Before the 2025 season kicks off, the college football programs are making the most use of the offseason. After all, this is their last chance to bolster their 2026 recruiting class. As per On3’s 2026 Industry Ranking football Team Recruiting Rankings, Lincoln Riley’s USC Trojans sit at the top with 30 recruits locked in.
Thus, the college football programs are yet to catch up with the Trojans. Can they do that? Well, atleast they are trying their level best. Wednesday, July 2, marked one such day. The recruiting win came not only to one college football program. The lucky ones were LSU, Florida, South Carolina, Florida State, Texas Tech, and Oregon.
To start with is Brian Kelly’s LSU Tigers. When it comes to the recruiting trail, they might still be carrying the Bryce Underwood trauma. But that did not stop the college football program from going into turbo mode to hunt down new phenoms. As per On3’s rankings of the 2026 class, LSU stands at No.5 with 12 recruits. On Wednesday, they got a new addition. Hayes Fawcett posted, “BREAKING: Elite 2026 EDGE Trenton Henderson has Committed to LSU, he tells me for @rivals.ig.” Trenton Henderson is the No. 28 overall recruit and No. 5 out of Florida. The 5-star, 6’5, 230-pound EDGE fills a massive need in LSU’s 2026 class as he’s the first edge rusher to join the college football program. Was it an easy chase for Kelly and co.? Not at all. The Pensacola, FL native picked LSU over Texas and Miami.
The next lucky college football program is Mike Norvell’s Florida State Seminoles. They have hunted down the 4-star defensive lineman Earnest Rankins. It has been a good chase for the college football program as the 6’5 275 DL from Ellenwood, GA, chose the Seminoles over Auburn & Ohio State. Right now, Florida State stands at No.12 with 21 recruits locked in. And the young chap is already riding high on enthusiasm, “Climb baby Climb.”
Shane Beamer’s South Carolina Gamecocks also got a haul from the recruiting pool. The college football program has slipped way down in the On3 list. They are at No.18 with 10 recruits. On July 2, Hayes Fawcett confirmed, “BREAKING: Four-Star DL Noah Clark has Committed to South Carolina, he tells me for rivals.” Notre Dame has been working off a short list of options. It was just a few weeks ago that Durham (N.C.) CE Jordan defensive tackle Noah Clark has been their hot target. However, the final college football program runners whom the Gamecocks defeated in the Clark race were NC State & Virginia Tech. The energy of the 6’4, 330-pound star is indeed electrifying as he sent a message after committing, “Throw the Spurs Up Gamecock Nation.”
The Florida nation got extra lucky on July 2. Two of their college football programs grabbed big wins. Billy Napier’s Florida Gators added a 4-star defensive lineman, Kendall Guervil. Right now, their 2026 talent pool reserve is 15, and they are now standing at No.15. The final race was between Gators, Texas, and Florida State. But the 6’5, 315-pound Fort Myers, FL product chose to stay close to home. Two more college football programs added a feather to their recruiting cap. But can they now stand a chance to climb the ladder?
College football programs that are down but not out
There was a time when Dan Lanning was known as the ‘Recruiting King’ in the college football landscape. The Oregon Ducks have been on a recruiting tear over the last three years under Lanning, earning three straight top-10 classes. However, the college football program lost all its glitter. Two players of the 2026 class have already decommitted, Richard Wesley and Bott Mulitalo. When it comes to their 2026 class, Oregon is at No. 11 with 12 recruits. Still, they are yet to give up.
On July 2, Fawcett confirmed, “BREAKING: Four-Star IOL Tommy Tofi has Committed to Oregon, he tells me for Rivals.” Finally, the college football program has been on the other side of the ‘flip script.’ Tommy Tofi committed to the Oregon Ducks just a couple of days after decommitting from the California Golden Bears. Then comes the college football program that is standing nearer to the bottom of the On3 list.
That’s none other than Texas Tech holding the No.32 position with 16 recruits. 4-star safety Donovan Webb committed to Joey McGuire’s program over Michigan, Kansas State, and Notre Dame. Sherrone Moore’s Michigan had been trending for Webb for well over a month. Tech never gave in, and the college football program ended up flipping the crystal ball predictions their way. On3 analyst Ben Golan shared, “Donovan Webb is an absolute dog. Elite cover guy. Was one of the best players I saw all spring, regardless of position.” Future-focused and firing on all cylinders, college football programs are stacking talent like never before.
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