As the home stretch of the 2010 recruiting season approaches, the next month will be full of excitement, happiness, disappointment, and head-scratching.
For some teams, closing out a class is a strength, which leads to a feeling of freshness and excitement to see how much their team has improved with the late addition of a stud signee.
For others, it is a glaring weakness that results in let-down feelings year after year after their most highly-sought out prospect signs with a rival team.
This year, it will be no different.
After the recent news of Urban Meyer's uncertainty in Gainesville and Pete Carroll's new job, this year may be the most emotional yet, with recruits thinking twice about where they want to spend the next three or four years of their lives.
With plenty of the top recruits still undecided about where they will play their college football, take a look at who has the best shot to come away with a last-minute surprise on National Signing Day.
OT Seantrel Henderson - No. 1
With offers from almost every program in the nation, Henderson is a mammoth of a teenager.
At 6'8", 300 pounds, Henderson will fight for the starting left tackle position no matter where he chooses to sign. His frame, athleticism, and footwork all contribute to Henderson's name being paired with a future No. 1 NFL Draft pick. This weekend at the Alamodome, he proved to be all he has been hyped up as (and more) at the Army All-American game.
With the recent news of Carroll leaving for the Seahawks, you can all but count USC out of contention with under a month left before National Signing Day. Although the Trojans sat near the top of his list just a few days ago, USC won't be able to put together a complete staff in time to get the nation's top recruit to come to Southern California.
Now that the Trojans are out of the running, the race looks like it will come down to Ohio State, Notre Dame, and Florida.
Although the Meyer situation is still iffy, with the monster recruiting class coming in, Henderson still might be attracted to Gainesville. However, Henderson's skills fit more in the mold of the Tressel or Kelly offense.
In the end, expect him to stay in the Midwest. Ohio State is the leader for now, but Notre Dame still has a chance as Kelly was able to sit down with Henderson and his father, and the family came away impressed.
Henderson's father has made it known that he is a supporter of the Irish, mostly due to the academic standpoint of the school. Add in the fact that Michael Floyd, a current standout receiver with the Irish, is in the ear of Henderson, and the situation becomes a little more exciting.
Prediction: Ohio State
Runner-up: Notre Dame
WR Kyle Prater - No. 2
Even though Prater hasn't officially decommitted from USC, all signs are pointing to him reopening his recruitment.
One thing is for sure: Prater will not be heading to L.A. tomorrow in order to enroll early at USC. Instead, he will fly back home in order to talk over his options with his family.
"It hurts," Prater said. "I don't even know what to say. I can't really tell you anything because I don't know anything so I can't tell you. All the coaches at the school are just as clueless as me."
With that said, Prater will at least take a good look around. It has already been reported that Illinois, Notre Dame, and Florida would be the schools he would be interested in hearing from.
In the end, expect this to come down to a typical Notre Dame-USC recruiting battle. Prater's best friend, Corey Cooper, is looking more and more each day like he is ready to switch his current verbal to the Fighting Irish.
With strong connections and being close to home, Notre Dame looks to be the place for Prater if he in does indeed eliminate the Trojans from contention. However, if he does still want to enroll early at a school, Illinois may be the darkhorse in this race.
Prediction: Notre Dame
Runner-up: USC
RB Lache Seastrunk - No. 4
The top-ranked running back in the 2010 class has yet to give a college his verbal. However, many expect Seastrunk to give his commitment very soon .
Although his 40 time clocks at an average 4.5 seconds, no player in the country changes direction faster than Seastrunk. In addition, his initial explosion off of the line of scrimmage is better than that of any prospect in the country.
His frame and skill set predict that Seastrunk will be able to carry the workload of 25-30 carries per game, boosting his stock even more and deeming him more valuable to programs all over the country.
Seastrunk, straight out of the depths of Texas, broke loose from the hands of Mack Brown and is now considering a top four of Auburn, LSU, Oregon, and USC. However, it looks like he will wind up in East Alabama at Auburn.
Michael Dyer, the third-ranked running back in this class behind both Seastrunk and Marcus Lattimore, has recently come out and said he wants another big-name backfield threat in this year's Auburn recruiting class.
If Seastrunk does in fact give his pledge to the Tigers, they will have hauled in one of the best backfield recruiting classes in the history of college football. This duo could form a dangerous tag-team that follows in the steps of former Tigers Ronnie Brown and Cadillac Williams.
Prediction: Auburn
Runner-up: Oregon
DE Jackson Jeffcoat - No. 6
Jeffcoat's recruitment has been one that has been kept rather quiet. His quotes aren't very involved and never seem to hint where he is favoring at the point in time.
With his recent focus being on basketball, Jeffcoat is going to have one of the best frames in college football once he is able to focus on one sport starting next fall. At 6'5", 230 pounds, many expect him to be one of the next great strong-side defensive ends, regularly wreaking havoc on opposing backfields.
As of now, he lists a top five of Texas, Oklahoma, Houston, Arizona State, and USC.
His father, Jim Jeffcoat, is a former All-American defensive end at Arizona State and is currently an assistant coach at Houston. Whether or not both of these schools will be in contention come signing day is unknown, but don't rule either of them out as they are both programs on the rise.
The leader here, however, looks to be Texas as Jeffcoat derives from the football-rich program of Plano West. With Carroll leaving, this may give enough momentum to the Longhorns in order to receive a firm verbal from the nation's top defensive lineman.
Many are comparing Jeffcoat to Julius Peppers, who fully reached his potential after committing 100 percent to the game of football. It will be scary to think what Jeffcoat's ceiling may hold, but whoever gets him will be rather happy the next three or four years.
Prediction: Texas
Runner-up: Unknown
RB Marcus Lattimore - No. 7
Lattimore first got his chance to show the nation all he had to offer on national televison against then No. 1 St. Thomas Aquinas.
From that day, in which he ran for 118 yards and two touchdowns, Lattimore has been my favorite running back prospect in this class. He shows a maturity and leadership that most 18-year-old high school seniors will only acheive when they are seniors in college.
As the second-ranked running back behind Seastrunk, Lattimore also showed all he had to offer this past weekend in San Antonio.
Drawing similarities to wildcat-inventor Ronnie Brown, Lattimore doesn't posses elite speed, but rather has used a combination of power, vision, quickness, and elusiveness on the way to rushing for over 8,000 yards rushing and receiving in addition to 104 touchdowns during his high school career.
Wherever he lands next season, he will without a doubt see the field early and often. He has been quoted as saying that he would like a chance to start early, and staying in-state with Steve Spurrier would put him in an ideal situation in a program on-the-rise.
From the get go, South Carolina and Auburn had been his early favorites. But with the commitment of five-star Michael Dyer and the likelihood of Seastrunk also joining Gene Chizik's class, Lattimore is expected to sign with his in-state school.
Prediction: South Carolina
Runner-up: Auburn, Penn State
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