Sting Factor: Ranking decommitments since NSD

With more prospects making commitments early in their high school careers, de-commitments have become a regular part of the college football recruiting landscape. At Rivals.com, we cover the major decommitments and give each a sting factor rating, based on their impact on each school’s class.

It's been two months since National Signing Day so we are taking a look at the Power Five de-commitments since then, and ranking them in order of the “sting” to programs that lost the commitments.

CLASS OF 2019 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | State | Position | Team

McNamara committed to Notre Dame last summer after a visit to South Bend sold him on the program. But after pulling the trigger quickly as an underclassman, McNamara surprisingly backed off his pledge to the Irish after picking up several new offers. He didn’t stay on the market for long, however, as he committed to Michigan before the calendar turned to April. Notre Dame is now back on the quarterback market after seemingly having a solution prior to McNamara’s decision.

STING FACTOR RANKING: 8

A versatile athlete and the No. 2 player in the state of Mississippi, Black made an early pledge to the Bulldogs last fall. But his early commitment combined with the coaching change in Starkville as well as increased interest from other schools led to Black putting himself back on the market. The Bulldogs are still a major factor in his recruitment, but losing his commitment still hurts. Ole Miss, Florida and Auburn are some of the schools now in the mix for Black.

STING FACTOR RANKING: 7.5

A Texas A&M legacy who initially looked like an Aggies lean, Spiller instead committed to Oklahoma while the Aggies were going through coaching turmoil last fall. But once Jimbo Fisher and company got established in College Station, the door started to re-open on Spiller’s recruitment. After making two trips to Texas A&M, including one late last month, Spiller announced his de-commitment earlier this week. Oklahoma has plenty of time to replace him in the class, but given the fact that his stock was on the rise, his de-commitment is still one of the most impactful in the class to date. The Sooners are expected to continue to recruit him, but it appears as if Texas A&M is in the driver’s seat going forward.

STING FACTOR RANKING: 7

The highest-ranked commitment in North Carolina’s class, Beamon had been in the fold with the Tar Heels since last summer. But a rough season on the field for the Tar Heels combined with an explosion of interest led to Beamon backing off his pledge to take another look around. North Carolina will still be in the mix going forward, but will have to battle Alabama, South Carolina, Ohio State, Virginia Tech and Penn State.

STING FACTOR RANKING: 7

The Rivals100 quarterback committed to Texas A&M last summer, ending his recruitment after taking several visits and garnering offers from coast-to-coast. But after Kevin Sumlin was fired and Jimbo Fisher took over in College Station, Gunnell started to look around again and eventually backed off his pledge in February. While losing a player of his caliber hurts, it seems as if the breakup might have been mutual. Since then, Ohio State, Oregon, Oklahoma State, Arizona and Arkansas have entered the picture for Gunnell.

STING FACTOR RANKING: 6

Oklahoma reached all the way into North Carolina to offer Green last fall and he didn’t wait long to jump on the chance to commit to the Sooners. But things changed when SEC programs Georgia and Tennessee entered the picture in January and shortly after a visit to Athens, he re-opened his recruitment in February. Obviously, Oklahoma did a good job of identifying Green early in the process, but losing his commitment still stings. Oklahoma is still recruiting Green, with the Dawgs and Vols viewed as the biggest competition for his services at this point.

STING FACTOR RANKING: 5

Wolfe made a commitment to Texas A&M in February but just a month later he was back on the market. The de-commitment is actually the second of his recruitment, after he initially committed to Ole Miss before backing off that pledge when Hugh Freeze stepped down as the Rebels coach. His indecisiveness softens the blow of his de-commitment from the Aggies, especially considering they figure to be in the mix going forward. But anytime a school loses a four-star prospect it’s notable. Colorado, Oklahoma and LSU will be in the mix going forward.

STING FACTOR RANKING: 5

One of the shortest commitments of the 2019 cycle, Handy was committed to LSU for just a few weeks before backing off his initial decision. A player at a position of need for the Tigers, Handy’s commitment was celebrated even though it was short-lived. Losing a player of his caliber hurts, but expect LSU to be involved going forward. Ole Miss, Mississippi State, Auburn, Alabama, Florida and Georgia are just a few of the schools in pursuit of Handy.

STING FACTOR RANKING: 4.3

After picking up an offer from South Carolina last spring, Gee fell in love with the Gamecocks on a July visit and committed while on the trip. He made a few trips to campus but wasn’t exactly a regular in Columbia during the fall. After an offer and visit to Georgia Tech, he backed off his Gamecock commitment in February. Since then it appears as if South Carolina has moved on while the Yellow Jackets are battling Vanderbilt, N.C. State and others for Gee’s commitment.

STING FACTOR RANKING: 4

After picking up an early offer from Louisville last spring, Cook didn’t wait long before making a pledge to the Cardinals. But as his recruitment moved along and more schools joined his list, he started to look around and eventually made his de-commitment official in March. USC is his most notable offer to date and the Trojans figure to be a player going forward along with West Virginia, the Cardinals and several others.

STING FACTOR RANKING: 4

The Demon Deacons were one of Miller’s first major offers last fall and he made a pledge to the school just two months later. But as more offers started to flow in, including a “dream” offer from Tennessee, Miller’s commitment began to wane and he re-opened his recruitment in February. Obviously, the loss hurts for Wake, the Demon Deacons will have to battle Tennessee, Arkansas and Georgia Tech to get Miller back in the fold.

STING FACTOR RANKING: 4

The Rivals250 wide receiver first picked up an offer from the Hurricanes during the spring of 2016 and after making several visits to Coral Gables over the next year-plus, he announced his commitment to The U in May 2017. But as his recruitment moved along communication between the two sides became more infrequent and he re-opened his recruitment earlier this month. Miami is going another direction in its search for wide receivers, while Louisville, Kentucky and Syracuse are among the schools now in the mix for Fuller.

STING FACTOR RANKING: 4

Howard had been committed to Miami since the summer of 2016, but as his recruitment went along his communication with the Canes started to wane and he eventually elected to back off his commitment. The move wasn’t much of a surprise and that’s why he’s the lowest on this list. Miami isn’t likely to be a factor in his recruitment going forward, but Auburn, UCF, Kentucky and Syracuse are in the mix.

STING FACTOR RANKING: 2