As college football teams take the field Saturday, a potentially hectic final month before the early signing period for the 2026 recruiting class will already be officially underway.
Thirty-two days remain before the Dec. 3-5 early signing period, the first opportunity class of 2026 commits have to sign with programs. Between now and then, the temperature is set to rise as top uncommitted prospects and flip targets visit campuses over the final four weeks of the college football regular season and teams put the finishing touches on their incoming classes.
Auburn, Ohio State and Tennessee are among the major programs hosting key visitor weekends in Week 10. Meanwhile, major questions loom over Vanderbilt and five-star Georgia quarterback commit Jared Curtis, No. 1 overall prospect Lamar Brown and LSU, and a busy wide receiver market that's expected to see significant movement over the next 30 days.
Before Saturday's games kick off across the country, here's the latest recruiting intel playing out across the 2026 class.
Can Vanderbilt flip five-star Georgia QB commit Jared Curtis?
Vanderbilt pulled out all the stops for No. 2 overall quarterback Curtis on a pair of trips to campus last week. Sources expect the No. 9 Commodores to remain in daily contact with the five-star passer from Nashville over the next month, continuing to pitch Curtis on staying home and arriving as the program's successor to Diego Pavia.
But just how serious of a flip risk is the five-star Georgia pledge?
Despite persistent efforts from the Commodores, multiple sources around Curtis' recruitment believe his commitment to the Bulldogs remains firm, as things stand. After pulling his pledge from Georgia last fall then committing to the program again in May, Curtis is still on track to sign with the Bulldogs in December with plans to enroll on campus in early 2026.
"I'm still pretty confident in what we have going on with him," one program source told ESPN. "It would be pretty shocking to me if he landed anywhere else."
Sources involved in Curtis' recruitment tell ESPN that Curtis sees his future at Georgia, playing for a program he feels presents the best opportunity for personal development and national championship contention at the next level. The big-armed quarterback has reiterated that notion in recent weeks to members of the Bulldogs' coaching staff, including offensive coordinator Mike Bobo, who was on hand to watch Curtis throw six touchdowns last Friday ahead of Curtis' game-day visit to Vanderbilt.
Still, Vanderbilt will continue working on Curtis between now and the early signing period, chasing a prospect who would represent the highest-ranked signee in program history.
Sources suggest Vanderbilt might have jumped into the race too late to ultimately persuade Curtis. But as the 7-1 Commodores visit Texas on Saturday in the midst of the program's best season in at least a decade-plus, Vanderbilt has every reason to keep chasing the five-star quarterback in its own backyard.
"They're going to keep working on him all the way to signing day," one source said. "Why wouldn't they?"
What's left for the rest of the 2026 QB market?
Past Curtis' Vanderbilt flirtation, the quarterback market is largely settled for now. Entering November, nearly every Power 4 program has at least one quarterback committed in the 2026 class.
Yet, there still remains a small group of intriguing quarterback recruits searching for programs, with more who could potentially emerge before the early signing period opens Dec. 3.
Four-star passer Tradon Bessinger, who debuted at No. 192 in the latest ESPN 300 update Wednesday, became the latest to join that pack when he pulled his pledge from Boise State earlier this week. A late riser from Kaysville, Utah, Bessinger has attracted growing interest this fall with BYU, Iowa and UCLA leading the charge for ESPN's No. 9 pocket passer.
Bessinger has taken visits to UCLA and Iowa over the past two weekends. He's also scheduled for an official visit to BYU -- the program he watched growing up -- on Nov. 15. A key advantage for Bessinger as the coaching carousel plays out across the country: He's set to remain in high school this spring to complete his senior basketball season, opening up the possibility of waiting to sign until February with a clearer picture of the coaching landscape.
"I'm a kid where I'm not going to go to a big-time program like Ohio State and just sit behind some five-stars that will transfer in all the time," Bessinger said. "I'm a kid where, wherever I'm going to go, I want to go play as early as I can."
Alongside Bessinger, former Penn State pledge Troy Huhn (No. 198 overall) is the only other uncommitted ESPN 300 quarterback in the 2026 class. Huhn spent a year and a half in the Nittany Lions' incoming class before pulling his commitment Oct. 16. Stanford has offered since then, and Huhn intends to keep an eye on where former Penn State coach James Franklin lands. But entering November, the uncertain coaching situations across the country are forcing one of the nation's top quarterback prospects to take his reopened recruitment slowly.
"It's really day-to-day," Huhn's father said. "I think it will all depend on which coaches get fired and then when and where other coaches get hired. It's a challenge."
There could soon be more passers on the move if another rash of coaching moves unfolds in November. ESPN 300 quarterbacks Kayd Coffman (Michigan State), Peyton Falzone (Auburn), Jaden O'Neal (Florida State) and Matt Ponatoski (Kentucky) are all staring down potential uncertainty.
One question is which of those quarterbacks would move in the event of a staff change. Another is what programs would still be looking to add high-level quarterback talent in 2026.
As evidenced by their recent interest, BYU, Iowa, Stanford and UCLA are four programs still working the quarterback market. LSU exists as an outlier nationally as one of the few blue bloods without a 2026 quarterback commit, while sources indicate that Missouri, Iowa State and NC State could be among the programs prepared to pursue a second quarterback pledge this cycle.
What's next for top-ranked recruit Lamar Brown and LSU's 2026 class?
When Brian Kelly walked out of LSU's football facility Sunday, all eyes (in the recruiting world, at least) fell on No. 1 overall prospect Brown, not just nationally but within the Tigers' incoming recruiting class, too.
ESPN sources believe the overall direction of LSU's 2026 class will ultimately hinge on Brown's next steps in the wake of Kelly's midseason firing. An explosive defensive tackle from nearby Erwinville, Louisiana, Brown is viewed as not only a foundational member of the Tigers' incoming class but the leader of a talented collection of in-state pledges that accounts for 12 of the 18 prospects committed to LSU in the 2026 cycle.
The Tigers have not lost a single pledge in the six days since Kelly's departure. And, for now, program sources and others with direct knowledge of Brown's process expect him to stay put with LSU, even as contact from summer finalists Texas A&M and Miami rolled in this week.
"It would really surprise me if that kid didn't come here," said one source within the program.
Brown cited home ties, deep program connections and the opportunity to play at Tiger Stadium when he committed to LSU over the Aggies and Hurricanes in July. On those pillars, sources within the program expect Brown to stick with the program under its next head coach. And if Brown signs Dec. 3, the expectation is that the bulk of the Tigers' class will remain, too.
Of course, there's plenty of time for that to change. Texas A&M was a narrow runner-up in Brown's recruitment over the summer and would be the strongest contender if the nation's top-ranked prospect decides to reopen his recruitment. Miami also remains in the market for defensive line talent and has shown an ability to spend in the 2026 cycle.
Indiana, Oklahoma, South Carolina chasing Penn State commit Messiah Mickens
Four-star running back Mickens, the longest-tenured member of Penn State's 2026 class, remains in contact with the Nittany Lions' staff. But since reopening his recruitment Oct. 14, two days after Penn State fired coach James Franklin last month, Mickens (No. 141 overall) has reemerged as one of the cycle's top available rushers.
Mickens told ESPN that Georgia, Miami, Missouri, Ohio State, Rutgers and Syracuse were among the schools he spoke to in the immediate aftermath of Franklin's exit. Several weeks later, ESPN's No. 13 overall running back is working to finalize official visits with Indiana, Oklahoma and South Carolina.
"I'm looking for a great coaching staff and a place that can develop me as a player," Mickens said. "The relationship with the coaches will be important."
Penn State interim head coach Terry Smith and running backs coach Stan Drayton haven't given up on Mickens, who continues to monitor the Nittany Lions' coaching search. But with the Hoosiers, Sooners and Gamecocks emerging from the deep pack of interested programs, Mickens' ultimate destination increasingly appears as if it will be somewhere other than Happy Valley.
Checking in on the wide receiver market
Milan Parris (Miami) and Jahsiear Rogers (Oklahoma) were the latest high-profile pass catchers to come off the board this week. Here's some of what's next for the 2026 wide receiver class:
Davion Brown, No. 109 in ESPN 300: Brown, who pulled his pledge from Penn State last month, is ESPN's top-ranked uncommitted wide receiver recruit.
The 6-foot-2 pass catcher from Richmond, Virginia, picked the Nittany Lions over Duke, Georgia, Michigan and Virginia Tech in May. Sources tell ESPN that Indiana, Kansas State and Maryland enter November as the primary players in Brown's recruitment.
Jayden Petit, No. 178 in ESPN 300, Wisconsin commit: Petit's Week 9 visit to Oklahoma marked a potential breakthrough for Wisconsin's top-ranked 2026 pledge.
The Badgers' lone remaining ESPN 300 commit, Petit has been the subject of growing flip interest amid a productive senior fall, as well as ongoing uncertainty over coach Luke Fickell's future at Wisconsin. But Petit had yet to visit another campus this fall before he traveled to see the Sooners' 34-26 loss to Ole Miss last weekend. Oklahoma now stands among the top contenders to flip Petit, with Iowa State, Maryland, Missouri and Washington also in the mix, per ESPN sources, leaving Fickell and the 2-6 Badgers to face an uphill battle for the program's top 2026 recruit.
Jayden Warren, No. 237 in ESPN 300, Houston commit: Warren committed to the Cougars over TCU and SMU in July, joining top-ranked quarterback recruit Keisean Henderson (No. 4 overall) atop a class brimming with Houston-area talent in coach Willie Fritz's second cycle in charge of the program.
Warren has since taken a pair of visits to Texas A&M this fall, emerging as a top flip target for coach Mike Elko and the surging Aggies. But Houston will have Warren back on campus when it hosts West Virginia on Saturday afternoon, and program sources remain confident that the Cougars can hold off outside interest in Warren, just as they have with Henderson over the past year.
Tyren Wortham, No. 290: The Michigan State decommit has heard from Auburn, Penn State and Washington, among others, since pulling his pledge from the Spartans on Oct. 6. Wortham, who flipped from UCF to Michigan State in June, is expected to take his time in November, waiting on an unprecedented coaching carousel to unfold across the country.
"I think what he's trying to do is get the full experience and the full picture," his mother told ESPN. "We're going to see what options are out there and see where things stand."
A 6-foot, 180-pound pass catcher from Sarasota, Florida, Wortham does not currently have any visits scheduled in the coming weeks. Wortham and his family will continue to monitor coach Jonathan Smith's situation at Michigan State and have not yet fully ruled out the Spartans, either.
Xavier Stinson, No. 58 wide receiver: Interest in the 6-2, 185-pound recruit from Vero Beach, Florida, has picked up considerably since Stinson pulled his commitment from UCLA on Sept. 29. Among the programs to extend fresh offers this fall: Cincinnati, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Purdue and Wisconsin.
Stinson took an official visit to Iowa in Week 9. He'll travel to Illinois on Saturday for the Illini's Week 10 matchup with Rutgers and is expected to schedule additional visits later this month.
Biggest visitor weekends across the country
Auburn Tigers: As questions hover over Tigers coach Hugh Freeze's future with the program, Auburn is set to host a pair of heavy-hitting flip targets during Saturday's home game against Kentucky.
Four-star Oregon defensive end pledge Anthony Jones (No. 30 overall), the top-ranked recruit in Alabama, will be on hand. The occasion marks Jones' second visit to Auburn in less than a month. However, sources view Auburn flipping Jones' Ducks commitment as unlikely. The same goes for four-star Alabama defensive tackle pledge Nolan Wilson (No. 52), who returns to Auburn on Saturday for the first time since his official visit in June.
Three-star running back Xavier Rucker, a flip target currently committed to Georgia Tech, is also expected on campus in Week 10.
Ohio State Buckeyes: One of the Buckeyes' most pressing needs is at cornerback. Ohio State will be hosting a trio of flip targets -- Florida State's Jay Timmons (No. 195 overall), Florida's C.J. Bronaugh (No. 245) and Nebraska's Danny Odem (No. 248) -- when it hosts Penn State on Saturday. With only one cornerback committed in the cycle, sources expect Ohio State to move quickly in early November.
On the other side of the ball, the Buckeyes are also set to host four-star Penn State offensive line pledge Kevin Brown (No. 78) on Saturday. Brown also visited West Virginia earlier this week.
Tennessee Volunteers: Coach Josh Heupel & Co. have stayed quiet since flipping five-star wide receiver Tristen Keys from LSU in late August. But the Vols will have a trio of key targets on campus Saturday as Tennessee looks to put some final touches on the nation's No. 7 class.
Four-star UCLA offensive tackle pledge Micah Smith (No. 81 overall) is one of the priority visitors expected for the Vols' Week 10 home game vs. Oklahoma. Smith has taken trips to Ole Miss and Ohio State over the past month, with Texas and South Carolina also in the mix.
With Tennessee still missing a running back pledge, Saturday's visit from Wisconsin-pledged running back Amari Latimer -- another Ohio State target -- looms large. Four-star defensive tackle Franklin Whitley, an uncommitted late riser, rounds out an important group of visitors.