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’t mean there’s 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.
As expected, this 2027 class has plenty of talent. Personnel staffers have told The Athletic they’re 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).
Consider this your primer to the 2027 class. Here’s what you need to know as we turn the page.
Note: All rankings are from the 247Sports Composite.
• The quarterback class might be deep, but it’s 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.
• Speaking of Texas Tech, the Red Raiders are on a roll again. After finishing the 2026 cycle with the program’s 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’ve got a ton of time between now and December, but it’s 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.
• Brewster, the nation’s 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’s 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• Ohio State has been particularly impressive early, landing commitments from two of the nation’s top 10 players and five of the top 200. Coach Ryan Day’s 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 — the ace recruiter who is now the head coach at South Florida — Ohio State’s 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.
• Don’t look now but … OK, Nebraska? The Cornhuskers haven’t 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.
Their biggest pickup? No doubt it’s 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’s 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.
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.
• The defending national champions have five commits and just two blue-chippers, but that’s probably just how Indiana’s Curt Cignetti likes it. The Hoosiers’ two four-stars are cornerback Monsanna Torbert Jr., out of Cincinnati, and wide receiver Ja’Hyde 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.
• 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’s highest-ranked signee of the modern era. Sanders, ranked No. 60 nationally, would be No. 2.
• Lane Kiffin didn’t 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’ 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 — and making him a priority — would send a message that Kiffin isn’t totally ignoring the high school model in favor of portal prospects.
Strategy meeting on who’s next🚂💨#JustDifferent #NFLSU pic.twitter.com/Ny4g6Vf9Q1
— Peyton Houston (@PeytonHouston8) January 29, 2026
• It will be fascinating to see how Kyle Whittingham at Michigan and Matt Campbell at Penn State recruit in the Big Ten after coming from the Big 12, where they were known more for their ability to develop under-the-radar talent. They’re now both at name-brand, blue-blood programs with plenty of resources. Campbell and Penn State currently don’t have any commits. Whittingham and Michigan have four, but none who committed under the new staff. Stay tuned.
• Auburn coach Alex Golesh has been on the job for only a few months, but he picked up arguably the most significant recruit of his career Thursday when four-star defensive lineman Donivan Moore, from Hueyton, Ala., committed to the Tigers over Alabama, Ole Miss, LSU, Texas and Ohio State. That Golesh, an offensive-minded coach, was able to pick up such a critical player on defense might speak to the way he has connected with in-state talent early. He’ll need to keep it up, as Moore is one of only two commits in Auburn’s 2027 class and the only one from Alabama. But this is a solid start. Moore is the nation’s No. 72 prospect and No. 5 defensive lineman.
• Last but certainly not least, kudos to Oklahoma, which currently has the nation’s top class and is off to a scorching start under coach Brent Venables. The Sooners, fresh off their first College Football Playoff appearance under Venables, have two five-stars, five top-150 players and seven blue-chippers among their 13 commits. Five-star tackles Cooper Hackett and Kaeden Penny, both Oklahoma natives, headline the group. Venables and his staff aren’t messing around.
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