NATCHEZ — For Alcorn State head football coach Earnest Collins, these next couple of weeks are a critical step in laying the foundation for the program’s future.

National Signing Day is when high school senior college football prospects will sign with the universities they want to play with the next few years.

This year’s signing day is Feb. 3, which gives Collins a little over two weeks to put the wraps on the signing class of 2010.

“We’ve got some good recruits that are interested in our program,” Collins said. “You never really know with this sort of thing until the morning of signing day, when you get the (letter of intent) faxed to you with their names on it.”

Collins said his selling point to college football prospects is the long-term vision he has for the Braves.

“It’s the fact that we’re trying to build a program in itself, not just a football team,” Collins said.

“When it’s just a team, it’s up and down. You never know what you’re going to get when you have a team, but when you have a program, you expect to get better year in and year out.”

Developing young men is the main thing Collins wants to stress to parents of recruits, he said.

“It’s faith, family and football. That’s the order of importance. I want you to be a strong young man, have faith and know that you’re here to get an education. Football comes after all of that.

“I tell parents it’s a family atmosphere (at Alcorn). The most important thing is that they come in here with a high school diploma and leave with a college degree.”

Although Collins is open to athletes at any position, he said there are definitely certain areas of the team he wants to address specifically.

“We lost two pretty good young men in our secondary, and we have a hole or two to fill on the offensive line,” Collins said.

However, Collins also said he’s open to playmakers in general, regardless of position.

“I’m not turning down any athlete that can play, no matter what position he plays,” Collins said.