What is the 2024 college football early signing period? What to know

This week, college football teams will face off for conference championship games, with the winners of many of these matchups earning spots in the College Football Playoff and a place on the biggest stage their sport has to offer .

In reality, the foundations for these successful seasons and championships were laid years earlier.

There are few days in the college football calendar that receive more fanfare and jaw-dropping coverage than National Signing Day, where the tireless, years-long recruiting efforts of a college football program and the Personal payoff when players sign documents that officially bind them to their future homes.

This simple act of putting pen to paper always comes with pomp. Players hold press conferences during which they don the hat of their chosen destination. Live animals sometimes get involved. In 2024, this is one of the few times someone will need to use a fax machine.

For years, signing day took place in February, weeks after the previous season ended, but in 2017 the NCAA instituted an early signing period so schools could officially secure the services of their players committed before the end of the calendar year.

Although not all recruits sign with their program of choice at the start of the signing period, it has effectively replaced National Signing Day, with more than three-quarters of applicants signing their documents in December rather than in FEBRUARY.

As it approaches again, here’s what you need to know about the 2024 early signing period in college football:

What is the 2024 college football early signing period?

The three-day early signing period will run from Wednesday, December 4 through Friday, December 6, ending the day before the Power Four conference championship games are played.

If this seems even earlier than in recent years, that’s because it is.

Last year, it took place shortly before Christmas, from December 20 to 22. The change was announced in March by the Collegiate Commissioners Association, which oversees and administers the national letter of intent program.

This decision was made to alleviate some of the chaos that had engulfed the old schedule. In 2021, the NCAA allowed players to transfer once without having to sit out a year, leading to a large increase in the number of players entering the transfer portal. In the years since, the early signing period took place while the portal was open, leading to plenty of criticism from coaches.

This year, the early signing period will end before the player transfer window begins on December 9.

2025 College Football Recruiting Rankings

With the early signing period about to begin, here’s a look at the programs that have the highest-ranked recruiting classes, according to 247Sports’ composite rankings as of Monday, Dec. 2:

1. Georgia (No. 1 SEC)
2. Alabama (No. 2 SEC)
3. Ohio State (No. 1 in Big Ten)
4. Texas (No. 3 SEC)
5. Auburn (No. 4 SEC)
6. LSU (No. 5 SEC)
7. Oregon (No. 2 in the Big Ten)
8. Michigan (No. 3 in the Big Ten)
9. Tennessee (No. 6 SEC)
10. Texas A&M (No. 7 SEC)