Early Signing Day: Top 10 2026 College Football Recruiting Classes

It's a chaotic time of year in college football. Conference championship weekend is days away, and the coaching carousel is in full swing.

But on top of all of that, early signing day has arrived. The early signing period opened on Wednesday and will run through Friday, allowing high school prospects to make their commitments official. 

Thousands of recruits did just that on Wednesday, signing their national letters of intent for the 2026 season. The biggest recruiting drama actually came on Tuesday, though, when Vanderbilt flipped Jared Curtis — the No. 1 quarterback in the 2026 recruiting class — from Georgia. 

That wasn't enough for Vanderbilt to have a top-10 recruiting class this year, even if it was a major coup for Clark Lea's program. So, which programs have the 10 best recruiting classes for the Class of 2026? Here's the full top 10, courtesy of 247 Sports (as of 5 p.m. ET on Wednesday). 

Top signings/commits: Offensive tackle Jackson Cantwell (No. 7 overall prospect, No. 2 OT), wide receiver Somourian Wingo (No. 50 overall prospect, No. 7 WR), wide receiver Milan Parris (No. 64 overall prospect, No. 9 WR)
5 stars: 1
4 stars: 20
Total number of signees: 30
Number of commits: 0

Whoever replaces Carson Beck at quarterback next season will have some freshman help. Cantwell made headlines this past summer when he reportedly signed a $2 million NIL deal to commit to the Hurricanes. 

Top signings/commits: Edge rusher Tristian Givens (No. 26 overall prospect, No. 6 edge rusher), running back KJ Edwards (No. 46 overall prospect, No. 3 RB), athlete Brandon Arrington (No. 55 overall prospect, No. 3 ATH)
5 stars: 1
4 stars: 22
Total number of signees: 26
Number of commits: 0

Texas A&M has added another five-star defensive lineman