National Signing Day 2020: Winners and losers – Georgia hits home run, USC strikes out

With National Signing Day 2020 coming to a close, these are the winners and losers coming out of the biggest day for college football recruiting.

Frankly, there wasn’t a lot left to be decided on National Signing Day 2020. The early signing period in December has killed quite a bit of the drama, pomp and circumstance, and even the excitement around National Signing Day. And yet, Feb. 5 still offered some twists and turns that will help shape the future of college football.

While 5-star running back and top-20 overall prospect, Zachary Evans, remains unsigned for now, there were big moves (or a lack thereof) on Wednesday. So let’s look at how everything transpired and peg some winners and losers from National Signing Day 2020. (Note: All rankings refer to the 247 Composite rankings.)

Winner: Georgia Bulldogs

It was a big day for Kirby Smart and the Georgia Bulldogs as they secured the No. 1-ranked class in the 247 Composite rankings. Yes, they got a little bit of help from Alabama not being able to land their top-dog on National Signing Day, but the Dawgs also reeled in some big fish as well.

Georgia landed a fourth 5-star prospect of their 2020 class with offensive tackle Broderick Jones, the No. 11 overall player and No. 2 player at the position, putting pen to paper for the Bulldogs. Further, they continued to keep the offensive line pipeline running as they inked four-star center, Sedrick Van Pran, as well, the No. 1 player at the position in this class.

Since Smart’s arrival, Georgia has been a beast on the recruiting trail and that’s not stopping anytime soon. The fact that they did it again and have the top class in college football makes them an unquestionable winner of National Signing Day.

Loser: USC Trojans

Once upon a time in a magical land known as California, the USC Trojans were kings. With Pete Carroll as their general, the Trojans were immensely successful. But under the direction of Clay Helton, the Trojans have since fallen by the wayside.

For whatever reason, USC retained Helton for the 2020 season at least and there is some hope behind Kedon Slovis that the Trojans can make some noise in the Pac-12. However, National Signing Day and the entire recruiting period offered very little optimism about what the future holds for the program.

USC didn’t even make the top 50 of the 247 Composite class rankings, coming in at No. 54. For a program with the arms and the prestige that the Trojans possess, that’s downright upsetting to see.

Winner: Miami Hurricanes

Much of the narrative around the Miami Hurricanes in the brief time under Manny Diaz has concerned their work in the transfer portal. Indeed, that will prove to be a determining factor in how good this team can be with quarterback D’Eriq King incoming for the 2020 season.

Outside of the portal though, Diaz and his staff did a phenomenal job in this recruiting period to try and get the Canes back into the mix atop the ACC. The highlight of National Signing Day for them was landing the No. 2 safety recruit in the 2020 class, Avantae Williams. Not only did they land a talented player but they won an in-state recruiting battle with Florida to do so.

Overall, Miami ended the day as the No. 13 class in the 247Sports Composite rankings, the second-best ranking for an ACC school behind only Clemson. If the goal is to get the Hurricanes back on the map, this feels like a nice start.

Loser: Alabama Crimson Tide

There’s a reason Nick Saban has cultivated the perception the Alabama Crimson Tide is a factory of NFL talent throughout his tenure. They consistently are among the top programs in the country in recruiting. And after National Signing Day, that’s no different as the Tide came in as the No. 2 overall class in the 247Sports Composite rankings.

Alabama’s not used to not being No. 1

Having said that, they come out of National Signing Day as a loser because the Crimson Tide had the chance to claim their spot as the top 2020 class. Instead, with defensive tackle McKinnley Jackson choosing Texas A&M, Alabama ended up coming in behind Georgia. With those two programs largely competing atop the SEC in recent years, those narrow margins can matter a great deal. But still, they’re not a “loser” in the true sense of the word.

Winner: Tennessee Volunteers

After a strong finish to the 2019 season, things are looking up for Jeremy Pruitt and the Tennessee Volunteers as they continue to move forward. Their big move of National Signing Day was flipping four-star wide receiver Malachi Wideman — all 6-foot-4.5, 197 pounds of him — from his previous commitment to Florida State. That flip bolstered a huge class for the Vols.

Though there are no five-star prospects in Pruitt’s 2020 recruiting class, a strong collection of four-star and three-star prospects (22 in total) has Tennessee with one of the top-10 classes in college football this year. For a program that has been in quite the quagmire, Pruitt is making a strong case that he can be the one to pull them out of it.

Loser: Auburn Tigers/Penn State Nittany Lions

Because they find their way into the category of “loser” for the same reason, we’re looping the Auburn Tigers and Penn State Nittany Lions into the same discussion. No, they aren’t losers because they missed out on recruits on National Signing Day but rather because both programs saw key pieces of their programs at running back entering the transfer portal.

For Auburn, their starting running back, JaTarvious Whitlow, made the decision to enter the transfer portal while Penn State saw former five-star recruit and the No. 1 all-purpose back in his class, Ricky Slade, do the same.

While Auburn still ends up with the No. 7 overall class in the 247Sports Composite rankings and Penn State sits at No. 15, losing players the caliber of Whitlow and Slade are not easy things for any program to contend with.

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