National Signing Day 2012 Preview: Best Players Available, Teams with Most to Gain

National Signing Day is one of the most anticipated days of the year for college football's most dedicated fans.

The day in which high school athletes around the country sign official letters of intent to colleges has generated the same kind of interest and coverage that a political election gets in the 21st Century. CBS Sports and ESPN are both planning on providing endless hours of coverage on Wednesday of where some of the nation's top unsigned football players might be headed.

The day is one of the absolute biggest of the year for college football fans -- some might put it right behind the National Championship game -- as it can either create a ton of interest in the program's future or cause fans to essentially write off the next few years due to a poor recruiting class.

With the massive amount of attention paid to National Signing Day, the International Business Times asked Rivals.com national analyst Mike Farrell to break it all down.

Who are the Top Players Still Available?

According to Rivals.com, the top 10 players still uncommitted at this point are:

1) Dorial Green-Beckham, the No. 1 overall player

2) Eddie Goldman, the No. 7 overall player

3) Stefon Diggs, the No. 8 overall player

4) Darius Hamilton, the No. 11 overall player

5) Tracy Howard, No. 13 overall player

6) Nelson Agholor, No. 18 overall player

7) Kyle Murphy, No. 19 overall player

8) Aziz Shittu, No. 27 overall player

9) Josh Harvey-Clemons, No. 31 overall player

10) Andrus Peat, No. 32 overall player

The player that everyone is talking about is Green-Beckham, according to Farrell. The 6-foot-6 wide receiver, who some have compared to NFL pro Andre Johnson, is believed to be deciding on Wednesday between Missouri and Arkansas. Other analysts have reported that Green-Beckham is leaning toward staying home and going to Missouri, but the official announcement won't be until Wednesday.

Green-Beckham is the recruit that is generating the most interest, but Josh Harvey-Clemons is the one that could prove to be the biggest surprise of the day. Harvey-Clemens is the big one that we are in suspense on, according to Farrell, and is primarily considering Florida, Florida State, and Georgia.

Nelson Agholor is another player that could create some major attention if he doesn't choose either USC or Florida.

Can Rutgers Hold Together Its Class?

After Greg Schiano bolted Piscataway for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coaching position, the biggest question was whether Rutgers could hold together its well-regarded recruiting class. The most imperative thing was finding a coach only a week before signing day, but they managed to get a new head coach in Kyle Flood.

Flood, who was the assistant head coach under Schiano, is tasked with keeping together the Big East's top recruiting class. The top priorities are keeping wide receiver Leonte Carroo, linebacker Quanzell Lambert, and convincing Hamilton to sign with the Scarlet Knights over Miami.

Farrell believes that Rutgers is the favorite to land the nation's 11th ranked prospect and that it should be able to keep the majority of its class.

I still think the majority of the class will sign because they want to be there, Farrell said on Monday. (The hiring) could be good timing because it was late and these kids didn't have a lot of times to change. A lot of kids don't want to wait after signing day.

What Teams Can Benefit the Most from National Signing Day?

According to Rivals.com rankings, the top 10 recruiting classes thus far are:

1) Alabama

2) Texas

3) Ohio State

4) Florida

5) Michigan

6) Oklahoma

7) Florida State

8) Miami

9) Clemson

10) Texas A&M

Alabama has put together a fantastic class, but likely won't make as much noise as some of the other teams in the Top 10. Farrell said that the schools that could make the biggest splash on Wednesday all reside in the Sunshine State -- Florida, Florida State, and Miami.

Florida under Will Muschamp has the chance to have the biggest National Signing Day if everything works out in its favor. The Gators are heavily involved with Tracy Howard, Nelson Agholor, Kyle Murphy, and Josh Harvey-Clemons of the remaining Top 10 uncommitted players. Landing the majority of those players could help the Gators leapfrog Texas and Ohio State into the Top 3.

Florida State is also in line for a huge day on Wednesday. Farrell expects the Seminoles to nab Eddie Goldman, a massive nose tackle from Washington, D.C., and defensive back Ronald Darby, but also could be in line for a few surprises. Harvey-Clemons could be the X-factor for Florida State making a big jump in the rankings, according to Farrell.

Miami could move up in the rankings if Hamilton picks the Hurricanes on Tuesday night, but most signs point to Rutgers for the 6-foot-4 defensive end.

One school that seems to need a big day on Wednesday is Auburn.

They have disappointed this year recruiting wise, Farrell said about Auburn. Are they going to not close strong? Or are they going to get back up in the rankings where they belong?

Will Anyone be Unique with College Announcement?

Each year talented high school athletes make a big deal out of their college announcement with a ceremony that usually ends with the player putting on his new team's hat. The routine is completely trite at this point, but every once in a blue moon a player goes above and beyond in his announcement.

One of Farrell's favorite announcements in recent memory was Isaiah Crowell's announcement last year for the Georgia Bulldogs. After announcing that he had committed to Georgia, Crowell pulled out an English bulldog puppy with a Georgia sweater to celebrate the occasion, which Farrell absolutely loved as a dog lover.

The other announcement that he really liked was when offensive lineman Andre Smith put on a houndstooth hat in homage to legendary Alabama coach Bear Bryant.

With the good, there is also the bad. The worst signing day announcement Farrell can remember is when Antonio Logan-El committed to Penn State.

The absolute worst was Logan-El's puppet show on ESPN when he picked up each and then dropped it to reveal a big picture of him and Joe Paterno smiling in the background.

Logan-El had previously committed to the University of Maryland and had even invited then-head coach Ralph Friedgen and his wife to the announcement before picking Penn State as his choice.

A crazy announcement like Logan-El's might not happen on Wednesday -- though the mother of Alabama commit Landon Collins seems to be pushing for it -- but there will still be a lot of excitement throughout the day.