The fourth year of early college football signing brought some difficult hurdles for coaches and recruiters to overcome.
The emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic not only limited campus visits for aspiring recruits, but essentially eliminated any face-to-face meetings that might otherwise have taken place between players and coaches. How that will affect the result of this year’s class remains to be seen, but one thing is already clear:
Pandemic or no, college football’s top teams will do well in the 2021 recruiting class.
15th WEEK PROJECTIONS: Playoffs | Bowls
Heading into the 72-hour signing phase on Wednesday, No. 1 Alabama and No. 2 Ohio State have created significant distance between themselves and the rest of the pack. Teams like Georgia, Clemson and LSU will also win elite classes with legitimate aspirations of the College Football Playoffs.
That said, there are still a few battles to be won, such as Korey Foreman, the No. 1 recruit. The defensive end of the strong side seems to have limited its selection to USC and LSU. Other players such as JT Tuimoloau (No. 3 overall), Tristan Leigh (No. 11 overall) and Terrence Lewis (No. 16 overall) also remain non-binding.
Follow us as Sporting News tracks the biggest signings and signings from the early signing stage:
MORE: Eight possible CFP scenarios from the championship weekend
College Football Signing Day Tracker 2021
(All player and team ratings reflect the 247Sports Composite ranking.)
Defensive ends of the strong side
| Player (overall rank) | Star ranking | Signed with |
| 1. Korey Foreman (# 1) | 5 Stars | |
| 2. JT Tuimoloau (No. 3) | 5 Stars | |
| 3. Jack Sawyer (# 4) | 5 Stars | Ohio State |
| 4. Shemar Turner (No. 31) | 5 Stars | Texas A & M. |
| 5. Keeshawn Silver (No. 32) | 5 Stars | North Carolina |
| 6. Tunmise Adeleye (No. 37) | 4 stars | |
| 7. Monkell Goodwine (No. 89) | 4 stars | Alabama |
| 8. Tyreak Sapp (No. 96) | 4 stars | Florida |
Offensive tackles
| Player (overall rank) | Star ranking | Signed with |
| 1. JC Latham (No. 2) | 5 Stars | Alabama |
| 2. Tommy Brockermeyer (No. 5) | 5 Stars | Alabama |
| 3. bitter mims (No. 7) | 5 Stars | Georgia |
| 4. Tristan Leigh (No. 11) | 5 Stars | |
| 5. Nolan Rucci (No. 15) | 5 Stars | Wisconsin |
| 6. Kingsley Suamataia (No. 35) | 4 stars | Oregon |
| 7. Landon Tengwall (No. 50) | 4 stars | Penn State |
| 8. Blake Fisher (# 52) | 4 stars | Our lady |
| 9. Savion Byrd (# 62) | 4 stars | Oklahoma |
| 10. Micah Morris (# 63) | 4 stars | Georgia |
| 11. Bram Walden (No. 82) | 4 stars | Oregon |
| 12. John El-Hadi (No. 85) | 4 stars | Michigan |
| 13. Reuben Fatheree (# 87) | 4 stars | Texas A & M. |
| 14. Garrett Dellinger (No. 90) | 4 stars | LSU |
Quarterbacks with a double threat
| Player (overall rank) | Star ranking | Signed with |
| 1. Caleb Williams (# 6) | 5 Stars | Oklahoma |
| 2. Brock Vandagriff (No. 14) | 5 Stars | Georgia |
| 3. Tyler Buchner (No. 65) | 4 stars | Our lady |
| 4. Jalen Milroe (No. 78) | 4 stars | Alabama |
Weak defensive ends
| Player (overall rank) | Star ranking | Signed with |
| 1. Dallas Turner (No. 8) | 5 Stars | Alabama |
| 2. Clayton Smith (No. 43) | 4 stars | Oklahoma |
| 3. Dylan Brooks (No. 51) | 4 stars | |
| 4. Demeioun Robinson (No. 64) | 4 stars | Maryland |
| 5. Jeremiah Williams (No. 73) | 4 stars | Florida |
Broad receiver
| Player (overall rank) | Star ranking | Signed with |
| 1. Emeka Egbuka (No. 9) | 5 Stars | Ohio State |
| 2. Jacorey Brooks (No. 34) | 5 Stars | Alabama |
| 3. Troy Franklin (# 36) | 4 stars | Oregon |
| 4. Mario Williams (No. 42) | 4 stars | Oklahoma |
| 5. JoJo Earle (# 48) | 4 stars | |
| 6. Dont’E Thornton (No. 53) | 4 stars | Oregon |
| 7. Agiye Hall (No. 56) | 4 stars | |
| 8. Jayden Ballard (# 66) | 4 stars | Ohio State |
| 9. Christian Leary (No. 68) | 4 stars | Alabama |
| 10. Deion Smith (# 70) | 4 stars | LSU |
| 11. Chris Hilton (# 75) | 4 stars | |
| 12. Xavier Worthy (No. 76) | 4 stars | |
| 13. Brian Thomas Jr. (# 79) | 4 stars | |
| 14. Beaux Collins (No. 83) | 4 stars | Clemson |
| 15. Marvin Harrison Jr. (# 91) | 4 stars | Ohio State |
| 16. Deion Colzie (# 98) | 4 stars | Our lady |
Defensive tackles
| Player (overall rank) | Star ranking | Signed with |
| 1. Leonard Taylor (No. 10) | 5 Stars | Miami |
| 2. Maason Smith (No. 18) | 5 Stars | |
| 3. Damon Payne (# 19) | 5 Stars | |
| 4. Mike Hall (# 49) | 4 stars | Ohio State |
| 5. Tywone Malone (# 61) | 4 stars | |
| 6. Lee Hunter (# 80) | 4 stars | Auburn |
| 7. Payton Page (No. 93) | 4 stars | Clemson |
Pro-style quarterbacks
| Player (overall rank) | Star ranking | Signed with |
| 1. Sam Huard (No. 12) | 5 Stars | Washington |
| 2. JJ McCarthy (# 22) | 5 Stars | Michigan |
| 3. Kyle McCord (# 25) | 5 Stars | Ohio State |
| 4. Ty Thompson (No. 39) | 4 stars | Oregon |
| 5. Jake Garcia (No. 46) | 4 stars | |
| 6. Drake Maye (# 57) | 4 stars | North Carolina |
| 7. Miller Moss (# 71) | 4 stars | USC |
| 8. Garrett Nussmeier (No. 86) | 4 stars | LSU |
Collateral
| Player (overall rank) | Star ranking | Signed with |
| 1. James Williams (No. 13) | 5 Stars | Miami |
| 2. Sage Ryan (# 28) | 5 Stars | |
| 3. Derrick Davis Jr. (# 58) | 4 stars | LSU |
| 4. Kendal Daniels (No. 100) | 4 stars | Texas A & M. |
Inside linebacker
| Player (overall rank) | Star ranking | Signed with |
| 1. Terrence Lewis (# 16) | 5 Stars | |
| 2. Jeremiah Trotter Jr. (# 41) | 4 stars | Clemson |
| 3. Deontae Lawson (No. 55) | 4 stars | Alabama |
| 4. Ethane Calvert (No. 74) | 4 stars | Utah |
| 5. Reid Carrico (No. 84) | 4 stars | Ohio State |
Offensive guards
| Player (overall rank) | Star ranking | Signed with |
| 1. Donovan Jackson (No. 17) | 5 Stars | Ohio State |
| 2. Terrence Ferguson (# 54) | 4 stars | Alabama |
| 3. Rocco Spindler (No. 60) | 4 stars | Our lady |
| 4. Bryce Foster (# 72) | 4 stars | |
| 5. Dylan Fairchild (# 97) | 4 stars | Georgia |
External linebackers
| Player (overall rank) | Star ranking | Signed with |
| 1. Xavian Sorey (No. 20) | 5 Stars | Georgia |
| 2. Smael Mondon (No. 29) | 5 Stars | Georgia |
| 3. Barrett Carter (# 33) | 5 Stars | Clemson |
| 4. Raesjon Davis (No. 45) | 4 stars | |
| 5. Junior Colson (No. 95) | 4 stars | Michigan |
| 4. Raneiria Dillworth (# 99) | 4 stars | North Carolina |
athlete
| Player (overall rank) | Star ranking | Signed with |
| 1. Ja’Tavion Sanders (No. 21) | 5 Stars | Texas |
| 2. Billy Bowman (No. 38) | 4 stars | Oklahoma |
| 3. David Daniel (# 92) | 4 stars | Georgia |
Cornerbacks
| Player (overall rank) | Star ranking | Signed with |
| 1. Ga’Quincy McKinstry (# 23) | 5 Stars | Alabama |
| 2. Jason Marshall (# 27) | 5 Stars | Florida |
| 3. Jakailin Johnson (No. 47) | 4 stars | Ohio State |
| 4. Jordan Hancock (# 67) | 4 stars | Ohio State |
| 5. Nyland Green (No. 69) | 4 stars | Georgia |
| 6. Ceyair Wright (# 77) | 4 stars |
Running backs
| Player (overall rank) | Star ranking | Signed with |
| 1. TreVeyon Henderson (# 24) | 5 Stars | Ohio State |
| 2. Camar Wheaton (# 26) | 5 Stars | |
| 3. LJ Johnson (# 40) | 4 stars | |
| 4. Donovan Edwards (# 44) | 4 stars | Michigan |
| 6. Armoni Goodwin (No. 94) | 4 stars |
All-purpose back
| Player (overall rank) | Star ranking | Signed with |
| 1. Will Shipley (No. 30) | 5 Stars | Clemson |
| 2. Evan Pryor (# 81) | 4 stars | Ohio State |
Tight ends
| Player (overall rank) | Star ranking | Signed with |
| 1. Jake Briningstool (# 59) | 4 stars | Clemson |
| 2. Thomas Fidone (No. 88) | 4 stars | Nebraska |
Top 10 2021 signing classes
| Rank (conference rank) | 5 Stars | 4 stars | Points |
| 1. Alabama (No. 1 SEC) | 6th | 13th | 315.72 |
| 2. Ohio State (No. 1 Big Ten) | 5 | 13th | 310.39 |
| 3. Georgia (No. 2 SEC) | 4th | 11 | 294.84 |
| 4. LSU (No. 3 SEC) | 1 | 15th | 288.64 |
| 5. Clemson (No. 1 ACC) | 2 | 14th | 282.31 |
| 6. Oregon (No. 1 Pac-12) | 0 | 16 | 280.77 |
| 7. Oklahoma (No. 1 Big 12) | 1 | 12 | 268.07 |
| 8. Florida (No. 4 SEC) | 1 | 14th | 267.27 |
| 9.Notre Dame (No. 1 independent) | 0 | 11 | 265.71 |
| 10. Michigan (# 2 Big Ten) | 1 | 10 | 260.00 |
