Psst.  Ya know how close we are to National Signing Day 2014?  Just 39 weeks.  And that’s no time at all in the world of high-stakes college football recruiting, doncha know?

Below you’ll find an updated overview of how the SEC’s football programs are performing on the recruiting trail heading into summer.  As usual, we’ve used Rivals.com’s star ratings as out launch point.  For each star Rivals assigns, we assign a point.  But we also give a point to those players who are currently 0-star prospects according to Rivals (because their tapes have not yet been graded).

First, let’s look at sheer quantity.  The table below shows the total number of “talent points” currently committed to each SEC program.

Next, we’ll take a look at quality.  The table below shows the average points-per-commit for each SEC program.

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SEC Football

1. Linebacker Tre’ Williams says he is headed to Auburn. He made the announcement just moments ago. Along with Auburn, Williams had strongly considered Alabama.  His other finalists were Florida and Ole Miss.  The Mobile, Alabama prospect is considered one of the nation’s top inside linebacker prospects and had taken multiple visits to both Auburn and Alabama.

2. Four-star defensive back  Jamoral Graham has committed to Mississippi State.  Here’s how Newton County (MS) coach Jackie Williamson described it.  “I think he came to the realization that he was comfortable at Mississippi State. He felt really comfortable with (safeties coach) Tony Hughes and felt like he was a guy that he could play for.” Graham is Mississippi State’s second verbal commitment in the class of 2014.

3. Alabama coach Nick Saban thinks so highly of Calera, Alabama prospect Ronnie Clark, he called him from the NFL draft.  Projected to play free safety and quarterback this fall, Clark is expected to choose between Alabama and Auburn but he’s drawing attention from programs and coaches all over the country, including Vanderbilt coach James Franklin.  ”Coach Franklin is a good guy,” Clark said. “Real good guy. I believe they are going to turn the program around at Vanderbilt.”

4. Auburn’s top five defensive line recruiting targets include Da’Shawn Hand.  The Virginia lineman visited Auburn last weekend.

5. Razorbacks expected to get visit from top-1oo prospect  - safety Steven Parker from Oklahoma.

6. Linebacker Sharieff Rhaheed is an LSU commitment.  Arkansas linebackers coach Randy Shannon visited his school on Monday.

7. Broadarius Hamm is a 6-foot-3, 290-pound defensive lineman from Georgia and wears a size 18 shoe.  He’s 15 years old and is reportedly drawing interest from the home-state Bulldogs.

SEC Basketball

8. Top prospect Andrew Wiggins could reportedly make his decision soon. Kentucky is one of four schools still in the mix for the Huntington Prep star. Louisville is not one of the four schools Wiggins is weighing, but it’s the one his host mom at Huntington Prep prefers. “If it was my choice, I’d say he should go to Louisville...I love Coach Pitino’s program.”

9. 2014 prospect Trey Lyles. “I have six top schools: UCLA, Butler, Florida, Kentucky, Duke and Louisville and all of those schools are ones that I’m really looking at.”

10. The final scholarship at Ole Miss will go to Jerron Martin.  The Maryland point guard committed after taking an official visit to Ole Miss last weekend. He used the social media network Vine to make the announcement.

11. The New Orleans Times Picayune ranks the top 16 2014 prospects in the state.

Florida State linebacker signee Matthew Thomas from Booker T. Washington High School in Miami is seeking a release from his national letter of intent.

Thomas, ranked the nation’s No. 2 outside linebacker in the 2013 class by Rivals, signed with Florida State on Feb. 6. He had originally planned to sign with Southern California but ultimately chose Florida State after his mother refused to sign off on USC.

“We couldn’t agree, but it’s my mom, I just did what I had to do,” Thomas told Noles247.com at the time.

Thomas has since changed his mind. He told the Miami Herald he recently informed Florida State’s coaching staff that he would like a release so he can sign with Georgia or USC.

Thomas said Florida State’s coaches don’t want to release him and plan to visit Miami soon to try to convince him to stick with the Seminoles. If Thomas chooses to attend another school without a release from Florida State, he would have to sit out one full academic year that would count against his five-year window of eligibility.

Thomas told the Herald he wants out of his letter of intent because he prefers to attend a college outside the state of Florida.

“I’ve been in Miami all my life,” he said. “Georgia needs linebackers. It’s a big program. I have family in Georgia. USC, growing up I never thought I would have an opportunity that big. I just want to go have fun and play football.”

Thomas’ situation is the reason I wrote last week that high-profile players should avoid signing a national letter of intent. The letter does very little to help athletes while providing all the power to schools.

A school isn’t even required to guarantee the athlete a spot on the team when he signs the letter of intent. It just agrees to provide financial aid to the athlete.

Thomas could have signed a financial aid agreement with Florida State while leaving himself the flexibility to attend another school. Instead, his future is in the hands of coaches who have the authority to penalize him if he doesn’t attend Florida State.

The SEC announced its new network on Thursday in a big way because the league wanted to make it a big deal.

And it is a big deal. It’s big in terms of money, impact and attention the league will receive.

It will also be beneficial in recruiting.

Prospects already know the SEC is the strongest conference in college football. They’ve seen it win the most BCS championships (seven straight) and produce the most NFL draft picks (63 this year, more than double the next highest conference).

Recruits also know ESPN. It’s their No. 1 option when it comes to sports viewing. And while Fox Sports 1 is on the way and CBS and NBC continue to grow television options to challenge ESPN, the truth is the Worldwide Leader will continue to be No. 1 for the foreseeable future.

So with ESPN and the SEC extending their relationship to 2034, that should should only create opportunities for the league to sell itself to the best prospects in the Southeast and nation.

“It’s all about exposure and (the SEC network gives us) more exposure in the footprint of our 11 states in the Southeast,” Florida coach Will Muschamp said, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “Of course, we target the Southeast and Texas pretty hard, as far as our recruiting is concerned, as well as doing some national recruiting. The more exposure you get, the better it’s going to be for recruiting obviously, and also your fan base.”

It also helps that the SEC already has a strong lead in recruiting against the rest of the country. The conference finished with five of the top 10 and 10 of the top 25 teams in the 2013 class rankings by Rivals.

The SEC already has five of the top 10 teams listed in the 2014 class rankings. That doesn’t include Alabama, which is ranked No. 17 and will surely climb when the commitments start to roll in for the Crimson Tide.

But the SEC still has room to grow in terms of talent. Schools like Ole Miss and Vanderbilt are recruiting at higher levels than we’ve ever seen and Tennessee, a once dominant recruiter in the SEC, is beginning to have success again on the recruiting trail.

And all 14 schools in the SEC plan to use the conference’s new network, which won’t launch until August 2014, as part of their sales pitch to prospects.

“We’ve had our own network at CBS and several games on ESPN,” Alabama coach Nick Saban said. “We had a great partnership with them. And now we’re going to improve on that. It’s going to be even better in the future.”

It’s hard to argue against Saban. The SEC had 12 prospects selected in the first round of the NFL draft last week. Who says that record won’t be broken in the future?

With Texas A&M’s early success in the SEC and big plans for the future, expect prospects from one of the country’s most talent-rich states to show more interest in playing in the SEC. Especially when they all have more access to watch the SEC in football and other sports.

As Georgia coach Mark Richt said Thursday, the impact of the SEC network is “going to be huge, really.” And he’s right.

Tennessee lands a big one

That’s a literal and figurative statement.

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SEC Football

1. The NCAA has suspended new rules that would have allowed unlimited electronic communication between college coaches and recruits.

2.Is Alabama vs. Georgia the top recruiting rivalry in the country?

3. Alabama has offered 2014 linebacking prospect Nyles Morgan.  The 6-2, 220 pound prospect has 31 other offers.

4. Lousiana running back Leonard Fournette is considered by many to be the top prospect in the country but right now he’s focused on track. “I’m leaving the recruiting stuff up to my parents right now. And I won’t focus on football until track season’s over.”

5. Kyle Allen is rated as the No. 5 quarterback prospect in the country in the class of 2014.  Texas A&M is after the Scottsdale, Arizona product.  ”Right now, the schools recruiting me the hardest that I’m feeling the most are probably UCLA, ASU, Oklahoma State and Texas A&M.”

6. The Aggies have offered a trio of prospects from New Orleans -  linebacker Arthur McGinnis, wide receiver Tyron Billy-Johnson and athlete Deshawn Capers-Smith. The teammates are 2015 prospects.

7. Offensive lineman Bill Weber is getting attention from several schools including Arkansas and Missouri.  The Coppell, Texas lineman attended the Razorbacks spring game with teammate and defensive end Solomon Thomas.  He came away impressed with the knowledge exhibited by Arkansas fans.  ”The fans know their stuff.”

8. Nashville wide receiver Thomas Richard became Missouri’s sixth commitment over the weekend. Heres how his high school coach described him. “As far as ball skills go, Missouri’s getting as good as they can get in the 2014 class. I’ve been fortunate to be around a lot of really good receivers, and he’s going to be up there with the top of them when his time’s up at Missouri.”

9. ESPN’s Chris Low: “Over the last three years (2010-12), nobody in the SEC has signed more ESPN 150 prospects offensively than Auburn.”

10. Alabama signee Reuben Foster on what opposing fanbases were telling him - “They told me, ‘I hope you tear your ACL,’ “

SEC Basketball

11. LSU’s incoming class rated the 9th best by ESPN, 10th best by Rivals. Here is ESPN’s final 2013 ranking of recruits.

12. Kentucky is one of four schools still chasing top prospect Andrew Wiggins.  Mike DeCourcy of The Sporting News says he’s worth the wait. “On the day Wiggins steps on an NBA court, and that’ll happen sooner rather than later, he’ll become one of the greatest athletes ever to play in the league.”

13. 2014 basketball prospect Emmanuel Mudiay on an in-home visit by Kentucky coach John Calipari:  ”He does a good job with his point guards, and that’s a big part that I really look into.”

1. The SEC had plenty of success in the NFL draft. And that makes for a strong sales pitch on the recruiting trail.

2. Football prospects see pro potential at Florida after the Gators had two players selected in the first round.

3. Top running back prospect Leonard Fournette showed recently he has plenty of speed to go with his size.

4. Tennessee signee Ryan Jenkins looks back at the process of choosing between the Vols and Clemson.

5. Several SEC schools remain in contention for defensive end Jesse Aniebonam from Olney, Md.

6. Defensive back Dominique Brown from Ocala, Fla., is keeping his options open while he waits for more offers.

7. These two Louisiana basketball prospects will face off in the SEC.

It’s debated several times per year.

“Stars don’t matter,” one person will say.

“Of course they do,” another person will respond.

And away they go. It’s a common question in recruiting: how much do star rankings matter when it comes to recruiting? After all, we’ve see both 5-star recruits (Adrian Peterson) and 3-star prospects (Arian Foster) go on to shine in the NFL.

But if you look at the list of SEC players selected in the first round of the NFL draft on Thursday night, you will see a group of highly-rated prospects before they entered college. Below is the list of 12 SEC players drafted on Thursday night with each player’s Rivals.com star-rating before they arrived in college.

OL Luke Joeckel – 4
LB Barkevious Mingo – 4
CB Dee Milliner – 5
OL Chance Warmack – 3
OL D.J. Fluker – 5
DT Sheldon Richardson – 4
LB Jarvis Jones – 4
S Eric Reid – 4
DT Sharrif Floyd – 5
WR Cordarrelle Patterson – 4
LB Alec Ogletree – 4
S Matt Elam – 5

Notice a trend. Of the 12 SEC players drafted by the NFL on Thursday, 11 of them had a 4- or 5-star ranking before entering college. The one player who didn’t receive such a distinction, Warmack, was the highest-ranked three-star guard in the nation (No. 20 overall) in the 2009 class.

How about some of the SEC players who were projected as borderline first-round picks but instead will likely slip to the second round on Friday? Wide receiver Justin Hunter, running back Eddie Lacy, linebacker Kevin Minter and defensive tackle Jesse Williams were all given four-star ratings by Rivals.

This still doesn’t mean that only 4- and 5-star players are worth the time of coaches in the SEC. Just look at Texas A&M quarterback Johnny Manziel, who was rated a 3-star prospect by Rivals.

This year’s No. 1 draft pick, offensive tackle Eric Fisher, was a 2-star prospect out of high school when he signed with Central Michigan. In fact, there were more players with a 3-star rating or worse (15) drafted last night than players with a 4-star rating (12).

But why is that? It’s simply a numbers thing. There are so many more prospects each year with a 3-star rating or below than there are players with a 4- or 5-star ranking.

The 2009 signing class had only 33 5-star prospects, according to Rivals. That’s 33 5-star players out of thousands of prospects around the nation. Other services, such as ESPN RecruitingNation, give out even less 5-star rankings each year.

While a lesser amount of 5-star players might be selected in the draft each year, there is a much higher percentage compared to every other star ranking.

Six of the 30 5-star prospects in the 2008 class were drafted in the first round of the NFL draft. That’s 20 percent of the 5-star class, a ratio 3-star players and below will never come close to touching.

There’s a larger amount of 4-star players each year, but still not enough to go around for everyone.

That’s why evaluating correctly becomes critical for coaches in the SEC. Schools like Alabama, Florida, Georgia and LSU will be loaded with 4- and 5-star prospects each year. It’s the addition of players like Warmack that can help make the difference in championship runs.

Richt knows the NFL matters

Coaches will talk to prospects about everything when it comes to recruiting.

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SEC Football

1. Texas A&M signed quarterback Kohl Stewart in its last class but he may never make it to College Station.  That’s because he’s also quite the pitching prospect and has been invited to New York for this year’s Major League Baseball draft.  Just how good a pitching prospect is he?  Good enough to be ranked the 8th best overall prospect by one MLB analyst.

2. Georgia has as many 13 players that could be selected in this year’s NFL draft – and that’s good for recruiting, says coach Mark Richt.  ”I haven’t recruited many guys that didn’t think or weren’t at least dreaming about the NFL or hoping to be or expecting to be (drafted).”

3. Charlotte, North Carolina’s Jeb Blazevich is ranked as a top 10 tight end in the country.  He’s heading to Georgia to play for Mark Richt next year.  Blazevich committed to the Bulldogs Tuesday. “I love what they’re doing there and they’re having a lot of success.” He’s Georgia’s fourth commitment of the 2014 class.

4. Tennessee is stocking up on tight ends.  Barring attrition, the Vols could have seven tight ends on their 2014 roster.  Ethan Wolf and Daniel Helm are tight end commitments for this next year’s class on the heels of Tennessee adding two tight ends in its 2013 class.

5. Alabama’s fifth commitment of its 2014 class is Opelika cornerback Stephen Roberts.  The four-star defensive back committed after defensive coordinator Kirby Smart paid a visit, even though he grew up an Auburn fan.  ”I have always rooted for Auburn as a fan but when it comes time to making the decision about what’s best for me as a player going forward, you can’t think about those things.”

6. Kentucky landed four-star running back Mikel Horton over the weekend.  Horton, from the Cincinnati area, chose the Wildcats over Florida State and Vanderbilt. New Kentucky coach Mark Stoops has made recruiting Ohio a priority.

7. Nine players from the state of Alabama have been nominated for the 2014 U.S. Army All-American Bowl.

SEC Basketball

8. 6-foot 8 power forward Demetrius Henry is headed to South Carolina to play for Frank Martin next season..  The Brandon, Florida senior  chose the Gamecocks over Miami.  Here’s a look at all the newcomers headed to South Carolina for the 2013-2014 season.

Alabama seemed past due for a commitment when the week began.

The Crimson Tide entered the week with only three commitments for the 2013 class. It had been almost a month (March 19) since defensive back Chris Williams from Kingsland, Ga., had given his pledge to Alabama.

That’s why the timing was right for linebacker Shaun Dion Hamilton to commit to the Crimson Tide on Wednesday. The standout from Carver High School in Montgomery, Ala., chose Alabama over Auburn and Tennessee.

“(Alabama) is a great program,” Hamilton said, according to AL.com. “Coach (Nick) Saban is a great coach. They’re known for winning championships, you know they’re going to be in a BCS bowl every year. I just love Alabama.”

Alabama would love to add to its class this weekend. With A-Day coming up for Alabama on Saturday, many of the nation’s top prospects will be in Tuscaloosa to see the Crimson Tide play their spring game.

The list of talented prospects planning to visit Alabama this weekend include quarterback David Cornwell from Norman, Okla., linebackers Clifton Garrett from Joliet, Ill., and Tre Williams from Mobile, Ala., cornerback Marlon Humphrey from Hoover, Ala., and defensive tackle Elisha Shaw from Atlanta.

That’s just the beginning of a strong list of prospects who plan to visit Tuscaloosa this weekend. The list is also fluid, of course. Prospects often plan to make trips only to change their mind and stay home.

Humphrey, who’s been busy with his track season, could decide to stay home this weekend, according to TideSports.com. But that wouldn’t diminish his importance to Alabama’s class.

Humphrey, whose father played football at Alabama, is one of the top targets on the Crimson Tide’s board. A recent profile from ESPN RecruitingNation explained why:

“Not only is Humphrey the top player in the state, he’s also an Alabama legacy. However, the coaching staff wants him because of his ability to play. He’s physical. He’s long. He’s fast. He makes plays. He’s just what Nick Saban wants in a cornerback.”

Alabama fans would probably like to see more commitments. Alabama’s 2014 class is ranked No. 14 in the nation by Rivals.com, which is sixth best in the SEC. Still, only Southern California has four or less commitments and is ranked higher (No. 12) than Alabama.

Crimson Tide fans have nothing to worry about with the 2014 class. Alabama still has its championships and Nick Saban to sell to prospects.

And with a large collection of highly-touted prospects on campus this weekend, expect more prospects to follow Hamilton’s lead and commit to the Crimson Tide soon.

ESPN150 Released

ESPN revealed its top 150 list for the 2014 class on Thursday.

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SEC Football

1. Louisiana running back Leonard Fournette is widely considered the nation’s top running back prospect.  ESPN calls him the top player in the country, ranking him No. 1 in their top 150 list put out today.  ”To me, Louisiana has the best talent,” Fournette told Nola.com  ”To have that many guys ranked like that, that’s really a blessing. There’s great competition (in Louisiana) because they want something that you want, too. They want to play, they want to grind, they want to be successful, they want to be the No. 1. So, at the same time, it makes both of you better.”  Among the schools Fournette is considering are LSU, Alabama, Florida State, USC and Texas.

2. Three Alabama commitments made the ESPN list.

3. Rising junior running back Nicholas Brossette from Louisiana has longstanding offers from Alabama and LSU. Ole Miss, Texas A&M and UCLA have also offered.  He’s expected to be on hand at Saturday’s LSU spring game. Tiger Stadium is less than a mile from his high school.  He’s also expected to visit Alabama soon.

4. Cameron Robinson is considered the top offensive line prospect in the country.  He told AL.com Thursday he’s not sure if he will visit Alabama or LSU this Saturday. The West Monroe, Louisiana prospect says the two schools are way out front in his recruitment.

4. Here’s a list of visitors for Saturday’s spring game at Arkansas. Razorbacks are recruiting teammates Solomon Thomas and Bill Weber from Coppell, Texas.

SEC Basketball

5. LSU has added a seven footer from Australia to its incoming class.  Darcy Malone from Canberra Australia is the sixth member of Johnny Jones class.  ”Darcy will be an impactful player at LSU for years to come.”

6. Auburn now has six members of its incoming class.  The latest signee -  power forward Matthew Atewe from Massachusetts.. Atewe’s signing puts Auburn one over the scholarship limit of 13. On Wednesday, small forward Dion Wade became the Tigers fifth commitment for coach Tony Barbee.

7. Kentucky is one of four schools in the race to land Andrew Wiggins, the No. 1 prospect in the country. The Sporting News handicaps the race.