2018 National Signing Day: Top 5 questions entering NSD

2018 National Signing Day is sure to be filled with plenty of excitement, but these five recruiting stories are still up in the air.

After a recruiting process that spanned multiple years the 2018 recruiting class will be finalized on Wednesday, Feb. 7 – National Signing Day. As soon as the ink dries coaches from around the country will turn their attention to the 2019 class and fans will begin the long wait until spring games.

There will be plenty of twists and turns, after all, someone committed from space last year. Each school has their wish lists of top recruits. There will be plenty of time for overreactions, but first, what questions remain about this year’s National Signing Day?

1. Will the Early Signing Period kill the buzz?

The Early Signing Period is a new wrinkle that is still having its repercussions. It was supposed to keep the blue blood programs from poaching recruits from lesser schools by giving the 2018 recruits the option to sign their letters of intent in December, shutting down their recruitment two months before National Signing Day. To some degree that’s been effective, but its created new routines that will take some getting used to.

Many took that opportunity, thinning the pool of available recruits significantly. 41 of the top 50 recruits have already announced their commitments. 36 of those have signed with their chosen school and 16 are already on campus as early enrollees.

With the opportunities to flip recruits lessening the nation’s top schools have zeroed in on the handful of remaining recruits. That makes the remaining battles more intense, but there are fewer such showdowns to watch.