The Kings of Recruiting in College Football

Jake Wimberly

Ross Gaskin Contributing:

Probably the most exciting, or frustrating, part of college football over the past few years has been the changes, expansion, and drama of recruiting. Recruiting and developing high school players has always been a huge part of the game, but now the transfer portal has become an even bigger aspect of recruiting. Today we will look at 3 coaches who are currently the best of the best in the recruiting game.

Kirby Smart- Georgia

It is impossible to talk about recruiting without talking about Kirby Smart. Kirby Smart has been one of the most prolific recruiters in all of college football for nearly a decade now. Georgia, under Smart, have been in the the top 5 in high school recruiting classes 9 years in a row with 3 years at #1 and totaling 21 five star recruits. Kirby Smart has also made great strides at taking advantage of the transfer portal this year with notable transfers Zachariah Branch and Noah Thomas joining the team. Year in and year out, Kirby Smart continues to dominate the recruiting game.

Ryan Day- Ohio State

Ryan Day has been one of the most consistent recruiters in college football for a while now, and he has earned his reputation as one of the best in the business. Coach Day has had a top 5 recruiting class every year since 2020 and in that span has recruited 19 total 5 stars. Ryan Day has also been killing it with the transfer portal as he currently has the 10th best transfer class in the nation. Ryan Day has been building something special at Ohio State, and I do not think they will be slowing down any time soon.

Dan Lanning- Oregon

In 4 short years as the Head Coach of the Oregon Ducks, Dan Lanning has been one the premiere recruiters in college football. In those years, Dan Lanning has had a top 5 recruiting class in 2 of those and has totaled five 5 star recruits since becoming the coach at Oregon. However, Dan Lanning’s biggest strength is the transfer portal as he has had a top 5 portal class two years in a row. This year, he has gotten some studs through the portal like Makhi Hughes, Emmanuel Pregnon, and Isaiah World. Everyone better watch out because Dan Lanning is on the fast track to becoming the best recruiter in all of college football.