There were only 20 ESPN 300 recruits left uncommitted or unsigned in college football's February signing period, so there wasn't a big opportunity for many teams to make a big splash in the recruiting class rankings.
That doesn't mean teams didn't add some big names and fill big holes on national signing day, however, as there were three top-50 recruits who announced a commitment Wednesday, a few flips and some late battles that helped shape these classes.
Alabama finished with the No. 1 overall class, and it's obvious the Crimson Tide were winners in both the early signing period and this February signing period. The staff was able to hang on to ESPN 300 running back Camar Wheaton and added ESPN 300 safety Terrion Arnold as well.
Outside of Alabama, there were some other big names who made commitments and helped finish off recruiting classes. To help recap the day, here is a look at which teams won this signing period and added to their recruiting hauls in this 2021 cycle.
Teams that won signing day
During the early signing period, Michigan was close to being on the winners' side, but it didn't address a glaring need at defensive tackle and lost a few commitments.
Fast-forward to the late signing period: The Wolverines addressed those needs by flipping four-star defensive tackle Rayshaun Benny from Michigan State and flipping tackle Ikechukwu Iwunnah from Colorado.
In its previous four recruiting classes, Michigan had signed four defensive tackles in total, and two of them transferred, leaving a giant hole along the front line.
The Wolverines announced almost an entirely new defensive staff, led by defensive coordinator Mike MacDonald, who hit the ground running on filling those spots. Prior to the start of this late signing period, the staff also added ESPN 300 defensive end George Rooks III.
Considering the season Michigan had and the lengthy time it took to get an extension signed for Jim Harbaugh, this class is a win for Michigan. The staff signed 10 ESPN 300 commitments in total and added two four-stars and a three-star along the defensive line after the early signing period.
The Trojans had the No. 54-ranked class in the 2020 cycle but moved all the way up to No. 8 in 2021. The staff had already done an excellent job closing with five-star defensive end Korey Foreman, the top in-state prospect, and landing two ESPN 300 quarterbacks in Miller Moss and Jaxson Dart.
In this February signing period, the coaches were once again able to keep a top in-state recruit at home by landing ESPN 300 linebacker Raesjon Davis. He is the No. 46-ranked recruit overall and was one of only four uncommitted prospects in the top 50 entering Wednesday.
USC was battling with LSU, Ohio State and Oregon for Davis, so to land a recruit of his caliber over that list is a big statement about the confidence some of the top recruits have in USC right now.
It was only one commitment in this signing period, but it was a big one and an important one to keep momentum moving forward in USC's journey to take back the West.
The Ducks were already recruiting at a high level under coach Mario Cristobal, but the 2021 class has been his best yet.
Oregon, similar to USC, pulled in a commitment from a top-50 recruit on Wednesday with cornerback Avante Dickerson, ranked No. 49 overall. Dickerson had decommitted from Minnesota after the early signing period, and despite being from Omaha, Nebraska, he ended up picking the Ducks.
He became the highest-ranked commit in the class and gave the coaches 16 ESPN 300 commitments, the most Oregon has ever had in one class since ESPN started the ESPN 300 in 2013.
Dickerson is the second ESPN 300 corner for the Ducks, along with Jaylin Davies, and gives Oregon the No. 2-ranked cornerback in each of the past three classes. The staff is building an excellent foundation on defense and already has some talented players on the roster.
Adding Dickerson was icing on the cake in what will likely end up as a top-five class for Cristobal and his coaches.
Because he was hired so late in the process (December 2019), coach Lane Kiffin didn't really get a chance to recruit most of the prospects in this class the right way. That didn't stop him and his staff from putting together a solid class and closing it out in strong fashion.
On Wednesday, Kiffin and assistant Chris Partridge were able to beat out Texas A&M and Florida State for top-50 defensive tackle Tywone Malone. The 6-foot-4, 310-pound prospect from New Jersey met Partridge when he was coaching at Michigan but has never even met Kiffin in person.
That commitment gave the staff seven ESPN 300 commits in the class and a solid foundation for the future, especially after Kiffin closed the early signing period on a high note as well. In December, he was able to land commitments from ESPN 300 quarterback Luke Altmyer, who had been committed to Florida State, and four-star tight end Hudson Wolfe, among a few others.
Teams that missed out
This section is all-encompassing for the entire 2021 cycle, rather than just looking at this late signing period. There weren't many top uncommitted recruits left, so there wasn't enough to judge teams on who missed out for this day alone. So, looking at the entirety of the 2021 cycle, these are teams that needed to add a little bit more to their classes.
After finishing with the No. 12-ranked class in 2018 and 2019 and the No. 7 class in 2020, the Tigers end 2021 with the No. 24-ranked recruiting class overall.
The class was already small before the university fired coach Gus Malzahn, but his termination certainly didn't help the situation. The new staff now only has 14 total commitments, with just four ranked in the ESPN 300.
On top of that, Auburn saw decommitments from offensive lineman Jaeden Roberts, who ended up signing with Alabama, cornerback Phillip O'Brien Jr. and running back Armoni Goodwin, among others.
Not adding the type of talent Auburn is accustomed to seeing will likely result in a short-term setback for new coach Bryan Harsin and his staff. But if there is a positive, not completely filling the class means there will be more room for potential transfers and more room for the 2022 class, when Hasin will have more time to build relationships and fill needs he and his staff have identified.
The Vols also went through a coaching change, but it happened after the early signing period. Upon firing Jeremy Pruitt after an internal investigation into potential recruiting violations, the staff lost commitments from five-star linebacker Terrence Lewis, four-star tight end Hudson Wolfe, ESPN 300 cornerback Damarius McGhee and wide receiver Jordan Mosley, among others.
In total, Tennessee lost nine commitments from November to January. The class ranking isn't terrible at No. 18 overall; it's actually impressive considering what was lost.
But in looking at what could have been, the Volunteers certainly missed out. Tennessee's staff finished with six ESPN 300 commitments, compared to eight in 2020 and 10 in 2019.
Teams that used the transfer portal to their advantage
Another aspect to this recruiting cycle is the transfer portal. There is a staggering number of players in the portal and looking for a new college football program to play for, so a few teams who used that to their advantage this cycle.
Oklahoma added eight transfers, including former five-star offensive lineman Wanya Morris, former ESPN 300 running back Eric Gray and safety Key Lawrence, all three from Tennessee. The staff has 15 high school recruits and supplemented with transfers to try to get immediate help.
Florida also used this to its advantage and added some big-name players from the 2020 class in former five-star tight end Arik Gilbert, who transferred from LSU, and running back Demarkcus Bowman from Clemson.
The coaches also filled a need at defensive tackle by taking in Daquan Newkirk and Antonio Shelton to supplement the top-10 recruiting class they are signing.
Penn State coach James Franklin acknowledged his program had a down year in recruiting, as his team sits just outside the top 25 of the recruiting class rankings with four ESPN 300 commits. But the Nittany Lions filled needs through the portal. They added five transfers to help the roster, including defensive end Arnold Ebiketie from Temple, who had four sacks and 42 total tackles this past season.