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With only a day to go until prospects can start faxing in their National Letter of Intent, teams around the SEC are hoping for the best. Several programs are still waiting for commitments that could swing their recruiting class, either from good to great or from subpar to salvaged.
Some of the SEC’s biggest programs are playing that game as we sit in the final recruiting dead period of this cycle. Coaches can’t contact players, so they have to hope the work they’ve put in over months and years is enough to seal the deal.
With the clock ticking down toward National Signing Day, which schools have to have certain players to finish off a successful recruiting season? Let’s look at some of the biggest uncommitted players remaining among SEC targets.
Byron Cowart — Auburn
The No. 1 defensive end in the country has narrowed his choices down to just two schools, both of which could badly use his services. At Florida, he’d be an absolute gem in first-year head coach Jim McElwain’s class. Auburn and new defensive coordinator Will Muschamp are in just as great need for Cowart, and he would be the player to cement the Tigers’ recruiting class in the top 10. Muschamp will already have studs to work with in Carl Lawson and Montravius Adams, but Cowart would greatly speed up improvement along the defensive line and help Auburn contend in the West.
Martez Ivey — Florida
One of the most important goals for McElwain should be rebuilding depth for the Gators, especially on the offensive front. The Gators only have 13 commits leading up to NSD, and the players they fill the class out with will help create that depth. What McElwain needs just as much is a star, and Ivey would be that player. If the Gators can reel him in along with one or two other elite prospects they’re chasing, McElwain’s first class will leap from the bottom of the SEC toward the top of the national rankings. Add in that Ivey could step in as anchor right away, a la Alabama’s Cam Robinson in 2014, and he moves to the top of Florida’s list.
Daylon Mack — Texas A&M
Texas A&M has lost on a fair share of defensive recruits this cycle, especially to Texas. Malik Jefferson, Holton Hill and Kris Boyd, all top-ranked defenders from Texas, chose the Longhorns over the Aggies in the last few months. Texas A&M is locked in another recruiting battle with their in-state rivals, as well as schools like TCU and Auburn, to secure five-star defensive tackle Daylon Mack. Mack, as you may remember, was once committed to Texas A&M before re-opening his recruitment in mid-December. Not only does Kevin Sumlin need to win this battle over Texas and others to avoid getting whitewashed on the recruiting scoreboard, but Mack would be a destructive force in the middle John Chavis’ defense that could help spur an instant turnaround.
Rico McGraw — Georgia
When McGraw decommitted from Alabama last week, it opened the door for the Bulldogs to bring him into the fold. Georgia was young and thin at cornerback in 2014, and McGraw would have the chance to step in and be a big factor on defense immediately. Georgia has needs on the other side of the ball, mainly at wide receiver where they’re fighting to hold on to a few top commits, but adding in defensive back talent would give Jeremy Pruitt’s defense a major boost. McGraw would be the top-rated cornerback prospect in this class and help shore up one of the Dawgs’ problem areas from 2014.
A former freelance journalist from Philadelphia, Brett has made the trek down to SEC country to cover the greatest conference in college football.
