The first day of the Early Signing Period has come and gone and a number of five- and four-star prospects remain unsigned. Here's the skinny on the recruitment of top unsigned defensive players heading forward.

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The coaching change at Texas A&M has impacted a lot of Aggie commits and McKinley is one of them. He is planning on waiting to sign in February and expects to use that time to build a stronger relationship with Mike Elko and his staff.

Texas, LSU, Oklahoma, Syracuse and Tennessee are trying to get McKinley's attention and it wouldn't be surprising to see him take some visits next month. In fact, LSU is expected to host McKinley the weekend of Jan. 12 and then Tennessee is supposed to get him on campus the weekend of Jan. 19.

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The plan has been for Mincey to sign during the Early Signing Period and then announce his decision at the All-American Bowl on Jan. 6. We'll soon find out if he carried out that plan.

Miami, Alabama, Florida and Florida State are the finalists and each have a lot going for them. Each hosted Mincey for official visits and none of the schools have slowed down in their pursuit of the Rivals250 prospect out of the Sunshine State.

With the coaching change in College Station, Evans hit the pause button on signing at the beginning of the Early Signing Period but on Thursday night he posted that he would be announcing his signing on Friday.

The battle behind the scenes has been between the Aggies and Longhorns. Elko and his new staff at Texas A&M have been trying desperately to hold onto Evans but Texas has been looking for another defensive end and would love to steal him from the Aggies.

It was a bit of a surprise when Kirks decided not to sign this week but Washington fans are getting anxious. The Rivals250 defensive lineman from Ohio is not planning on signing until he learns who will be his position coach.

The Huskies lost assistant coach Eric Schmidt when he agreed to become defensive coordinator at San Diego State so Kirks is looking to see who his replacement will be. In the meantime, Washington will have to wait for his signature.

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Williams reclassified from 2025 to 2024 a week before the Early Signing Period and promptly took an official visit to Florida State. The Sunshine State standout did not sign this week and seems ready to carry on with the recruiting process in January.

That being said, the Seminoles have the inside track for Williams and it will be interesting to see if any other teams can gain serious traction before he signs.

A public decision from Barnes won't come this week as he is expected to announce his commitment at the All-American Bowl on Jan. 6. The former Virginia Tech commit had been focusing on Georgia but the departure of defensive backs coach Fran Brown to become head coach at Syracuse has changed things.

Syracuse is a major contender for Barnes now but Georgia Tech is lurking as well.

Shaw won't be announcing his commitment this week but a silent signing isn't out of the question. Arkansas and Clemson have been battling for his signature. Clemson added a commitment from linebacker CJ Kubah-Taylor on National Signing Day so it seems like Arkansas could be Shaw's destination.

An announcement from Shaw could be coming at the All-American Bowl on Jan. 6.

Rubin has been committed to USC since mid-October but did not sign this week. The Trojans signed every member of their recruiting class except for him. The departure of defensive backs coach and ace receiver Donte Williams likely impacted Rubin since Williams was his main recruiter.

Oregon, Utah and Colorado were involved before Rubin's commitment to USC so keep an eye on those schools as the rest of Rubin's recruitment plays out.

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Williams held off on signing this week to see what new options came available. Auburn is a possibility for him but there is still work to be done there. Florida was in the mix for him earlier in the process, too. January should be a busy month for Williams as he tries to find the right fit.

It seemed like Lewis was trending toward Mississippi State earlier this month but he didn't make it to campus for an official visit last weekend. Look for Lewis to try to schedule that trip for some time in January.

Lewis could explore other options before the Late Signing Period in February but, for the time being, Mississippi State is the main contender.