The Early Signing Period has given fans across the country all the excitement they could want. There have been last-minute commitments and last-second flips, and there is still more action ahead. We break down the top available 2023 prospects that can impact a collegiate roster in the future, continuing today with the defense.
*****
MORE NSD: The Gorney Awards | Team rankings breakdown | National Signing Day Live | Studio Show | Five teams with work left | Top storylines for Late Signing Period | Grading the new P5 coaching hires | Biggest surprises | Southeast roundtable | Best available offensive players
*****
NSD COACH INTERVIEWS: Stanford's Troy Taylor | Rutgers' Greg Schiano | Maryland's Mike Locksley | Florida State's Mike Norvell | USF's Alex Golesh | Michigan State's Mel Tucker | Louisville's Jeff Brohm | Illinois' Bret Bielema | Virginia Tech's Brent Pry | Wisconsin's Luke Fickell | Clemson's Dabo Swinney | Georgia Tech's Brent Key | Cal's Justin Wilcox | Nebraska's Matt Rhule | Indiana's Tom Allen | Penn State's James Franklin | Texas Tech's Joey McGuire | Arizona's Jedd Fisch | Virginia's Tony Elliott | Florida's Billy Napier | Kansas' Lance Leipold | Arizona State's Kenny Dillingham | Vanderbilt's Clark Lea
*****
DEFENSIVE LINEMAN: Zavion Hardy
Hardy is committed to South Carolina and was hoping to sign by the end of the week, but a clearinghouse issue is rumored to be the reason he has not officially signed his NLI yet. Expect Hardy to be a Gamecock once he figured things out with the NCAA.
*****
LINEBACKER: Leviticus Su'a
Su'a will make his decision in February and this recruitment will likely come down to which Pac-12 program can give the best recruiting pitch between now and the late period. Arizona, Stanford and UCLA look to lead the way here, with the Wildcats currently being the most likely to land Su'a's signature come February.
*****
DEFENSIVE BACK: Cormani McClain
The top defensive back left on the board also happens to be the No. 3 overall prospect in the 2023 Rivals250. This wasn't supposed to be the case however, as McClain was set to sign with Miami on the first day of the early period but he did not attend his announcement ceremony and his mother tweeted that her son would not be signing.
Rivals.com's Adam Gorney reported this weekend that three issues could potentially be the catalyst for McClain not signing with the Hurricanes. If McClain ends up backing off his commitment to the Hurricanes, look out for Colorado.
*****
ATHLETE: Nyckoles Harbor
Unlike McClain, there was little surprise when Harbor did not sign last week. Maryland, Michigan and South Carolina are the programs Harbor has visited officially and also appear to to lead the way for his commitment.
All three contenders have equal reason to believe they are the landing spot for Harbor, but don't be surprised if LSU was to come in prior to the late period in an attempt to poach Harbor.
