Not to be the bearer of potentially bad news, but there is some potentially bad news to bear. The key word being potentially. This is not anything to get too excited about right now -- save that for the fact that it looks like Jadeveon Clowney might be a Gamecock after all -- but there might be one more hurdle to get past if and when he signs: His grades.
Two people with knowledge of his classroom performance while attending South Pointe High School in Rock Hill, S.C., have raised questions over how he will be able meet the N.C.A.A.’s minimum academic standard if he wants to play next season.
The two people are Troy Davis, coach at Hargrave Military Academy, who as you might expect has as much reason as anyone to sort of hope that Clowney doesn't qualify and will instead play for Hargrave. The other is Clowney's high school English teacher, who would have less to gain from Clowney not making the cut and sounds more equivocal about whether that's an actual possibility.
Given the explosion by Steve Spurrier a few years ago about not having enough qualifying information on some recruits before signing day, it's hard to believe that someone in the university hasn't already checked into this. But it's something to keep on your radar screen just in case.
And no matter what happens, let's keep in mind that worrying about Clowney's grades after Monday would be a good problem to have. It's also good to remember that it's not something think about too much before then.