National Signing Day 2015: Top Players to Watch in Recruiting Spectacle

National signing day remains one of the more ridiculous yet beloved traditions in all of sports. For a day, the top high school recruits in the country—some of whom aren't even old enough to vote, mind you—hold press conferences to announce which college they will attend before giving interviews on television outlets to talk about that choice.

It's all sort of absurd. And, of course, we can't seem to get enough of it. We're a weird country. 

So, who should you be paying close attention to as the annual spectacle approaches? Let's find out.

Martez Ivey, OT

The top offensive lineman in this year's class and the No. 2 player overall in the country, via 247Sports, has an interesting choice to make. It seemed for the longest time that he was going to choose Florida, but several factors—most notably that the man who recruited him, Will Muschamp, is now the defensive coordinator at Auburn—might be swaying him toward War Eagle. 

It doesn't hurt that his teammate and best friend, Chandler Cox, is also going to Auburn.

Chris Hays of the Orlando Sentinel has more on Ivey's pending decision:

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"I'll probably be at Florida on an unofficial this weekend and after that I'll see where my mind is at with both of these schools and think about it," said Ivey, who will announce his choice Feb. 4 at the Apopka High auditorium.

He said he second-guesses himself ... a lot.

"All the time ... I'll be one way one day and another way the next day," Ivey said. "It's back and forth. I've been doing that for a while."

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Losing Ivey would be a huge blow for a Florida program trying to build its way back to prominence but an enormous get for Auburn after its "down year" in 2014 if he indeed changes his mind. The fact that he hasn't declared for Florida by this point, long believed to be the front-runner, isn't a great sign for the Gators. 

But until Feb. 4, we'll all just be guessing. 

Byron Cowart, DE

Another prospect Florida is keen on—to be fair, everyone in the country is keen on 5-star prospect Byron Cowart—could be leaning toward Auburn as well. In fact, Florida could be losing the chance to sign three top prospects, as Cowart has said he's a package deal with CeCe Jefferson and Jeffery Holland.

Talk about a recruiting boon if that happens. Cowart is worth watching not only as the top defensive end prospect in the country, but now because he could be bringing two excellent players along for the ride. Jefferson is a 5-star defensive end prospect, while Holland is a 4-star linebacker, so they would potentially instantly upgrade the defense they choose. 

That makes Cowart arguably the most important recruit in the nation over the next two weeks.

Iman Marshall, CB

Cornerback is the most difficult skill position to play in football outside of quarterback. It requires elite levels of balance, agility, speed and leaping ability, fast reaction times and a very, very short memory. It takes a very special athlete to succeed at the position, and Iman Marshall certainly has the look of such an athlete. 

So coveted is Marshall that Michigan freshman corner Jabrill Peppers has said he would move to safety if Marshall chose the Wolverines. 

"It's entirely possible, of course, that Peppers told Marshall this to help with the official visit," Nick Baumgardner of MLive.com wrote in response to Peppers' possible move to safety. "But it's also possible he'd like to play safety, a spot the former coaching staff believed he'd be able to excel at."

Whatever the case may be, a ton of schools would love for Marshall to commit to their program. USC remains the front-runner, while Oregon is an interesting dark horse to watch. But at least one player on the Wolverines apparently would have little issue accommodating Marshall should he choose Michigan.

All rankings via 247Sports.