By Brett Samuels
It has been over a
month since Alabama clobbered Notre Dame en route to its second straight
national title, and college football has faded into the background of most
sports fans. However there is one day leading up to spring practice where
college football steals the spotlight once again: national signing day.
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| (Dale Zanine/USA TODAY Sports) |
While it may seem
repetitive for many fans to see the same typical powerhouse programs bringing
in the nation’s best young talent- USC, Alabama, Michigan, Ohio State, and
Florida to name a few- this year brought a major surprise to the list of top
recruiting classes. It was none other than Ole Miss, led mostly by their
ability to land No. 1 overall recruit Robert Nkemdiche, a defensive end who
will look to make an immediate impact for the Rebels.
In addition to
Nkemdiche, Ole Miss also landed two of the top three offensive tackles in the
country, as well as the number one receiver as ranked by ESPN. While the sudden
success of the school may strike some as surprising or even suspicious, head
coach Hugh Freeze insists there is nothing to be skeptical about at Ole Miss.
“We’re doing things
the right way here,” Freeze told reporters.
Time will tell if
that is the truth, or if improper recruiting techniques were used to lure a
class that many believe will make Ole Miss relevant again in the SEC title
conversation.
ESPN ranked the top
five classes when all was said and done on national signing day, and several
familiar names topped the list. Alabama ranked first in the country; Florida
was second, followed by Ohio State and Notre Dame, with Ole Miss rounding out
the top five.
Another noteworthy
occurrence from signing day came when running back Alex Collins intended to
sign his letter of intent to play for Bret Bielema and Arkansas, but he was
unable to because his mother refused to sign it and make it official.
“She just wanted to
make sure I was making the right decision,” Collins told ESPN. “She was
concerned about me being so far away from home and how I would handle it.”
It was all sorted
out when 24 hours later Collins’ father signed the letter, officially making
Collins a Razorback.
