No. 1 recruiting class won’t belong to SEC for first time in nearly 20 years
By David Wasson
Published:
The world of college football recruiting has been owned largely by Southeastern Conference programs in the past 2 decades, but the 2026 recruiting class sees a new top dog. Or, more accurately, top Trojan.
USC clinched the No. 1 recruiting class of 2026 on Wednesday during the Early Signing Period, becoming the first non-SEC program to earn the top spot in the 247 Sports Composite team national rankings since 2008.
“Everything we do is intentional,” USC general manager Chad Bowden said to 247Sports. “The thought process this cycle was to go heavy on a high school class, to bring in a group we could build off of, and we were very strategic and heavy in our home state of California.
“We’ve got a great group we are fired up about. The main focus was to bring in the right kids that want to be here and retaining the right guys that are already within these walls.”
The signing-day flip of Santa Ana. (Calif.) Mater Dei 4-star WR Kayden Dixon-Wyatt from Ohio State to USC was enough to put the Trojans over the top. USC currently has 35 commitments for the 2026 class, including 1 5-star pledge and 21 4-star commitments. The current top SEC school in the 247 Sports Composite team national rankings is Alabama at No. 3, behind 2nd-ranked Oregon.
An APSE national award-winning writer and editor, David Wasson has almost four decades of experience in the print journalism business in Florida and Alabama. His work has also appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times and several national magazines and websites. He also hosts Gulfshore Sports with David Wasson, weekdays from 3-5 pm across Southwest Florida and on FoxSportsFM.com. His Twitter handle: @JustDWasson.
