Wednesday was a big day for college football fans everywhere. It was the first day high school senior football players could sign national football letters of intent with the college of their choice.

It was my day off, so I started following it on the SEC Network and ESPN. By all accounts my two favorite teams, the Florida State Seminoles and Georgia Bulldogs, did pretty well.

Various web sites rate the recruiting classes each year. The University of Alabama Crimson Tide, as usual, had the number one rated class.

Sometimes schools that do not have highly rated classes make a run at the national championship. A case in point is the Oregon Ducks, led this season by Heisman Trophy winning quarterback Marcus Mariota. He will be a high draft choice in this year’s NFL player draft.

In recent years, Oregon has not had a recruiting class ranked in the top 10 or 15. Their classes are usually rated somewhere in the 20s, but they made one of the final four in the College Football Playoffs. They beat Florida State soundly in the semifinals before losing to the National Champions Ohio State in the title game.

Oregon’s achievement is very unusual. Rarely do you see a National Championship contender whose recruiting classes are not rated in the top 10, but occasionally it happens.

It has long been my contention that most college football coaches are equally proficient in the strategy of the game. The ones who win National Championships are the ones who have top recruiting classes. Rarely do teams like the 2014 Oregon Ducks make a run. It is a credit to them and their coaches that they made it so far.

I also congratulate Bainbridge High School Bearcats senior defensive end and tight end Hudson Reynolds on his decision to play with the Georgia Bulldogs. He will be attending Georgia as a preferred football walk-on.

Hudson, who stands 6-feet-3-inches and weighs 230 pounds, came up from his defensive end position to put heavy pressure on opposing quarterbacks all season.