The dead period in recruiting is here, which means (for the time being) college football coaches across the country can neither travel to see recruits nor host them on their campuses. But that doesn\u2019t mean there\u2019s not still plenty happening in recruiting as coaches work the phones, hit up recruits on social media and look ahead to the Class of 2027.<\/p>\n
As expected, this 2027 class has plenty of talent. Personnel staffers have told The Athletic they\u2019re particularly excited about the depth at the quarterback position, which includes a couple of familiar names in Gunner Rivers (the son of former NFL star Philip Rivers) and Colton Nussmeier (the younger brother of former LSU quarterback Garrett Nussmeier).<\/p>\n
Consider this your primer to the 2027 class. Here\u2019s what you need to know as we turn the page.<\/p>\n
Note: All rankings are from the 247Sports Composite.<\/p>\n
\u2022 The quarterback class might be deep, but it\u2019s lacking star power at the top. Rankings will no doubt change, but right now, Texas native Kavian Bryant is the top-rated quarterback in the Class at No. 26, and there are only two QBs in the top 50. In the 2026 cycle, three of the top 10 players were quarterbacks. Bryant, a five-star, committed to Texas Tech in November.<\/p>\n
\u2022 Speaking of Texas Tech, the Red Raiders are on a roll again. After finishing the 2026 cycle with the program\u2019s highest average player rating of the modern era (dating back to 2002), Joey McGuire and his staff have kept the momentum going into the 2027 cycle. The Red Raiders have four commits (all top-200 prospects), including two five-stars in Jalen Brewster and Bryant. We\u2019ve got a ton of time between now and December, but it\u2019s notable that on the heels of the first 12-win season in program history, Texas Tech (and its robust name, image and likeness program) is still rolling.<\/p>\n
\u2022 Brewster, the nation\u2019s No. 5 prospect, is the highest-rated committed player. The top four prospects are still going through the process, which is far from unusual, even with the current trend of players wanting to commit earlier and earlier. John Meredith III, a cornerback from Texas, is the nation\u2019s top player. Offensive tackle Mark Matthews, a Florida native, checks in at No. 2, North Carolina cornerback Joshua Dobson is No. 3 and Texas offensive tackle Kennedy Brown is No. 4.<\/p>\n
\u2022 This will almost certainly change, but Oklahoma currently has the No. 1 top class, followed by Texas A&M at No. 2, Ohio State at No. 3, Notre Dame at No. 4 and Georgia at No. 5.<\/p>\n
\u2022 Only 25 of the top 100 prospects have committed so far. Look for spring and summer official visits to kick off the wave of announcements.<\/p>\n
\u2022 Ohio State has been particularly impressive early, landing commitments from two of the nation\u2019s top 10 players and five of the top 200. Coach Ryan Day\u2019s class is headlined by five-star receiver Jamier Brown, from Sunbury, Ohio, and five-star edge DJ Jacobs from Roswell, Ga. Both are ranked in the top 10 nationally. Landing Brown shows that even without Brian Hartline \u2014 the ace recruiter who is now the head coach at South Florida \u2014 Ohio State\u2019s offense still has major cache with the best receivers in the country. And even more notable: The Buckeyes beat Georgia for Brown, who lives less than 90 minutes from Athens.<\/p>\n
\u2022 Don\u2019t look now but \u2026 OK, Nebraska? The Cornhuskers haven\u2019t exactly been a recruiting powerhouse of late and are coming off a 7-6 season, after which former five-star quarterback Dylan Raiola transferred to Oregon. But Matt Rhule and his staff are doing some solid early work on the recruiting trail, with six commits and an average player rating of 91.59.<\/p>\n
Their biggest pickup? No doubt it\u2019s five-star safety Tory Pittman III, who committed to Nebraska in August despite fielding offers from Notre Dame, Oregon, LSU, Michigan, Miami and plenty of others. The bad news for the Cornhuskers is that every program in the country will likely try to flip Pittman between now and December. The good news? He\u2019s from Omaha and has some loyalty to the state. You also have to figure Nebraska can go all in on making his financial package as competitive as possible, whereas other blue bloods have to spread the wealth a little more.<\/p>\n
Another notable development for the Huskers: Quarterback commit Trae Taylor, ranked No. 55 overall, recently moved from Illinois to Omaha and will play his senior season at Millard South High.<\/p>\n
\u2022 The defending national champions have five commits and just two blue-chippers, but that\u2019s probably just how Indiana\u2019s Curt Cignetti likes it. The Hoosiers\u2019 two four-stars are cornerback Monsanna Torbert Jr., out of Cincinnati, and wide receiver Ja\u2019Hyde Brown, from Louisville, Ky. Both are ranked in the 300s. After that? No one in the class is ranked in the top 400, meaning this group will probably send Indiana to the College Football Playoff again.<\/p>\n
\u2022 Vanderbilt made quite the splash in the December early signing period cycle when coach Clark Lea flipped five-star quarterback and Nashville native Jared Curtis from Georgia, and the Commodores already have another huge local name in their 2027 class. Four-star linebacker Omarii Sanders, out of Franklin Road Academy in Nashville, committed to the Commodores in November. Curtis is the program\u2019s highest-ranked signee of the modern era. Sanders, ranked No. 60 nationally, would be No. 2.<\/p>\n
\u2022 Lane Kiffin didn\u2019t sign a quarterback in his inaugural class with LSU and instead went to the transfer portal, where he landed Sam Leavitt from Arizona State as well as two other QBs. But the Tigers\u2019 new head man will have a 2027 high school quarterback if four-star Shreveport, La., native Peyton Houston decides to stick with the program. Houston committed in September, when Brian Kelly was still the coach, and has stood by LSU and Kiffin publicly. Hanging on to him \u2014 and making him a priority \u2014 would send a message that Kiffin isn\u2019t totally ignoring the high school model in favor of portal prospects.<\/p>\n
Strategy meeting on who\u2019s next\ud83d\ude82\ud83d\udca8#JustDifferent<\/a> #NFLSU<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/Ny4g6Vf9Q1<\/a><\/p>\n