Road to NSD: Top five battles
While college football is battled on the field between two teams, recruiting usually involves many programs competing for the same prize. In the lead-up to National Signing Day, though, we look at five recruitments that are developing into head-to-head battles.
LB Ben Davis, Gordo, Ala. (5-star)
Contenders: Alabama, Georgia
Breakdown: Technically there are five teams still in the hunt for the class of 2016’s No. 5 overall prospect – Alabama, Auburn, Georgia, LSU and Notre Dame – but the theme of this recruitment has really been, who can beat out the Crimson Tide? And the best answer to that question is, Georgia. Davis named the Bulldogs his leader in early December after Kirby Smart was hired as head coach, but more recently he has said Alabama tops his list and the home-state programs still appears to be his most likely destination.
ATH Mecole Hardman Jr., Bowman (Ga.) Elbert County (5-star)
Contenders: Alabama, Georgia
Breakdown: Another five-star recruitment that looks to be a showdown between the Crimson Tide and Bulldogs is that of Hardman, the No. 11 overall player in the 2016 class. When Smart was hired on in Athens, we should have been able to see these two SEC programs butting heads on the recruiting trail, and so far there have been plenty of fireworks. Ohio State fans may cry foul because they still hold out hope Hardman will pull a surprise and announce for them Wednesday, but Alabama is his declared leader and only a recent visit to Georgia appears to have the potential to change his mind.
CB Jack Jones, Long Beach (Calif.) Poly (5-star)
Contenders: Texas A&M, USC
Breakdown: Jones narrowed his list to a top three that also included Alabama, but this is viewed as a two-team race heading into National Signing Day. Jones called Texas A&M his leader following an October official visit to College Station and the Aggies are putting up a good fight. USC is the local school, though, and they have had great success at Poly recently. Jones has gone out of his way to downplay the Trojan connections – maybe too much, which begs the question: is he trying to ramp up the intrigue factor before selecting the local school?
LB Caleb Kelly, Fresno (Calif.) Clovis West (5-star)
Contenders: Notre Dame, Oklahoma
Breakdown: Publicly Kelly has a top three that also includes Oregon, but when it comes down to crunch time we see this as a two-team race. Oklahoma has long been considered the team to beat in this race, but Notre Dame has surged in recent weeks, buoyed by impactful in-home visits. Will it be enough to overcome the Sooners on Signing Day? This is a tight race and could go either way, but the general consensus is that Oklahoma holds on.
WR Nate Craig-Myers, Tampa (Fla.) Catholic (4-star)
Contenders: Auburn, North Carolina
Breakdown: Craig-Myers is heading for a Signing Day decision with an ACC-SEC battle taking place. The Rivals100 prospect originally committed to the Tigers before the start of his junior season, but stepped away from that commitment last May. North Carolina did not emerge as a major player until some time later, but an early December official visit solidified the Tar Heels' position in his final group. When the rubber meets the road, though, expectations are Craig-Myers will end up with the school he originally committed to.