National Signing Day 2012: The Top Recruits That Were Stolen Away

As we've learned in years past, there's no such thing as a guarantee when it comes to recruiting high school football players. Until a player actually puts his signature on a letter of intent, it doesn't matter what comes out of their mouth.

We saw that once again today on national signing day, as there were a number of highly touted prospects who reneged on their original commitments and ended up signing with another school.

Here's a look at the top recruits that were poached by schools at the last minute.

Lead photo courtesy of iHigh.com.

WR Deontay Greenberry: Houston

Deontay Greenberry had been committed to Notre Dame since last spring, and many Irish fans felt certain that he would end up in South Bend even though schools like Arizona State and USC made a run at him.

When Greenberry visited Houston this past weekend, though, it did raise their anxiety level just a bit, even though most still believed he would end up in an Irish uniform.

However, the California native pulled off possibly the biggest shocker of national signing day when he switched from Notre Dame to Houston to play for new Cougars coach Tony Levine.

Even though his cousin and best friend Tee Shepard is already enrolled at Notre Dame, that wasn't enough to get the 4-star receiver recruit to go through with his commitment.

Losing out on a prospect like Greenberry is certainly a big blow to Notre Dame's 2012 class, even though the Irish have still assembled one of the more talented groups in the country this year.

WR Bralon Addison: Oregon

Oregon's recruiting pipeline down to Texas is apparently still running strong, as the Ducks managed to steal away one of the best recruits in the state, 4-star WR Bralon Addison, who had previously been committed to Texas A&M.

Addison gives Oregon's suspect receiving corps a true bona fide playmaker, and losing him at the last minute was a tough blow for Kevin Sumlin and the Aggies.

Still, the fact that they were able to land one of the top receiver prospects in the country, Thomas Johnson, just a few hours later certainly helped to ease the pain.

CB Tracy Howard: Miami

Although he never officially committed to Florida, many recruiting analysts thought that top-rated cornerback Tracy Howard was a near-lock to end up with the Gators.

But Al Golden swooped in and must have really wooed the Miramar, Florida, native on his official visit to Miami this past weekend, because Howard spurned the Gators in favor of the Hurricanes.

Howard cited his chance to play early as one of the key reasons for heading to Coral Gables, and it will be interesting to see what type of impact he can make as a freshman in 2012.

S Shaq Thompson: Washington

Many recruiting analysts expected that the move of defensive line coach Tosh Lupoi from Cal to Washington could lead to the deterioration of Cal's 2012 recruiting class, since so many of the Bears' top targets committed to Cal because of Lupoi. They were exactly right.

Not only did Lupoi bring Cal's top commitment, 5-star safety Shaq Thompson, with him to Seattle, he also almost poached 4-star WR Jordan Payton as well, before Payton switched his mind to UCLA at the last minute, making it the third time he de-committed from a school

The fact that the Bears lost Thompson to Washington as well as Payton and DT Ellis McCarthy to UCLA really destroyed what was shaping up to be one of the Top 10 classes in the country back in early January.

DE Dante Fowler Jr.: Florida

Dante Fowler Jr. looked like he was going to be a key piece of Florida State's stellar 2012 class, but the 5-star defensive end made a last-second switch from the Seminoles to the Florida Gators on national signing day.

Fowler cited a better fit in Will Muschamp's defense and a chance to play early as two of his main reasons for the decision, which are valid considering he could be a great fit in the hybrid "Buck" role behind Ronald Powell and would have a better chance to see more snaps early in his career in Gainesville.

Considering that Jimbo Fisher has landed two of the top defensive line recruits in the country today with DE Mario Edwards and DT Eddie Goldman, the loss of Fowler isn't as big of a blow as it could have been.

DE Torshiro Davis: Texas

LSU coach Les Miles has had to deal with losing a few top-notch recruits this year, and he had to deal with it once again on national signing day, as one of the top commitments in the Tigers' 2012 class, 4-star LB Torshiro Davis, pulled a stunning last-second switch and committed with Texas.

The Shreveport, Louisiana, native was one of the key cornerstones of LSU's class, and losing him to Texas definitely hurts, although adding a player like 4-star LB Kwon Alexander will definitely help soften the blow.

OT Andrus Peat: Stanford

Andrus Peat looked like a Nebraska lock right from the get-go. His brother Todd's a Cornhusker and all signs pointed to him joining him next season. 

But Peat pulled one of the day's biggest surprises when he committed to Stanford on national television. The good news kept rolling in for the Cardinal when a couple hours later another blue chip offensive tackle, Kyle Murphy gave his signature to Stanford as well. 

The post-Andrew Luck Cardinal head into the 2012 season with a ton of new fire power, while Nebraska's left wondering what just happened.