Stop me if this is a huge surprise: Less than three weeks before National Signing Day, the SEC is dominating the other conferences as judged by Top 100 lists of Rivals, ESPN and 247Sports.

The SEC claims an average of 33 commitments in the three lists. That’s one-third of the best high school recruits in the 2015 class. With about one in five still undecided, and players like Martez Ivey, Byron Cowart and CeCe Jefferson giving strong consideration to SEC schools, that number will only grow.

The conference has received more commitments from Top 100 players in this class than the Pac-12, Big Ten, Big 12 and Independents combined. Or almost twice as many as the ACC, the second-best conference judging by these recruiting rankings, which can thank Florida State and Clemson for that distinction.

Conference Rivals ESPN 247Sports Total Percentage
SEC 36 34 29 99 33%
ACC 19 15 17 51 17%
Pac-12 12 13 15 40 13.3%
Big Ten 6 9 9 24 8%
Big 12 5 7 5 17 5.7%
Independent 3 2 3 8 2.7%
Uncommitted 19 20 22 61 20.3%

The Big 12 (with 10 member schools), the only power five conference not represented in the inaugural College Football Playoff, is slated to pull in about six of the 100 best players.

The addition in the last two years of recruiting standouts Jim Harbaugh (Michigan) and James Franklin (Penn State), both coaches who can offer immediate playing time, to Urban Meyer (Ohio State) and Mark Dantonio (Michigan State) has yet to make a major impact on this year’s class. The Big Ten is set to pull in between six and nine commitments from the Top 100, depending on which website you use to judge.

Of course, recruiting rankings are fallible, as programs like Missouri prove every season. It’s important to develop talent, map out a good game plan, motivate players and even to get a little lucky, but it all starts with a team’s raw ability.

Can the SEC get 11 of the 22 uncommitted prospects from the 247Sports list and close with at least 40 of the best players as judged by all three lists?

It at least seems like a strong possibility.

Schools like FSU, Oregon and Ohio State continue to roll in talent. In addition to positives in other areas, there are several elite programs outside the SEC that will remain in contention for national championships for the foreseeable future.

The SEC may have won “only” seven of the last nine national titles, but as long as the conference keeps hoarding so much of the talent, its reputation as the best in the country will remain safe.