Which schools signed the highest percentage of 2023 blue-chip recruits

Every school enters the new recruiting cycle with the goal of signing the nation’s best blue-chip prospects.

While not every team can do that, the top schools in the country typically can and that was no different in the last cycle national powerhouses like Alabama, Georgia, Ohio State and Clemson were among the few schools to sign classes made up of 60% or more of blue-chip recruits.

Here’s a look at which schools signed the highest percentage of blue-chip recruits for the 2023 recruiting cycle.

1. Ohio State (95%)
0 five-star | 19 four-stars | 20 total recruits
Top Commit: Miami Gardens (Fla.) Heritage wide receiver Brandon Inniss, No. 35 in On3 Consensus
Summary: The Buckeyes may not have any five-star signees or as many players in this class as some other top schools, but they were still able to put together a top-5 class with only one player not ranked as a four-star recruit. They once again reloaded at wide receiver signing three receivers ranked within the top-60.

2. Alabama (92%)
7 five-star | 19 four-stars | 28 total recruits
Top Commit: Hoschton (Ga.) Mill Creek safety Caleb Downs, No. 5 in On3 Consensus
Summary: Nick Saban signed one of his best classes ever this last cycle highlighted by a nation-high seven five-star recruits. The Crimson Tide also Tide Ohio State for the most four-star recruits signed including several ranked just outside of being a five-star prospect like running back Justice Haynes and wide receiver Jalen Hale.

3. Georgia (84%)
4 five-star | 18 four-stars | 26 total recruits
Top Commit: Venice (Fla.) EDGE Damon Wilson, No. 20 in On3 Consensus
Summary: The back-to-back national champions once again finished with one of the top-2 classes in the country signaling to the rest of the country that they won’t be going away anytime soon. While Kirby Smart and co. may focus heavily on in-state recruiting during the 2024 cycle, the 2023 cycle saw the Bulldogs recruit heavily in Florida as three of their top four signees hail from the Sunshine State.

4. Florida (80%)
0 five-star | 16 four-stars | 20 total recruits
Top Commit: Gardendale (Ala.) defensive lineman Kelby Collins, No. 45 in On3 Consensus
Summary: A crazy cycle saw the Gators lose four-star quarterback Jaden Rashada after he signed during the Early Signing Period. Even with that loss, Billy Napier signed the most blue-chip prospects since Urban Meyer held on to a class ranked just outside of the top-10 with a pair of top-60 players in Collins and cornerback Ja’Keem Jackson.

5. Notre Dame (79%)
0 five-star | 19 four-stars | 24 total recruits
Top Commit: Rock Island (Ill.) Alleman Charles Jagusah, No. 53 in On3 Consensus
Summary: Marcus Freeman’s first full recruiting cycle as the Fighting Irish’s head coach was a successful one as Notre Dame held on to top-10 class despite decommitments from a pair of five-stars recruits in Keon Keely and Peyton Bowen. While Freeman is known more as a defensive coach, Notre Dame managed to land nine four-star recruits on the offensive side of the ball.

6. LSU (72%)
1 five-star | 17 four-stars | 25 total recruits
Top Commit: Monroe (La.) Neville offensive tackle Zalance Heard, No. 11 in On3 Consensus
Summary: Will Brian Kelly lead LSU back to a national title? That was the big question that was asked when Kelly was hired and after an SEC championship appearance along with signing a top-5 class, the Tigers look to be heading that way. Kelly and co. ended the 2023 cycle signing five players ranked in the top-100 and 13 players ranked in the On300.

7. Clemson (65%)
1 five-star | 16 four-stars | 26 total recruits
Top Commit: Alabaster (Ala.) Thompson defensive lineman Peter Woods, No. 19 in On3 Consensus
Summary: The Tigers went defense-heavy in the 2023 cycle with four of their top-5 signees on the defensive side of the ball and three of those recruits ranked in the top-100. Dabo Sweeney’s staff also recruited heavily in the south with a majority of Clemson’s recruits coming out of Georgia, Florida and Alabama.

8. Texas (64%)
4 five-stars | 12 four-stars | 25 total recruits
Top Commit: New Orleans (La.) Isidore Newman quarterback Arch Manning, No. 1 in On3 Consensus
Summary: Arch Manning’s commitment last June led to the Longhorns getting commitments from several of the nation’s top players. Of the 16 blue-chip players that Texas signed, only one committed to the Longhorns before Manning’s commitment. Along with all of the highly-ranked offensive talent the Longhorns signed, eight of Texas’ top-ranked players play defense.

9. Texas A&M (63%)
1 five-star | 11 four-stars | 19 total recruits
Top Commit: Katy (Texas) Paetow defensive lineman David Hicks, No. 7 in On3 Consensus
Summary: The Aggies weren’t going to repeat the level of success they had the year before but Jimbo recruited in-state heavily landing several of Texas’ top recruits. Of the Aggies’ 12 blue-chip signees, eight hail from Texas.

T10. Miami (60%)
2 five-stars | 13 four-stars | 25 total recruits
Top Commit: Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy offensive tackle Francis Mauigoa, No. 12 in On3 Consensus
Summary: Most will remember the Hurricanes’ 2023 cycle for the Cormani McClain saga and his eventual flip to Colorado. Despite that and all of the on-the-field struggles Mario Cristobal’s group endured in 2022, Miami edged out Clemson for the top-ranked ACC class and finished just outside of a top-5 class nationally. The Hurricanes also signed the future of their offensive line with Mauigoa and five-star offensive tackle Samson Okunlola.

T10. Oregon (60%)
1 five-star | 17 four-stars | 30 total recruits
Top Commit: Palo Alto (Calif.) Menlo-Atherton wide receiver Jurrion Dickey, No. 28 in On3 Consensus
Summary: The Ducks missed out on five-star athlete Nyckoles Harbor and five-star quarterback Dante Moore flipped to UCLA, but Dan Lanning’s first full cycle was far from a familiar. Oregon signed the top class in the Pac-12 including plenty of offensive talent that can come in and help the Ducks compete for a conference title again.

T10. Penn State (60%)
0 five-star | 14 four-stars | 23 total recruits
Top Commit: Reading (Pa.) Wyomissing interior offensive lineman Jven Williams, No. 43 in On3 Consensus
Summary: James Franklin put together the second-best class in the Big Ten during the last cycle trailing only Ohio State. Of the 13 players Penn State ranked in the 2023 On300, eight were on the defensive side of the ball.