National Signing Day has come and gone, and the future of many teams has changed in a big way. National Signing Day is the first day that high school seniors can sign an agreement, better known as a Letter of Intent, with a college that is a member of the NCAA. Many athletes make verbal commitments to schools, but they are not locked in until they sign their National Letter of Intent. Therefore, a player can make a quick switch from a verbal commitment and sign with a different school. The majority of top football recruits sign on this day.

National Signing Day isn’t only a big deal for the recruits; it is also a very big day for universities. Colleges can change the course of their upcoming season completely with a good signing day. Take the University of Mississippi, better known as Ole Miss. They knapped the number one recruit Robert Nkemdiche, whose brother plays for Ole Miss currently. He once had a verbal commitment to Clemson University, but he took that back and ended up signing with Ole Miss. This helped pave the way for Ole Miss to have the fifth best recruiting class this year. It’s safe to say that Ole Miss was a recruiting winner this year.

Some teams are not new to being atop the recruiting list. Powerhouse teams such as Alabama, Florida, and Ohio State have the top three classes respectively. These teams have a strong history of winning and being some of the best recruiting schools. This can be due to coaching, and location is very important.

Recruiting talent to a school can change the morale and outlook of the team. To be successful you need to have the best players, and recruiting is the first step. Once you have the recruits, you develop them, and that’s when you can achieve your dreams of winning the National Championship.