has become a solid contributor in the Aggie secondary and a crucial member on special teams. Raven brings a unique skill set to the Aggies with his size and physicality. Which is crucial in our new league with their physical brand of football and the big receivers. Through the first four games in 2012, he has recorded seven tackles with two coming for a loss and also has a sack. In one of the strangest stories to happen in recruiting, a business where nothing should come as a complete shock, the Aggies surprisingly came out on top. Good news because Floyd Raven will be a player for the Maroon and White for years to come.