With National Signing Day just days away, we look at the top 10 college football recruiting classes for 2018.
College football recruiting never completely ends. But each year, we watch and celebrate the result of months (or often years) of work put in by college coaching staffs across the country, which culminates in high school and junior college prospects putting pen to paper on their letters of intent.
The traditional Signing Day in February has often been a day of drama. Of course, the process has changed slightly with the introduction of the early signing period in December, where more than two-thirds of FBS recruits solidified their college intentions.
As a result, there won’t be many surprises Wednesday when we see the final results of which players chose what school, and how each program ranks overall. At least, there won’t be too many surprises if you’ve been paying attention. Each of the top five players in the 247Sports Composite, 37 of the top 50, including 25 of the 29 players rated as five-star prospects, have already signed.
But much has yet to be finalized. We know Alabama won’t earn the No. 1 ranking for the first time in a long time, but the top spot is still up for grabs depending on how those final undecided shake out. And though they are on the outside of the top 10 and looking in, Florida State, LSU and USC have gained momentum in recent weeks, and all three have a shot at a big finish.
As we count down the final days of the 2018 period, we take a quick look at the top 10 college football recruiting classes ahead of National Signing Day.
- 2017 Class Ranking: 9 (No. 4 in SEC)
- 2016 Class Ranking: 9 (No. 5 in SEC)
- 2015 Class Ranking: 8 (No. 5 in SEC)
The Auburn Tigers have closed strong by picking up commitments from three talented high school players during the month of January: Running back Harold Joiner, a 6-foot-3, 218-pound running back ranked No. 5 nationally at his position, receiver Anthony Schwartz who is widely considered one of the fastest, if not the fastest player, in the entire country, and cornerback Roger McCreary, a potentially underrated three-star prospect.
The three new names bring Auburn’s total to 23, including eight players already enrolled and seven others that signed during the early period. The two four-star prospects helped the Tigers boost their average player rating to 0.9033, which ranks No. 12 nationally.
Joey Gatewood is arguably the most intriguing recruit in the class. Ranked No. 49 overall in the 247Sports Composite, and No. 1 nationally among those classified as athletes, Gatewood was a terrific high school quarterback. The 6-foot-4, 232-pound Florida native has been compared to Cam Newton (which is unfair to Gatewood), was an Elite 11 standout and played QB in the Under Armour All-American Game, so he can obviously help under center.
However, Gatewood faces a tough task earning playing time with starting QB Jarrett Stidham having two years of eligibility remaining and Malik Willis providing an exciting second option. Is it possible Gatewood follows a path similar to C.J. Uzomah at Auburn in order to get him on the field quicker – or is he good enough and dynamic enough to push his way toward the top of the quarterback depth chart as an underclassman?