The 2015 college football season is just a couple of weeks away, but that's already old hat. We've already got our sights set on next year's National Signing Day and the programs which are separating themselves from the pack and cementing their status as future SEC powers. Here's our list of the 5 Best 2016 Recruiting Classes In The SEC (So Far).
5. Florida
5-Stars: 0
4-Stars: 3
3-Stars: 17
It's not a marquee haul (yet) for new Gators head coach Jim McElwain, but the class is rock solid when it comes to balance and the sheer number of mid-to-high upside three-star recruits the Gators have penciled in. Florida still has their feelers out for some big-named four- and five-star gets that are playing coy right now, so don't be surprised of Florida moves up this board by National Signing Day.
4. Georgia
5-Stars: 2
4-Stars: 5
3-Stars: 9
We almost want to slot Georgia higher on this list because we're absolutely infatuated with 5-star pro-style quarterback Jacob Eason. The kid's an absolute baller who's got NFL first-round pick written all over him. There are very few prep quarterbacks that just scream future legend like this kid does, and he's just the tip of the iceberg in what is shaping up to be another top-ten haul for Mark Richt.
3. Ole Miss
5-Stars: 1
4-Stars: 7
3-Stars: 11
We're buying into Ole Miss as a current and future power in the SEC and here's why -- Huge Freeze is on the road to securing four-straight top-15 recruiting hauls for the first time since 247Sports began tracking classes back at the turn of the 2000s (and possibly ever). Also, as enamored as we are with Jacob Eason, we're just as excited about #1 pro-style quarterback Shea Patterson will bring to the table in Oxford. We're giddy about the prospects of seeing those two face off in a prime-time late-season clash somewhere down the road.
2. Alabama
5-Stars: 0
4-Stars: 10
3-Stars: 8
Steady Nick Saban is steady. Alabama has watched other SEC programs get the rub from national recruiting analysts while doing what they do best -- intelligently stocking up on 4-star prospects up and down the position board and ensuring that future teams will be as deep as they are star-studded. The massive four-star defensive tackle combo of Kendell Jones and Raekwon Davis are going to snuff SEC running games out dead when they get their wheels on the ground a couple years from now.
1. LSU
5-Stars: 3
4-Stars: 9
3-Stars: 6
No program in the nation boasts three 5-star pickups (so far) except for the LSU Tigers, and in-conference rival Georgia is the only other school who currently has two five-stars on board for 2016. The best part about LSU's blue-chip haul? It's an all-defense trio (CB Saivion Smith, DT Edwin Alexander and S Eric Monroe) which almost guarantees that the Tigers' defense will turn over smoothly over the next couple of years. Head coach Les Miles is one of the best recruiters this sport has seen over the past couple of decades, and this class is yet another example of that.
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