College Football Top 25 Rankings Post-2024 National Signing Day
Change is inevitable.
As the early signing period ended in December, we began peeking at the 2024 college football season with an early Top 25. While it received nothing but positive reviews—winks at Tennessee—the point was to lay out initial perceptions as the offseason neared.
But it came with a disclaimer: This will change.
You know what's happened since then? Nick Saban retired, and Washington coach Kalen DeBoer replaced him at Alabama. Arizona's Jedd Fisch stepped in for DeBoer. Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh accepted an NFL job. Dozens of players entered the NFL draft, and hundreds of transfers picked a new football home.
While less chaotic, there will be another round of moves in the spring transfer window, too. Change remains inevitable.
Given that, the same disclaimer applies. The arrival of February's traditional signing day offers a quality landmark to reassess how these changes, in six short weeks, have altered the look of the 2024 season.
1. Georgia
2. Ohio State
3. Oregon
4. Texas
5. Alabama
6. Utah
7. Ole Miss
8. Michigan
9. Oklahoma
10. Clemson
11. Notre Dame
12. Penn State
13. Florida State
14. LSU
15. Missouri
16. Washington
17. Arizona
18. Kansas State
19. Oklahoma State
20. Iowa
21. North Carolina State
22. Tennessee
23. Miami
24. SMU
25. Kansas
The recruiting world did not anticipate much drama on signing day, and that expectation held true.
Alabama officially signed 5-star receiver Ryan Williams, who traveled a whirlwind road to Tuscaloosa. He committed to Bama in October 2022, reclassified from the 2025 cycle to 2024 in December 2023, didn't sign in the early period, decommitted after Nick Saban's retirement in mid-January and recommitted to the Tide two weeks later.
Whew. All understandable decisions, but chaotic all the same.
Wednesday's true intrigue focused on Terry Bussey, a 5-star athlete committed to Texas A&M who didn't sign in December. He considered Georgia and LSU before sticking with new coach Mike Elko and the Aggies—who added 4-star wideout Ashton Bethel-Roman.
Five-star defensive lineman Dominick McKinley also elected to not submit paperwork to A&M in December. However, he soon flipped to LSU and finalized that decision on signing day.
Leading into bowl season, there were rumblings that Ohio State may be able to keep a handful of key NFL-eligible players. The dissatisfaction of a third straight loss to Michigan wasn't sitting well.
But, hey, rumors are just rumors. We've heard similar stories in previous years and didn't see a wave of returning players.
Ohio State, however, pulled it off.
Nine key players have decided to stay in Columbus. The group includes running back TreVeyon Henderson, wide receiver Emeka Egbuka, left guard Donovan Jackson, edge-rushers J.T. Tuimoloau and Jack Sawyer, defensive tackle Tyleik Williams and defensive backs Denzel Burke, Jordan Hancock and Lathan Ransom.
Throw in that the Jim Harbaugh era is over at Michigan, and the Buckeyes have a strong claim to being the Big Ten favorite in 2024.
Nuance is the important part of this discussion.
In the aftermath of Jedd Fisch bolting for Washington, Arizona should not collapse. Brent Brennan is a quality coach, and he inherited a competent roster—even after unsurprising post-coaching change transfers.
Those departures cannot be simply brushed off, though. Along with the graduated seniors and NFL-bound players, the Wildcats must replace top running back Jonah Coleman, edge-rushers Isaiah Ward and Russell Davis II, interior defenders Tiaoalii Savea and Jacob Kongaika and cornerbacks Ephesians Prysock and Tacario Davis.
Again, Arizona will be competitive. That's a huge credit to quarterback Noah Fifita and star wideout Tetairoa McMillan, among others.
Win the Big 12—and that's a distinct possibility—and the Cats will be headed to the College Football Playoff.
Because of the transition, however, the odds of Arizona sneaking an at-large bid to the inaugural 12-team CFP aren't as friendly.
