National Signing Day: Oregon has top class but UGA, Ohio State are lurking

Date:

mwt10xxnfkzcbosmvszm.jpg

At the end of National Signing Day there still is not a clear picture as to which program will win the 2025 team rankings crown. Oregon currently sits with the top-ranked class followed by Georgia, Ohio State, Texas and Alabama. Take a look at where the team rankings stand along with the other major storylines at the end of National Signing Day.

NATIONAL SIGNING DAY: Winners and Losers | What’s left to follow with 2025 class? | The Gorney Awards | Live Blog | Announcement Guide

CLASS OF 2025 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | Team | Position | State


THE TOP FIVE PROGRAMS

© Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images

If Oregon can hang on to the top spot, the Ducks would be the first northern program to win the team rankings crown, an incredible feat in their first year in the Big Ten. Their strong finish started on Sunday they flipped four-star Zac Stascausky away from Washington and followed that up by flipping Rivals250 linebacker Gavin Nix away from Miami on Tuesday. On National Signing Day they closed with five-star cornerback Na’eem Offord, who flipped from Ohio State, Rivals250 quarterback Jaron Sagapolutele, who flipped from Cal, and Rivals250 defensive end Tobi Haastrup.

Oregon ended up signing a total of four five-stars. Top-ranked receiver Dakorien Moore stuck with his commitment to the Ducks and so did safety Trey McNutt and offensive lineman Douglas Utu. In all, head coach Dan Lanning and his staff signed 11 top-100 prospects and a total of 17 Rivals250 prospects.

Georgia didn’t add any new commitments on Wednesday but the Bulldogs still have the No. 2 class in the team rankings. The Bulldogs signed five-star defensive linemen Elijah Griffin and Isaiah Gibson along with No. 1 tight end Elyiss Williams. They’re still the favorite to sign five-star defensive lineman Justus Terry, who announces his commitment on Friday.

At No. 3 in the team rankings is Ohio State. The Buckeyes entered National Signing Day with the No. 1 class but losing Offord dropped them back, allowing other programs to pass them. Still, Ryan Day and company have an elite group of prospects coming to Columbus next year led by No. 1 overall prospect Tavien St. Clair, No. 1 defensive back Devin Sanchez and No. 2 linebacker Riley Pettijohn.

Kalen DeBoer’s first full recruiting class as Alabama’s head coach is a great one. The No. 4 overall class features three five-stars in quarterback Keelon Russell, offensive lineman Michael Carroll and defensive back Dijon Lee Jr. Alabama still holds a commitment from top-40 prospect Ty Haywood but it’s looking like the offensive lineman will end up signing elsewhere.

The Longhorns had a strong finish to the 2025 recruiting cycle and currently sit at No. 5 in the team rankings. Steve Sarkisian and staff flipped Rivals250 defensive back Kade Phillips away from LSU and beat Nebraska to land Rivals250 athlete Michael Terry’s signature. They also held off a late push from Florida for five-star receiver Jaime Ffrench and Rivals250 defensive lineman Myron Charles.

SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS WITH ALABAMA FANS AT TIDEILLUSTRATED.COM

SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS WITH GEORGIA FANS AT UGASPORTS.COM

SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS WITH OHIO STATE FANS AT DOTTINGTHEEYES.COM

SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS WITH OREGON FANS AT DUCKSPORTSAUTHORITY.COM

SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS WITH TEXAS FANS AT ORANGEBLOODS.COM


TIGHT RACE AT THE TOP OF THE RANKINGS

Unless there is a crazy turn of events or an unexpected coaching chance, there are really only three programs that could finish with the team recruiting crown. Oregon sits in the top spot right now thanks to five additions since Sunday. The Ducks are also strong contenders in the recruitment of Rivals250 tight end Andrew Olesh. The Pennsylvania native is currently committed to Michigan but took an official visit to Oregon and is considering flipping when he announces his decision on Friday. If he does choose the Ducks, Oregon essentially locks up the team recruiting crown, making history as the first northern team to finish at No. 1 in the team rankings.

If Olesh sticks with Michigan, Georgia and Ohio State are the other likely candidates to finish No. 1. If five-star Justus Terry ends up signing with Georgia, the Bulldogs will finish at No. 1 as long as five-star David Sanders Jr. sticks with Tennessee. Terry is scheduled to announce his commitment on Friday while Sanders is expected to sign with Tennessee at some point this week.

There is a scenario where Georgia and Ohio State could find themselves tied at No. 1. This would happen if Olesh sticks with Michigan, Terry signs with Georgia, and Sanders pulls off a surprise by signing with Ohio State. At that point the race for the team rankings crown would likely come down to the final Rivals250 and position rankings update in January as well as any last minute signing during the February signing period.


DAVID SANDERS, JR. MAKING VOLS FANS NERVOUS

This embedded content is not available in your region.

As first reported by Rivals, five-star David Sanders Jr. did not sign with Tennessee on Wednesday. The top-ranked offensive lineman in the Rivals250 committed to the Volunteers in August and didn’t waver on his decision until he turned up at Ohio State a couple weeks ago when the Buckeyes hosted Indiana. Ohio State was the No. 2 contender for Sanders when he made his decision in August.

A source indicated Sanders would still be signing with Tennessee this week but this unexpected delay is a bit unsettling for Vols fans. History tells us anything can happen at this time of year and that could be concerning for Tennessee. There are two days left in the Early Signing Period and Sanders will be on “Signing Watch” 24 hours a day.

SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS WITH TENNESSEE FANS AT VOLREPORT.COM


SEMINOLES SURPRISE

Nick Lucero/Rivals.com

The 2024 season was horrific for Florida State but Seminole fans are riding high after a day few expected. Mike Norvell and his staff added five commitments on Wednesday – three Rivals250 prospects, another four-star and a three-star. The day started with one of the biggest flips of signing day when Rivals250 Auburn defensive back commit Shamar Arnoux signed with the ‘Noles. About two hours later Florida State announced the signing of three-star offensive lineman Sean Poret. Rivals250 Georgia running back commit Ousmane Kromah and Rivals250 UCF receiver commit Jayvan Boggs decided to sign with the Seminoles during the afternoon. On Wednesday evening four-star receiver/tight end Tae’shaun Gelsey decided to sign with Florida State instead of Florida. Perhaps Florida State’s biggest win of signing day was holding onto the commitment of Rivals250 defensive lineman Kevin Wynn, who was being heavily pursued by Georgia and South Carolina.

SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS WITH FSU FANS AT THEOSCEOLA.COM

Editor’s Note: This article first appeared on Rivals.com, the leader in college football and basketball recruiting coverage. Be the first to know and follow your teams by signing up here.

Share post:

Popular

More like this
Related

Middle East latest: Israeli airstrikes on Gaza kill at least 20 people, Palestinian medics say

Israeli airstrikes on the Gaza Strip overnight killed at...

KAT continues to ball, Cade Cunningham makes All-Star case & Zach LaVine joins Jimmy Butler on the trade block

This embedded content is not available in your region.Subscribe...

Will Patriots bench Stevenson after latest fumble? Here is Mayo’s response

Will Patriots bench Stevenson after latest fumble? Here is...

Horoscope Today: Astrological prediction for December 24, 2024

All zodiac signs have their own characteristics...