The fourth year of college football’s early signing period added a few difficult hurdles for coaches and recruiters to overcome.
The advent of the COVID-19 pandemic not only limited campus visits for would-be recruits, but essentially eliminated all in-person meetings that could otherwise have taken place between players and coaches. How that affects the outcome of this year’s class remains to be seen, but one thing is apparent already:
Pandemic or no, college football’s top teams will do just fine in the 2021 recruiting class.
WEEK 15 PROJECTIONS: Playoff | Bowls
Heading into Wednesday’s 72-hour early signing period, No. 1 Alabama and No. 2 Ohio State created a significant distance between themselves and the rest of the pack. Teams such as Georgia, Clemson and LSU also stand to pull in elite classes that have legitimate College Football Playoff aspirations.
Even so, there are a few battles still left to be won, such as No. 1 overall recruit Korey Foreman. The strong-side defensive end seems to have narrowed his choices to USC and LSU. Other players, such as strong-side defensive end J.T. Tuimoloau (No. 3 overall), offensive tackle Tristan Leigh (No. 11 overall) and inside linebacker Terrence Lewis (No. 16 overall) remain uncommitted as well.
Follow along as Sporting News tracks the biggest commitments and signings from the early signing period:
MORE: Eight possible CFP scenarios from championship weekend
College football signing day tracker 2021
(All player and team ratings reflect 247Sports Composite rankings).
Strong-side defensive ends
| Player (Overall rank) |
Star ranking |
Signed with |
| 1. Korey Foreman (No. 1) |
5-star |
|
| 2. J.T. Tuimoloau (No. 3) |
5-star |
|
| 3. Jack Sawyer (No. 4) |
5-star |
Ohio State |
| 4. Shemar Turner (No. 31) |
5-star |
Texas A&M |
| 5. Keeshawn Silver (No. 32) |
5-star |
North Carolina |
| 6. Tunmise Adeleye (No. 37) |
4-star |
|
| 7. Monkell Goodwine (No. 89) |
4-star |
|
| 8. Tyreak Sapp (No. 96) |
4-star |
|
Offensive tackles
| Player (Overall rank) |
Star ranking |
Signed with |
| 1. JC Latham (No. 2) |
5-star |
|
| 2. Tommy Brockermeyer (No. 5) |
5-star |
|
| 3. Amarius Mims (No. 7) |
5-star |
|
| 4. Tristan Leigh (No. 11) |
5-star |
|
| 5. Nolan Rucci (No. 15) |
5-star |
Wisconsin |
| 6. Kingsley Suamataia (No. 35) |
4-star |
|
| 7. Landon Tengwall (No. 50) |
4-star |
|
| 8. Blake Fisher (No. 52) |
4-star |
Notre Dame |
| 9. Savion Byrd (No. 62) |
4-star |
|
| 10. Micah Morris (No. 63) |
4-star |
Georgia |
| 11. Bram Walden (No. 82) |
4-star |
|
| 12. Giovanni El-Hadi (No. 85) |
4-star |
|
| 13. Reuben Fatheree (No. 87) |
4-star |
Texas A&M |
| 14. Garrett Dellinger (No. 90) |
4-star |
LSU |
Dual-threat quarterbacks
| Player (Overall rank) |
Star ranking |
Signed with |
| 1. Caleb Williams (No. 6) |
5-star |
Oklahoma |
| 2. Brock Vandagriff (No. 14) |
5-star |
|
| 3. Tyler Buchner (No. 65) |
4-star |
|
| 4. Jalen Milroe (No. 78) |
4-star |
|
Weak-side defensive ends
| Player (Overall rank) |
Star ranking |
Signed with |
| 1. Dallas Turner (No. 8) |
5-star |
|
| 2. Clayton Smith (No. 43) |
4-star |
Oklahoma |
| 3. Dylan Brooks (No. 51) |
4-star |
|
| 4. Demeioun Robinson (No. 64) |
4-star |
|
| 5. Jeremiah Williams (No. 73) |
4-star |
|
Wide receivers
| Player (Overall rank) |
Star ranking |
Signed with |
| 1. Emeka Egbuka (No. 9) |
5-star |
|
| 2. Jacorey Brooks (No. 34) |
5-star |
Alabama |
| 3. Troy Franklin (No. 36) |
4-star |
|
| 4. Mario Williams (No. 42) |
4-star |
Oklahoma |
| 5. JoJo Earle (No. 48) |
4-star |
|
| 6. Dont’E Thornton (No. 53) |
4-star |
|
| 7. Agiye Hall (No. 56) |
4-star |
|
| 8. Jayden Ballard (No. 66) |
4-star |
Ohio State |
| 9. Christian Leary (No. 68) |
4-star |
|
| 10. Deion Smith (No. 70) |
4-star |
|
| 11. Chris Hilton (No. 75) |
4-star |
|
| 12. Xavier Worthy (No. 76) |
4-star |
|
| 13. Brian Thomas Jr. (No. 79) |
4-star |
|
| 14. Beaux Collins (No. 83) |
4-star |
|
| 15. Marvin Harrison Jr. (No. 91) |
4-star |
Ohio State |
| 16. Deion Colzie (No. 98) |
4-star |
Notre Dame |
Defensive tackles
| Player (Overall rank) |
Star ranking |
Signed with |
| 1. Leonard Taylor (No. 10) |
5-star |
|
| 2. Maason Smith (No. 18) |
5-star |
|
| 3. Damon Payne (No. 19) |
5-star |
|
| 4. Mike Hall (No. 49) |
4-star |
Ohio State |
| 5. Tywone Malone (No. 61) |
4-star |
|
| 6. Lee Hunter (No. 80) |
4-star |
|
| 7. Payton Page (No. 93) |
4-star |
Clemson |
Pro-style Quarterbacks
| Player (Overall rank) |
Star ranking |
Signed with |
| 1. Sam Huard (No. 12) |
5-star |
|
| 2. J.J. McCarthy (No. 22) |
5-star |
|
| 3. Kyle McCord (No. 25) |
5-star |
Ohio State |
| 4. Ty Thompson (No. 39) |
4-star |
|
| 5. Jake Garcia (No. 46) |
4-star |
|
| 6. Drake Maye (No. 57) |
4-star |
North Carolina |
| 7. Miller Moss (No. 71) |
4-star |
|
| 8. Garrett Nussmeier (No. 86) |
4-star |
LSU |
Safeties
| Player (Overall rank) |
Star ranking |
Signed with |
| 1. James Williams (No. 13) |
5-star |
|
| 2. Sage Ryan (No. 28) |
5-star |
|
| 3. Derrick Davis Jr. (No. 58) |
4-star |
|
| 4. Kendal Daniels (No. 100) |
4-star |
Texas A&M |
Inside linebackers
| Player (Overall rank) |
Star ranking |
Signed with |
| 1. Terrence Lewis (No. 16) |
5-star |
|
| 2. Jeremiah Trotter Jr. (No. 41) |
4-star |
Clemson |
| 3. Deontae Lawson (No. 55) |
4-star |
Alabama |
| 4. Ethan Calvert (No. 74) |
4-star |
|
| 5. Reid Carrico (No. 84) |
4-star |
|
Offensive guards
| Player (Overall rank) |
Star ranking |
Signed with |
| 1. Donovan Jackson (No. 17) |
5-star |
Ohio State |
| 2. Terrence Ferguson (No. 54) |
4-star |
|
| 3. Rocco Spindler (No. 60) |
4-star |
Notre Dame |
| 4. Bryce Foster (No. 72) |
4-star |
|
| 5. Dylan Fairchild (No. 97) |
4-star |
Georgia |
Outside linebackers
| Player (Overall rank) |
Star ranking |
Signed with |
| 1. Xavian Sorey (No. 20) |
5-star |
|
| 2. Smael Mondon (No. 29) |
5-star |
|
| 3. Barrett Carter (No. 33) |
5-star |
Clemson |
| 4. Raesjon Davis (No. 45) |
4-star |
|
| 5. Junior Colson (No. 95) |
4-star |
|
| 4. Raneiria Dillworth (No. 99) |
4-star |
North Carolina |
Athletes
| Player (Overall rank) |
Star ranking |
Signed with |
| 1. Ja’Tavion Sanders (No. 21) |
5-star |
|
| 2. Billy Bowman (No. 38) |
4-star |
|
| 3. David Daniel (No. 92) |
4-star |
Georgia |
Cornerbacks
| Player (Overall rank) |
Star ranking |
Signed with |
| 1. Ga’Quincy McKinstry (No. 23) |
5-star |
|
| 2. Jason Marshall (No. 27) |
5-star |
|
| 3. Jakailin Johnson (No. 47) |
4-star |
Ohio State |
| 4. Jordan Hancock (No. 67) |
4-star |
Ohio State |
| 5. Nyland Green (No. 69) |
4-star |
|
| 6. Ceyair Wright (No. 77) |
4-star |
|
Running backs
| Player (Overall rank) |
Star ranking |
Signed with |
| 1. TreVeyon Henderson (No. 24) |
5-star |
Ohio State |
| 2. Camar Wheaton (No. 26) |
5-star |
|
| 3. LJ Johnson (No. 40) |
4-star |
|
| 4. Donovan Edwards (No. 44) |
4-star |
|
| 6. Armoni Goodwin (No. 94) |
4-star |
|
All-purpose backs
| Player (Overall rank) |
Star ranking |
Signed with |
| 1. Will Shipley (No. 30) |
5-star |
Clemson |
| 2. Evan Pryor (No. 81) |
4-star |
Ohio State |
Tight ends
| Player (Overall rank) |
Star ranking |
Signed with |
| 1. Jake Briningstool (No. 59) |
4-star |
Clemson |
| 2. Thomas Fidone (No. 88) |
4-star |
|
Top 10 2021 signing classes
| Rank (Conference rank) |
5-stars |
4-stars |
Points |
| 1. Alabama (No. 1 SEC) |
6 |
12 |
314.18 |
| 2. Ohio State (No. 1 Big Ten) |
5 |
13 |
310.39 |
| 3. Georgia (No. 2 SEC) |
3 |
12 |
289.11 |
| 4. LSU (No. 3 SEC) |
1 |
14 |
284.10 |
| 5. Clemson (No. 1 ACC) |
2 |
14 |
282.31 |
| 6. Oregon (No. 1 Pac-12) |
0 |
16 |
280.77 |
| 7. Florida (No. 4 SEC) |
1 |
14 |
267.27 |
| 8. Notre Dame (No. 1 Independent) |
0 |
11 |
265.00 |
| 9. Michigan (No. 2 Big Ten) |
1 |
11 |
261.13 |
| 10. Oklahoma (No. 1 Big 12) |
1 |
11 |
257.23 |
Source
