Familiar Faces in the Top 10 of the 2017 Recruiting Class

There are very familiar faces in the top 10 of the 2017 recruiting class rankings. According to ESPN’s Football Class Ranking, only two teams, USC and Oklahoma, were in the top 10 this year that were not in the top 10 of the 2016 recruiting class. The top 5 of this years’s ranking are Alabama, Ohio State, Georgia, Florida State, and USC.

The SEC

Alabama’s No.1 ranking marks head coach Nick Saban’s fifth No.1 recruiting class at Alabama. Alabama’s recruiting class also set a record this year, having the most ESPN 300 commits ever (21). Nick Saban says Alabama’s coaching staff did a great job. The SEC had 100 of ESPN’s 300 signees, the most out of any other conference. The SEC had Alabama, Georgia, LSU, and Auburn all in the top 10. ESPN’s SEC recruiting reporter, Derek Tyson, says ESPN scouts in Bristol determine the recruiting rankings. Top recruiting classes start to show talent and depth once they’ve recruited 4-5 five-star players.

Some rebuild … the SEC reloads.

Most ESPN 300 Signees by Power 5 Conference:

SEC 100
Big Ten 59
Pac-12 49
ACC 49
Big 12 27

— SEC Network (@SECNetwork) February 2, 2017

While the Florida Gators were not ranked in the top 10 of ESPN’s 2017 recruiting class ranking, they were ranked No. 10 in 247 Sports 2017 Football Recruiting Team Rankings. Overall, the Gators had 18 players sign to add to their 5 mid-year enrollees. Head coach Jim McElwain says the plan was to make sure they had the right fits for the program.

On the other side of the spectrum, it is interesting to note that the Ole Miss Rebels were ranked  No. 36 overall in ESPN’s Football Class Ranking. Last year, Ole Miss’s 2016 recruiting class was ranked No. 4. Ole Miss is one of two teams in last year’s top 10 to not place within the top 10 of the 2017 recruiting class rankings. Derek Tyson believes Ole Miss’s recruiting class could have been worse. Once the NCAA investigation on the Ole Miss football program ends, Ole Miss’s recruiting classes should resemble what everyone remembers.

The 2017 Season

ESPN already has a “Post-signing day Way-Too-Early 2017 Top 25” ranking. They have Alabama ranked No. 1 overall, with Florida State, USC, Ohio State, and Penn State following right behind to make up the top 5.

With #NSD17 in the books, we have only one question…

Is it college football season yet? pic.twitter.com/XiuplmJGMW

— ESPN CollegeFootball (@ESPNCFB) February 2, 2017