NSD Question of the Day: Which visit are you keeping an eye on?
National Signing Day starts Wednesday and there are still many questions left unanswered in the final hours leading up to it. Today, we ask the Rivals team of analysts which visit this weekend do they have their eye on most and why.
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ROB CASSIDY, Florida analyst
Alabama commit Timothy Smith visiting Florida is a situation worth monitoring. The Rivals100 member is UF's top overall target and what happens over the weekend will likely determine his landing place.
ADAM FRIEDMAN, Mid-Atlantic analyst
It's probably Oklahoma Rivals250 offensive line commit Anton Harrison's official visit to Maryland. It's unlikely that Harrison flips to the hometown Terps but stranger things have happened. Mike Locksley has a great relationship with the local coaches and players. He's done a good job keeping in touch with Harrison and Locksley has been known to pull off a few surprises.
ADAM GORNEY, West and National analyst
There are a lot of important visits in the West region this weekend leading up to signing day but I’m picking five-star cornerback Kelee Ringo heading to Georgia. The Bulldogs have been considered the frontrunner for a long time but Oregon is definitely trying to make a move especially after Ringo visited Eugene recently. Texas is still there but this one feels like the Ducks are surging a little bit in the closing weeks before signing day. This weekend is going to be very important for coach Kirby Smart and his staff to convince Georgia is the right place for Ringo, who’s been to Athens numerous times, and my guess is they have success and close the deal even if he doesn’t announce until the all-star events.
JOSH HELMHOLDT, Midwest analyst
All of the official visitors headed to Missouri this weekend are important, but I am going to single out Tulsa wide receiver Javian Hester. New head coach Eliah Drinkwitz needs to start reshaping this roster to fit his needs, and he is going to need bodies to do it. The Tigers enter the weekend down to 13 commits, and Hester is one of those with the most concern after taking an official visit to UCLA last weekend.
CHAD SIMMONS, Southeast analyst
It has to be Tate Ratledge for me. The five-star offensive tackle committed to Georgia thinking Sam Pittman was going to be the offensive line coach, so with Pittman moving on to become the head coach at Arkansas, it has given other schools a little window to convince Ratledge he shouldn’t sign early. Ratledge will take his official visit to Georgia this weekend and Kirby Smart and Matt Luke will try to close the deal and get his signature next Wednesday. If he doesn’t sign, watch out for Clemson and Tennessee come January. He and his family grew up huge Vols fans and the Tigers have worked hard trying to get him to hold off. Georgia has lost one offensive lineman since Pittman’s departure, they can’t lose another, especially one like Ratledge.
SAM SPIEGELMAN, Texas and Louisiana analyst
It's not a new one, but longtime Texas quarterback commitment Hudson Card visited Georgia officially this weekend. Card has been rock solid to the Longhorns for months dating back to last year, and even amid some on-the-field struggles this season, Card has continued to remain loyal. The Georgia coaches went in-home with the Rivals250 quarterback and a visit certainly adds a ton of intrigue to Card's otherwise quiet recruitment. First off, he's one of two ranked quarterbacks in the Longhorns' 2020 class along with Ja'Quinden Jackson. Georgia has a long track record of dipping out-of-state to land some of the best quarterbacks in the country and Card certainly fits the bill. A visit to Athens right before Signing Day could have major ramifications for the nation's No. 3-ranked dual-threat.
WOODY WOMMACK, Southeast analyst
There aren't many highly-ranked uncommitted players left on the board in my region but one that people will have an eye on this weekend is Rivals250 defensive end Tyler Baron. The Knoxville resident will travel across town to officially visit Tennessee, the school where his father Patrick Abernathy has worked since before Baron's days as a prospect. The question is, will the family appeal and the Vols resurgence down the stretch be enough to keep Baron close to home? Or can Kentucky steal him away? Baron has been rather tight-lipped about the process throughout and will reveal his decision on Wednesday at his high school, Knoxville Central.