2024 college football recruiting class rankings

If there's one thing that teams that make the College Football Playoff every year have in common, it's that recruiting is the foundation of healthy programs and long-term success. Alabama, Georgia and Ohio State are recent examples that demonstrate the importance of finding and developing high school talent from within.

But that's no longer the only path. There are now other paths to success on the field. With the CFP expanding, teams are racing to compete using every avenue available to them.

The transfer portal has changed how programs build their rosters. Some schools, such as Colorado, are committed to refreshing their rosters through transfers and adding experienced talent. Others, such as Clemson, are less likely to use the portal and focus more on traditional prep school recruiting.

Today, we’re ranking the top 25 groups of newcomers (freshmen and transfer students combined) who are likely to make the biggest immediate gains in 2024.

Eligible applicants: WR Ryan Wingo, DE Collin Simmons

Texas' No. 5 recruiting class features freshmen who can make an impact on both offense and defense. Wingo has similar coaching ratings to Ohio State's five-star WR Jeremiah Smith. Wingo's size, speed and natural pass-catching skills are already elite. Simmons may have a hard time getting meaningful practice time given the talent around him, but his speed, flex and power have drawn comparisons to Anthony Hill Jr. as a pass rusher. Both are mature and explosive freshman playmakers.

transfer: WR Isaiah Bond (Alabama), WR Matthew Golden (Houston), WR Cyrus Bolden (Oregon State), TE Amari Niblack (Alabama), DL Trey Moore (UTSA), DL Tiaoali Savea (Arizona), S Andrew Mukuba (Clemson), CB Ja'Veon Cole (San Jose State), DT Bill Norton (Arizona), DL Jermaine Rolle (Louisville)

Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian, a former assistant coach at Alabama, benefited from the coaching change in Tuscaloosa. Texas acquired wide receiver Bond, who led Alabama with 48 catches, and tight end Niblack, who led Alabama in receptions and touchdowns. Acquiring Golden from Houston was another big win. The four-star recruit, who will enroll in 2022, should immediately become a mainstay for the Cougars and make up for lost productivity on both the pass and return lines. Bolden is coming off his most productive season at Oregon State, and in 2023 he has 54 catches, doubling his productivity from his first three years. Defensively, the Longhorns filled the trenches with run-stoppers, including Norton and Savea from Arizona, and Rolle, a recent transfer from Oklahoma. Texas filled a hole at defensive tackle with the departures of Byron Murphy and T'Vondre Sweat to the NFL.