Want to win the national championship? Scratch that: Want to compete for the national championship? Then you'd better win on national signing day.
Decades of data and feedback — the wall-to-wall, yearlong coverage of recruiting began in earnest in the early 2000s — has established the obvious connection between recruiting success and on-field success. Those who win on the two signing days in December and February also win big in January.
And those who win big in the postseason then continue to own the recruiting trail, creating an almost unbreakable cycle of dominance.
As of early Wednesday afternoon, the nation's best signing class belonged to defending national champion Alabama, according to the team rankings compiled by 247Sports.