Jarvis Landry has nearly 3,400 friends — on Facebook.
 
He says most are people he knows, but he admits some are “fans” he has never met before. Being a five-star recruit brings added publicity that Landry said he has grown accustomed to.
 
“Every time I check my Facebook I have more than 20 requests,” Landry said. “I’ve accepted about 97 people since Signing Day [on Feb. 2], so it’s been pretty crazy on Facebook for me.”
 
Landry said he takes Facebook as an opportunity to interact with his fans. He has received messages from kids asking for advice, and Landry said he always tries to help them with their futures.
 
Landry also understands how public his Facebook profile can be and said he tries to present himself in a positive way. The name on his profile reads “Jarvis Godfirst Landry.”
 
“I try to stay clean on Facebook,” Landry said. “I try to make sure all my statuses are free from curse words and bad language. I try to do the right thing.”
 
However, not all recruits find interacting with strangers on Facebook as pleasant as Landry.
 
LSU signee Trai Turner, a three-star offensive lineman from New Orleans, said he has experienced frustration with his high-profile Facebook profile.
 
“At first it was cool. Then it started getting annoying,” Turner said. “They start sending you messages and popping up on your wall. I understand where they’re coming from, but it’s aggravating to a certain extent.”
 
It’s not just supporters that post on a recruit’s Facebook. Sometimes, fans of rival schools have less than pleasant things to say about another school’s player.
 
Such was the case for five-star linebacker C.J. Johnson. The Philadelphia, Miss., native originally committed to Mississippi State before wavering on his choice after defensive coordinator Manny Diaz departed for Texas. Johnson later signed with Ole Miss and received such heavy criticism from Bulldog fans that he deactivated his Facebook and sent a message to the Mississippi State community.
 
“I’m not considering Mississippi state anymore bc you have constantly comment on my page send me crazy inboxes and has made my recruiting experience a living nightmare,” read Johnson’s Facebook status in late January.
 
Most attacks referred to rumors that claimed Johnson’s mother cleaned the house of someone affiliated with Ole Miss and was paid $100,000 for her services. Johnson later admitted the Facebook criticism only played a part in his decision, but the hurtful attacks did have an effect.
 
Communication studies professor Loretta Pecchioni said the nature of Facebook lends itself to disappointed fans being able to voice their displeasure.
 
“It gives people a license to be mean,” Pecchioni said. “It’s easier to say mean things to you if I don’t have to look at your hurt face. It’s easy when you’re reading stuff online, and you can post immediately. It’s so spontaneous, and it’s not filtered.”
 
Three-star running back and LSU signee Terrance Magee, who doesn’t have a Facebook profile, said he wouldn’t let fan criticism in any form affect his decision to attend a school.
 
“Most of them are just fans,” Magee said. “When you go to a school, you don’t play for the fans — you play for the team and each other. If they have that low of self-esteem then they don’t need to be playing football anyway. You’re going to get criticized one way or another.”
 
The national publicity in college football recruiting has thrown recruits into the spotlight, and certain expectations of maturity come with that fame. Pecchioni said it’s difficult to expect these players to act with the maturity level of an adult.
 
“Should we expect them to have that maturity when they’re 17 or 18 years old and they’re deciding what college to go to?” Pecchioni said. “We do expect too much of them because it’s so public.”
 
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Contact Hunter Paniagua at
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