National Signing Day 2016: List of Schools Where 5-Star Recruits Committed

National signing day 2016 was the typical frenzy of activity, with eager college football fans, programs and commentators across the nation awaiting the commitment decisions of the top high school football players.

The best of the best, the blue-chip prospects, receive the most attention from various programs and have incredibly tough decisions to make. Only so many prep players earn the coveted 5-star rating, and only so many programs have the opportunity to land one of these talents.

Putting together a complete recruiting class is important, but landing that one potentially transcendent player can boost a program's profile for years to come.

Here's the full list of 5-star recruits and where they will play college ball. Rankings are based on 247Sports' composite ratings. 

National Ranking	Player, Pos.	Position Ranking	High School	Committed To
1	Rashan Gary, DT	1	Paramus Catholic (Paramus, New Jersey	Michigan
2	Dexter Lawrence, DT	2	Wake Forest (Wake Forest, North Carolina)	Clemson
3	Gregory Little, OT	1	Allen (Allen, Texas)	Ole Miss
4	Shea Patterson, QB	1	IMG Academy (Bradenton, Florida)	Ole Miss
5	Jacob Eason, QB	2	Lake Stevens Sr (Lake Stevens, Washington)	Georgia
6	Ed Oliver, DT	3	Westfield (Houston, Texas)	Houston
7	Levonta Taylor, CB	1	Ocean Lakes (Virginia Beach, Virginia)	Florida State
8	Nick Bosa, SDE	1	St. Thomas Aquinas (Fort Lauderdale, Florida)	Ohio State
9	Derrick Brown, DT	4	Lanier (Buford, Georgia)	Auburn
10	Ben Davis, ILB	1	Gordo (Gordo, Alabama)	Alabama
11	Mique Juarez, OLB	1	North High School (Torrance, California)	UCLA
12	Isaac Nauta, TE	1	IMG Academy (Buford, Georgia)	Georgia
13	Mecole Hardman Jr, ATH	1	Elbert County (Elberton, Georgia)	Georgia
14	Demetris Robertson, WR	1	Savannah Christian Prep (Savannah, Georgia)	N/A
15	Lyndell "Mack" Wilson, OLB	2	Carver (Montgomery, Alabama)	Alabama
16	Oluwole Betiku, WDE	1	Junipero Serra (Gardena, California)	USC
17	Jonah Williams, OT	2	Folsom (Folsom, California)	Alabama
18	McTelvin Agim, SDE	2	Hope (Hope, Arkansas)	Arkansas
19	Jeffery Simmons, SDE	3	Noxubee County (Macon, Mississippi)	Mississippi State
20	Miles Sanders, RB	1	Woodland Hills (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania)	Penn State
21	Kristian Fulton, CB	2	Archbishop Rummel (Metairie, Louisiana)	LSU
22	Jack Jones, CB	3	Long Beach Poly (Long Beach, California)	USC
23	Rashard Lawrence, DT	5	Neville (Monroe, Louisiana)	LSU
24	Benito Jones, DT	6	Wayne County (Waynesboro, Mississippi)	Ole Miss
25	Caleb Kelly, OLB	3	Clovis West (Fresno, California)	Oklahoma

Michigan Lands Consensus No. 1 Rashan Gary

In his first year as Michigan coach, Jim Harbaugh transformed the Wolverines defense into one of the most feared groups in the nation. A string of three straight shutouts early in the 2015 season drew the program plenty of buzz.

The famously intense coach is no slouch when it comes to molding young players in a hurry, and he now has the opportunity to develop the top overall recruit in the nation in Rashan Gary. 

Gary donned the maize and blue cap live on ESPN2 on Wednesday, confirming what many recruiting analysts had long expected. Bleacher Report's Tyler Donohue provided some insight as to why the New Jersey kid chose to play football in Ann Arbor: 

"Former Paramus Catholic head coach Chris Partridge is now a member of the Wolverines staff and played a pivotal role in this recruitment. Gary becomes the sixth New Jersey product to join Michigan's class, which includes multiple close friends."

Michigan Football passed along highlights of its latest and greatest recruit:

Based on 247Sports' composite rankings, Gary is the first No. 1 overall prospect to choose a non-SEC school since Matt Barkley signed with USC in 2009. It's not easy to beat out the allure of the SEC schools; SB Nation's map of 5-star recruits and their commitments shows the best talent is concentrated the Southeastern United States. 

No less than Alabama, Auburn and Ole Miss were targeting Gary, but he eventually chose the northern program looking to return to former levels of glory.

Gary has the size, power and speed to be a punishing every-down defensive tackle at the next level. The future is bright for both Gary and Michigan football as a whole. 


Alabama Adds Linebackers Ben Davis, Mack Wilson to Already-Terrifying Recruiting Class

According to 247Sports, Scout.com and Rivals.com, Alabama again has the top recruiting class this year (stop me if you've heard this one before).

A number of players made commitments to the Crimson Tide on Wednesday, most notable among them linebackers Ben Davis and Lyndell "Mack" Wilson. They joined offensive tackle Jonah Williams in their pledge to play ball in Tuscaloosa, giving Alabama three 5-star recruits for 2016.

Georgia and Ole Miss also managed to get their own trio of 5-star studs, but neither school's class can match the depth of Alabama's. Head coach Nick Saban is a master recruiter, with former South Carolina head coach Steve Spurrier going so far as to call him the best ever, per Bleacher Report's Christopher Walsh:

"

I think they've had five No. 1 recruiting classes out of the last six years, which has got to make him the greatest recruiter in the history of college football. Arguably, they've got the greatest collection of football players ever assembled for a college team. If the recruiting services are correct, and they're pretty much correct.

"

Davis is the No. 10 overall recruit and top inside linebacker. He's a legacy recruit for Alabama. His father, Wayne Davis, is the program's all-time leading tackler. Wilson is an outside linebacker and is the program's best prospect at his position in the last decade, per ESPN Stats & Info:

Both players will have to fight tooth and nail to get any playing time as true freshmen, as Alabama's defense is chock full of talented players.

Like some sort of Deep South Death Star, Saban's football juggernaut is primed to terrorize the world of college football for the foreseeable future.

Where Will Demetris Robertson Land? 

After Wednesday's commitment frenzy, wide receiver Demetris Robertson is now the only 5-star recruit yet to reveal where he will play college football.

According to 247Sports' Crystal Ball predictions, 45 percent of analysts believe Robertson will choose Notre Dame, while 40 percent think he will join fellow 5-star prospects Jacob Eason (QB), Isaac Nauta (TE) and Mecole Hardman Jr. (ATH) in Georgia. 

247Sports' Jake Rowe notes Robertson's commitment would bump the Bulldogs up to fifth in recruiting class rankings. It would also give them four 5-star recruits, more than any other team in the nation.

While the Fighting Irish are the favorite to land the nation's top wide receiver prospect—they sent their equipment truck to his house for goodness' sake—both Alabama (10 percent) and Stanford (five percent) are in the mix. Walsh noted that Alabama still has room for one more recruit, and Saban "would like to add another offensive playmaker or defensive end."

The prospect of playing for Stanford is reportedly why Robertson is waiting to make a final decision. 

“We just want to take more time,” said Carlos Robertson, Demetris' brother and legal guardian, per Rivals.com's Andrew Ivins. “He also wants to get [his SAT score], so we can take an official visit out to Stanford and see how that is before sitting down and making an informed decision.”

Should he join Georgia, Robertson could make for a special crop of offensive recruits in Athens. Eason is a pro-style quarterback, Nauta a well-rounded tight end and Hardman could play wide receiver at the next level. Add Robertson, and the Bulldogs offense could be a force in the passing game in a couple years' time. 

Robertson can hardly go wrong in his decision, however, as the likes of Notre Dame, Stanford and Alabama should afford him plenty of opportunity to capitalize on his prodigious talents.

All player rankings, stats and recruiting info courtesy of 247Sports unless otherwise noted.