National Signing Day 2015: Latest Rumors and Predictions for Notable Recruits

The time between now and national signing day on Feb. 4 may feel like just a handful of hours, but that's an eternity in the world of college football.

While a great deal of the nationally renowned recruits have already made a decision and are holding firm commitments to their schools, everything is up in the air for others. Whether it's last-minute coaching changes, concerns about playing time or just the right school swooping in late, players change their minds late in the recruiting cycle year after year. 2015 is no different.

Some schools have their recruiting classes all but locked up, while others are piecing it together last second in the hopes of salvaging something special. With that in mind, let's try to figure out where some of the most notable players are going to wind up.

Byron Cowart, DE

247Sports

Long destined for an anticipated signing day announcement, top defensive end Byron Cowart is going to make a big-time program awfully disappointed come Wednesday.

Rumors swirled about whether the third-ranked player in the entire class—who has Auburn and Florida hot on his tail—would make a final-weekend visit anywhere, but he shot those down himself, showing he's going to stay put and make his decision at home:

"

I'm not going anywhere this weekend .....

— Byron Cowart (@ByronHawkStar99) January 27, 2015"

With that out there, it seemingly comes down to Florida and Auburn for his services.

And it should be telling where Cowart made his final visit. He made official visits to both Auburn and Gainesville, but the one to Florida came last. With every opportunity to visit Auburn, Alabama, Florida State or anywhere else, he's staying put after seeing Jim McElwain last.

On top of that, Cowart looks and feels like a much better fit to what Florida is building, Bleacher Report's Barrett Sallee believes:

"

With Dante Fowler Jr. gone, Florida needs a big body who's well-rounded to be that force from the jump, and Cowart certainly fits the bill.

He'll get playing time as a true freshman at either place, but he won't have the pressure of being the guy who's being counted on to fix a problem from the jump, like he would at Auburn. He'll have time to acclimate, adjust to what it means to play college football and still be a contributor for a team that's become known for its stifling defense.

"

The recruiting cycle has taken a weird turn on Cowart, who was once being recruited to Florida by Will Muschamp. Now, he's being recruited away from Florida by Muschamp, the new defensive coordinator at Auburn. 

But the fact that he's still being pulled to the Gators more than anywhere else speaks volumes to the relationships he's built in Gainesville. Those go deeper than the coaching staff, which he also seems to have taken a liking to. 

Cowart would be one of the stars on Auburn's defense right off the bat, but he could be the guy in his home state of Florida and the crown jewel of the Gators' draft class.

Prediction: Cowart signs with Florida

Drew Richmond, OT

247Sports

Two powerhouse programs are putting the full-court press on top offensive tackle Drew Richmond as the Ole Miss Rebels cling onto his seemingly fleeting commitment. 

The nation's third-ranked offensive tackle (No. 54 overall) has been committed to Ole Miss since September. But his two visits this weekend to Alabama and Tennessee, as he told Riley Blevins of The Clarion-Ledger, come at a worrisome time for the Rebels. 

Alabama seems like the favorite any time it comes in for a late swoop, but the saga took another twist entering the weekend. Bama Online reported Richmond has canceled his visit to Tuscaloosa, which leaves Butch Jones and Tennessee to make a late impression on the in-state Memphis star.

The Vols already have the seventh-ranked recruiting class nationally, but Richmond would be one of the crown jewels of the class. More importantly, he would immediately be one of the best offensive linemen on a team that struggled mightily up front in 2014. Bleacher Report's Brad Shepard pondered how big it would be:

Richmond would almost assuredly play right away at Tennessee, but he has a similar opportunity at Ole Miss. What's more, he absolutely gushed about head coach Hugh Freeze and his last visit to Oxford upon reporting his future visits to Blevins: "He's like family," he said. "I'm very close with him. … It was also good to spend time with some of the guys."

Tennessee will put the hard sell on Richmond, but that won't be enough to pry him away from a coach he calls "family" and future teammates he calls "the guys." The home-state pull is a strong one, but much less so when you're talking Memphis to Knoxville—and in that regard, Ole Miss is actually closer geographically.

Prediction: Richmond signs with Ole Miss

Daylon Mack, DT

247Sports

We're seeing a late wave of elite athletes being enticed by the Texas Longhorns in their effort to rebuild a proud program, and Daylon Mack might be the most important of them.

Of course, that might be disagreed upon by those closely following the circus surrounding 5-star quarterback Kyler Murray and his teeter-tottering between Texas A&M and Texas. But Mack—an elite 5-star defensive tackle—proves to be crucial to Charlie Strong's defensive blueprint.

The longtime Aggie commit chose to decommit in December, and his future has been trending more and more toward Austin ever since. He took a visit to Texas on the weekend of Jan. 24, and he was scheduled to visit TCU on the final weekend before the following was reported by ESPN's Gerry Hamilton:

It's rare to see a player decommit from a school around a month before signing day only to reaffirm his commitment there. With a number of top recruits starting to sway toward the Longhorns down the stretch, Mack looks to be joining them after the latest developments in the recruiting cycle.

Prediction: Mack signs with Texas

Recruiting information and rankings via 247Sports composite and courtesy of 247Sports.com unless otherwise noted.