Photo by Andrew Kilzer, TexAgs
Texas A&M Football
Across the Board: SEC dominates Signing Day
The nation’s college football recruiting rankings look eerily similar to the final season rankings.
Which means the Southeastern Conference dominated again.
Five SEC teams ranked among the top 10 in the final Associated Press 2012 poll, including No. 1 Alabama. As many as six SEC teams placed in the top 10 in the national recruiting rankings, including No. 1 Alabama.
Alabama, Auburn, Florida, LSU, Ole Miss and Texas A&M were ranked 10th or higher by at least one national recruiting service. Indeed, 12 of the 14 SEC teams were ranked at least 22nd or higher.
That speaks to the strength of the most powerful conference in college football, but it also shows what a difficult grind SEC teams face.
South Carolina coach Steve Spurrier can relate. The Gamecocks’ recruiting class is ranked as high as 16th, but just third in the East Division.
It could be worse, though.
“When you’re watching that TV, you’re saying, ‘Man, I’m glad I’m in the Eastern side instead of the Western side,” Spurrier said of National Signing Day. “But recruiting can be a little deceiving at times. You never know what you’ve got until you really, really play it out and so forth.”
Of course, an SEC team has won each of the past seven national championships. Each of those teams had a top-10 recruiting class within two years before winning the national title.
Here’s a glimpse of the SEC recruiting classes.
Head of the class: DE Jonathan Allen
Surprises: None really, though, Fort Worth DT A’Shawn Robinson was committed to Texas for a while.
Needs met: Even though T.J. Yeldon returns, there was a need at running back. Eddie Lacy is gone to the NFL and there were injuries there. The Tide responded by signing four four-star rated backs.
Comment: Alabama’s top-ranked class isn’t just No. 1 this year. Some have said it’s the best class accumulated by any program since Texas in 2002. The rich get richer.
Andrew Kilzer, TexAgs
Arkansas began assembling the pieces necessary to run the style of offense famous under Bielema at Wisconsin.
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Head of the class: RB Alex Collins
Surprises: QB Damon Mitchell of Egg Harbor City (N.J.) switched from Georgia Tech after visiting Fayetteville last week.
Needs met: Coach Bret Bielema used a power running game featuring road-grating offensive linemen to have a successful run at Wisconsin. He set the foundation for that at Arkansas by signing a pair of four-star rated guards, Denver Kirkland and Reeve Koehler, and junior college All-American tackle John McClure.
Comment: The zany story of Collins’ mother taking off with his Arkansas Letter of Intent to prevent him from leaving Florida is the stuff of Signing Day legend.
He’s expected to officially join the Hogs today, which will give Bielema a star running back to build his offense around.
Head of the class: DE Carl Lawson
Surprises: The Tigers haven’t had much success against Alabama lately, but they beat out the Tide for highly-regarded DT Montravius Adams.
Needs met: Defense was a major area of concern, especially up front. The Tigers were 97th in the nation against the run. They addressed glaring needs there by signing Adams, Lawson and flipping DE Elijah Daniels from Ole Miss.
Comment: Coach Gus Malzahn targeted defensive linemen, but he also needed to make a quick fix at several positions. He tried to accomplish that with six junior college players.
Andrew Kilzer, TexAgs
Will Muschamp's class both filled needs and provided the pieces to keep Florida's elite defense at that level for some time.
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Head of the class: DB Vernon Hargreaves III
Surprises: Perhaps it’s only a mild surprise that the Gators signed defensive tackles Jaynard Bostwick and Jarren Reed. Both were also pursued by Alabama. Beating the Tide once isn’t so uncommon, but beating Alabama twice is.
Needs met: The Gators needed to upgrade their receiving corps and offensive and defensive lines. They did. Florida signed five receivers and a dozen linemen.
Comment: Florida offered the opportunity for playing time and prospects jumped at it. The Gators were still hoping to add 6-5, 275-pound athlete Trevon Young, who may pursue a basketball career.
Head of the class: DB Tray Matthews
Surprises: A week ago, five-star rated offensive lineman Laremy Tunsil had said he was headed to Georgia, but he instead signed with Ole Miss.
Needs met: The defense and receivers were in need of a boost. The Bulldogs signed six linebackers and three defensive linemen. They also inked six receivers.
Comment: Rumors that Defensive Coordinator Todd Grantham may be leaving for the NFL might have contributed to a failure to close on Montravius Adams, who chose Auburn. But overall, the Bulldogs had a solid 32-member class — the largest ever for Coach Mark Richt.
Head of the class: DB Marcus McWilson
Surprises: Four-star rated DE Jason Hatcher reneged from a commitment to USC to sign with the Wildcats. Any time Kentucky beats USC for a football player, that’s a surprise.
Needs met: Coach Mark Stoops brought in Offensive Coordinator Neal Brown to install the Air Raid offense. That means the Wildcats needed receivers. They brought in five, including in-state speedster Ryan Timmons, who was also courted by Florida.
Comment: Stoops signed three four-star prospects. Kentucky had managed three in the three previous years combined. The class was Kentucky’s highest-rated ever.
Head of the class: DB Tre’Davious White
Surprises: Highly-rated New Jersey DE Tashawn Bower backed off a commitment to Auburn to join LSU.
Needs met: LSU lost its top three defensive ends and six linemen, so that area needed to be restocked. Bower headed a group of four incoming defensive ends. The Tigers also signed three defensive tackles.
Comment: The Tigers signed 15 out-of-state prospects, an unusually high number for them. They brought in players from as far away as New Jersey and California. LSU did not sign a tailback, but Coach Les Miles said their offensive line class may be his best ever.
TexAgs
Ole Miss barely missed a 7-5 record after blowing it against A&M, but won a bowl ... and followed with the nation's most surprising class.
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Head of the class: WR Laquon Treadwell
Surprises: Laremy Tunsil, the nation’s top-rated offensive lineman, jilted Georgia for Ole Miss. He was one of three five-star rated players to join the Rebels.
Needs met: Coach Hugh Freeze signed a group of four offensive linemen led by Tunsil and Austin Golson, another elite tackle prospect. The defense got huge boosts with DE Robert Nkemdiche and DB Antonio Conner.
Comment: Skeptics are accusing Ole Miss of cheating. Freeze responded by asking for specific allegations and tweeting the e-mail address for the compliance department.
Speaking of tweets, even LeBron James raved about the Ole Miss class via Twitter.
Head of the class: DE Chris Jones
Surprises: It’s not so much that Jones opted for Mississippi State over Ole Miss. But he reportedly received death threats while trying to decide.
Needs met: The Bulldogs signed six receivers and a couple of athletes who could play there. Among the class of receivers is Parade All-American Fred Ross of Tyler, who changed his commitment from Oklahoma State.
Comment: Dan Mullen has signed a Parade All-American in each of his five years in Starkville. The Bulldogs also plan to add cornerback Jahmere Irvin-Sills, who had originally committed to Auburn.
Andrew Kilzer
The Tigers' class ranked last in the SEC, which must be concerning after their 5-7 inaugural season.
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Head of the class: RB Chase Abbington
Surprises: Hopes were high in Columbia that St. Louis RB Ezekiel Elliott would come over.
He instead opted for Ohio State.
Needs met: Three offensive linemen were added to bolster a unit that was ravaged by injuries in 2012.
Comment: Eleven members of the Tigers’ 20-man class are from Missouri.
Just three signees are from Texas.
Head of the class: LB Larenz Bryant
Surprises: LB Jonathan Walton of Daphne, Ala., withstood pressure to stay in-state. His was one of the last letters of intent South Carolina received.
Needs met: The Gamecocks’ class was heavy on offensive and defensive linemen. They signed eight offensive linemen, but no receivers.
Comment: Only four members of the 21-player class are from South Carolina. Coach Steve Spurrier acknowledged next year offensive linemen won’t be a priority.
Head of the class: WR Marquez North
Needs met: Tyler Bray’s decision to declare for the NFL draft left the Volunteers in dire need of quarterbacks. They signed Riley Ferguson from North Carolina and flipped Georgia’s Joshua Dobbs from Arizona State.
Comment: The Vols lost safety Vonn Bell to Ohio State, but Butch Jones’ first class was boosted by getting Dobbs from Arizona State, Brown from Syracuse, defensive linemen Jaylen Miller from Georgia Tech and WR Jabo Lee from East Carolina.
Head of the class: WR Ricky Seals-Jones
Surprises: DE Daeshon Hall was thought to be leaning to Washington, but flipped to A&M on Signing Day.
Primary needs met: The Aggies wanted to get bigger and better in the defensive line and did that by adding Hall and heralded defensive tackles Isaiah Golden, Justin Manning and Hardreck Walker. They also brought in six receivers, who are all ranked among the nation’s top 50 at their position.
Comment: A&M addressed virtually ever need, although Coach Kevin Sumlin would have preferred to sign for than three offensive linemen. Junior college transfer LB Tommy Sanders and TE Cameron Clear could be immediate starters.
Andrew Kilzer, TexAgs
Unprecedented success continues to develop at Vandy under Franklin, who brought a stellar class to the private school.
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Highest national rank: 19th (Rivals, Scout)
Head of the class: QB Johnathon McCrary
Surprises: LB Zach Cunningham chose Vandy over several high-profile programs, including Auburn and Tennessee. He was the last player to turn in his letter of intent to the Commodores.
Needs met: Starting quarterback Jordan Rodgers completed his eligibility, so the Commodores have a need there.
They filled it with McCrary, a four-star rated prospect from Georgia who is an early enrollee. Vandy also signed QB Chad Kanoff of California.
Comment: Coach James Franklin assembled the highest-ranked class in Vandy history. He signed five four-star rated prospects.
Which means the Southeastern Conference dominated again.
Five SEC teams ranked among the top 10 in the final Associated Press 2012 poll, including No. 1 Alabama. As many as six SEC teams placed in the top 10 in the national recruiting rankings, including No. 1 Alabama.
Alabama, Auburn, Florida, LSU, Ole Miss and Texas A&M were ranked 10th or higher by at least one national recruiting service. Indeed, 12 of the 14 SEC teams were ranked at least 22nd or higher.
That speaks to the strength of the most powerful conference in college football, but it also shows what a difficult grind SEC teams face.
ESPN ranked us 8th in the nation in recruiting. Then, I looked at the next page and we’re ranked fifth in our league.
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ranked us 8th in the nation in recruiting. Then, I looked at the next
page and we’re ranked fifth in our league.","Author":"Texas A&M
coach Kevin Sumlin"}
“ESPN ranked us 8th in the nation in recruiting,” Texas A&M coach Kevin Sumlin said. “Then, I looked at the next page and we’re ranked fifth in our league.”South Carolina coach Steve Spurrier can relate. The Gamecocks’ recruiting class is ranked as high as 16th, but just third in the East Division.
It could be worse, though.
“When you’re watching that TV, you’re saying, ‘Man, I’m glad I’m in the Eastern side instead of the Western side,” Spurrier said of National Signing Day. “But recruiting can be a little deceiving at times. You never know what you’ve got until you really, really play it out and so forth.”
Of course, an SEC team has won each of the past seven national championships. Each of those teams had a top-10 recruiting class within two years before winning the national title.
Here’s a glimpse of the SEC recruiting classes.
Alabama
Highest national rank: 1st (Rivals, ESPN, 24/7)Head of the class: DE Jonathan Allen
Surprises: None really, though, Fort Worth DT A’Shawn Robinson was committed to Texas for a while.
Needs met: Even though T.J. Yeldon returns, there was a need at running back. Eddie Lacy is gone to the NFL and there were injuries there. The Tide responded by signing four four-star rated backs.
Comment: Alabama’s top-ranked class isn’t just No. 1 this year. Some have said it’s the best class accumulated by any program since Texas in 2002. The rich get richer.
Andrew Kilzer, TexAgs
Arkansas began assembling the pieces necessary to run the style of offense famous under Bielema at Wisconsin.
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Arkansas
Highest national rank: 22nd (24/7)Head of the class: RB Alex Collins
Surprises: QB Damon Mitchell of Egg Harbor City (N.J.) switched from Georgia Tech after visiting Fayetteville last week.
Needs met: Coach Bret Bielema used a power running game featuring road-grating offensive linemen to have a successful run at Wisconsin. He set the foundation for that at Arkansas by signing a pair of four-star rated guards, Denver Kirkland and Reeve Koehler, and junior college All-American tackle John McClure.
Comment: The zany story of Collins’ mother taking off with his Arkansas Letter of Intent to prevent him from leaving Florida is the stuff of Signing Day legend.
He’s expected to officially join the Hogs today, which will give Bielema a star running back to build his offense around.
Auburn
Highest national rank: 8th (Rivals)Head of the class: DE Carl Lawson
Surprises: The Tigers haven’t had much success against Alabama lately, but they beat out the Tide for highly-regarded DT Montravius Adams.
Needs met: Defense was a major area of concern, especially up front. The Tigers were 97th in the nation against the run. They addressed glaring needs there by signing Adams, Lawson and flipping DE Elijah Daniels from Ole Miss.
Comment: Coach Gus Malzahn targeted defensive linemen, but he also needed to make a quick fix at several positions. He tried to accomplish that with six junior college players.
Andrew Kilzer, TexAgs
Will Muschamp's class both filled needs and provided the pieces to keep Florida's elite defense at that level for some time.
{"Module":"photo","Alignment":"left","Size":"large","Caption":"Will Muschamp\u0027s class both filled needs and provided the pieces to keep Florida\u0027s elite defense at that level for some time.","MediaItemID":21624}
Florida
Highest national rank: 2nd (ESPN)Head of the class: DB Vernon Hargreaves III
Surprises: Perhaps it’s only a mild surprise that the Gators signed defensive tackles Jaynard Bostwick and Jarren Reed. Both were also pursued by Alabama. Beating the Tide once isn’t so uncommon, but beating Alabama twice is.
Needs met: The Gators needed to upgrade their receiving corps and offensive and defensive lines. They did. Florida signed five receivers and a dozen linemen.
Comment: Florida offered the opportunity for playing time and prospects jumped at it. The Gators were still hoping to add 6-5, 275-pound athlete Trevon Young, who may pursue a basketball career.
Georgia
Highest national rank: 9th (Scout)Head of the class: DB Tray Matthews
Surprises: A week ago, five-star rated offensive lineman Laremy Tunsil had said he was headed to Georgia, but he instead signed with Ole Miss.
Needs met: The defense and receivers were in need of a boost. The Bulldogs signed six linebackers and three defensive linemen. They also inked six receivers.
Comment: Rumors that Defensive Coordinator Todd Grantham may be leaving for the NFL might have contributed to a failure to close on Montravius Adams, who chose Auburn. But overall, the Bulldogs had a solid 32-member class — the largest ever for Coach Mark Richt.
Coach Mark Stoops brought in Offensive Coordinator Neal Brown to install the Air Raid offense. That means the Wildcats needed receivers. They brought in five.
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Kentucky
Highest national rank: 27th (Rivals)Head of the class: DB Marcus McWilson
Surprises: Four-star rated DE Jason Hatcher reneged from a commitment to USC to sign with the Wildcats. Any time Kentucky beats USC for a football player, that’s a surprise.
Needs met: Coach Mark Stoops brought in Offensive Coordinator Neal Brown to install the Air Raid offense. That means the Wildcats needed receivers. They brought in five, including in-state speedster Ryan Timmons, who was also courted by Florida.
Comment: Stoops signed three four-star prospects. Kentucky had managed three in the three previous years combined. The class was Kentucky’s highest-rated ever.
LSU
Highest national rank: 6th (Rivals, Scout)Head of the class: DB Tre’Davious White
Surprises: Highly-rated New Jersey DE Tashawn Bower backed off a commitment to Auburn to join LSU.
Needs met: LSU lost its top three defensive ends and six linemen, so that area needed to be restocked. Bower headed a group of four incoming defensive ends. The Tigers also signed three defensive tackles.
Comment: The Tigers signed 15 out-of-state prospects, an unusually high number for them. They brought in players from as far away as New Jersey and California. LSU did not sign a tailback, but Coach Les Miles said their offensive line class may be his best ever.
TexAgs
Ole Miss barely missed a 7-5 record after blowing it against A&M, but won a bowl ... and followed with the nation's most surprising class.
{"Module":"photo","Alignment":"right","Size":"large","Caption":"Ole Miss barely missed a 7-5 record after blowing it against A&M, but won a bowl ... and followed with the nation\u0027s most surprising class.","MediaItemID":22669}
Ole Miss
Highest national rank: 5th (ESPN)Head of the class: WR Laquon Treadwell
Surprises: Laremy Tunsil, the nation’s top-rated offensive lineman, jilted Georgia for Ole Miss. He was one of three five-star rated players to join the Rebels.
Needs met: Coach Hugh Freeze signed a group of four offensive linemen led by Tunsil and Austin Golson, another elite tackle prospect. The defense got huge boosts with DE Robert Nkemdiche and DB Antonio Conner.
Comment: Skeptics are accusing Ole Miss of cheating. Freeze responded by asking for specific allegations and tweeting the e-mail address for the compliance department.
Speaking of tweets, even LeBron James raved about the Ole Miss class via Twitter.
Mississippi State
Highest national rank: 20th (Scout)Head of the class: DE Chris Jones
Surprises: It’s not so much that Jones opted for Mississippi State over Ole Miss. But he reportedly received death threats while trying to decide.
Needs met: The Bulldogs signed six receivers and a couple of athletes who could play there. Among the class of receivers is Parade All-American Fred Ross of Tyler, who changed his commitment from Oklahoma State.
Comment: Dan Mullen has signed a Parade All-American in each of his five years in Starkville. The Bulldogs also plan to add cornerback Jahmere Irvin-Sills, who had originally committed to Auburn.
Andrew Kilzer
The Tigers' class ranked last in the SEC, which must be concerning after their 5-7 inaugural season.
{"Module":"photo","Alignment":"left","Size":"large","Caption":"The Tigers\u0027 class ranked last in the SEC, which must be concerning after their 5-7 inaugural season.","MediaItemID":25224}
Missouri
Highest national rank: 36th (Scout)Head of the class: RB Chase Abbington
Surprises: Hopes were high in Columbia that St. Louis RB Ezekiel Elliott would come over.
He instead opted for Ohio State.
Needs met: Three offensive linemen were added to bolster a unit that was ravaged by injuries in 2012.
Comment: Eleven members of the Tigers’ 20-man class are from Missouri.
Just three signees are from Texas.
South Carolina
Highest national rank: 16th (Rivals)Head of the class: LB Larenz Bryant
Surprises: LB Jonathan Walton of Daphne, Ala., withstood pressure to stay in-state. His was one of the last letters of intent South Carolina received.
Needs met: The Gamecocks’ class was heavy on offensive and defensive linemen. They signed eight offensive linemen, but no receivers.
Comment: Only four members of the 21-player class are from South Carolina. Coach Steve Spurrier acknowledged next year offensive linemen won’t be a priority.
Tennessee
Highest national rank: 20th (Rivals)Head of the class: WR Marquez North
Butch Jones’ first class was boosted by getting Dobbs from Arizona State, Brown from Syracuse, defensive linemen Jaylen Miller from Georgia Tech and WR Jabo Lee from East Carolina.
{"Module":"quote","Alignment":"right","Quote":"Butch Jones’ first class was boosted by getting Dobbs from Arizona State, Brown from Syracuse, defensive linemen Jaylen Miller from Georgia Tech and WR Jabo Lee from East Carolina.","Author":""}
Surprises: DE Malik Brown of West Palm Beach, Fla. claimed he went to sleep Tuesday night unsure with which program he would sign. He said he awoke at 2:30 a.m. with Tennessee on his mind, so he signed with the Volunteers over Syracuse.Needs met: Tyler Bray’s decision to declare for the NFL draft left the Volunteers in dire need of quarterbacks. They signed Riley Ferguson from North Carolina and flipped Georgia’s Joshua Dobbs from Arizona State.
Comment: The Vols lost safety Vonn Bell to Ohio State, but Butch Jones’ first class was boosted by getting Dobbs from Arizona State, Brown from Syracuse, defensive linemen Jaylen Miller from Georgia Tech and WR Jabo Lee from East Carolina.
Texas A&M
Highest national rank: 6th (Scout)Head of the class: WR Ricky Seals-Jones
Surprises: DE Daeshon Hall was thought to be leaning to Washington, but flipped to A&M on Signing Day.
Primary needs met: The Aggies wanted to get bigger and better in the defensive line and did that by adding Hall and heralded defensive tackles Isaiah Golden, Justin Manning and Hardreck Walker. They also brought in six receivers, who are all ranked among the nation’s top 50 at their position.
Comment: A&M addressed virtually ever need, although Coach Kevin Sumlin would have preferred to sign for than three offensive linemen. Junior college transfer LB Tommy Sanders and TE Cameron Clear could be immediate starters.
Vanderbilt
Andrew Kilzer, TexAgs
Unprecedented success continues to develop at Vandy under Franklin, who brought a stellar class to the private school.
{"Module":"photo","Alignment":"right","Size":"large","Caption":"Unprecedented success continues to develop at Vandy under Franklin, who brought a stellar class to the private school.","MediaItemID":19564}
Head of the class: QB Johnathon McCrary
Surprises: LB Zach Cunningham chose Vandy over several high-profile programs, including Auburn and Tennessee. He was the last player to turn in his letter of intent to the Commodores.
Needs met: Starting quarterback Jordan Rodgers completed his eligibility, so the Commodores have a need there.
They filled it with McCrary, a four-star rated prospect from Georgia who is an early enrollee. Vandy also signed QB Chad Kanoff of California.
Comment: Coach James Franklin assembled the highest-ranked class in Vandy history. He signed five four-star rated prospects.
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