Crimson Tide return to top of class with 20 ESPN 300 commitments

— -- Alabama entered national signing day with the No. 1 recruiting class in the country, and the Crimson Tide will likely finish Wednesday with their fifth top-ranked class in the last six years.

Highlighted by the signing of LaBryan Ray, the No. 17 overall player -- and second-ranked defensive end -- in the ESPN 300 rankings, the Crimson Tide now have 21 ESPN 300 commitments, which is the most in a class since ESPN started keeping rankings in 2006. Alabama also has two ESPN JC 50 commitments.

Alabama also signed receivers  Henry Ruggs III (No. 166 in the ESPN 300) and wide receiver Devonta Smith (No. 227) on Wednesday, while four-star defensive tackle Phidarian Mathis committed on Tuesday.

Nick Saban's class is so deep, he had to tell ESPN 300 defensive end Jarez Parks that the class was full and there was no room for him to sign. A source close to the program told ESPN that while Parks has committed, he would have to greyshirt and wait until next January to sign and enroll at Alabama.

The No. 1 overall recruit in the ESPN 300, offensive tackle Trey Smith, signed early with the Tennessee Volunteers and enrolled early. Entering signing day, 93 players in the ESPN 300 rankings had enrolled early.

The lone remaining five-star uncommitted prospect in the ESPN 300,  Marvin Wilson, committed to FSU on Wednesday, selecting the Seminoles over Texas, LSU, TCU and South Florida.

The fourth-ranked player in the ESPN 300 capped off a solid class for FSU. Wilson, a product of Houston's Episcopal High School, gives the Seminoles 13 players signees who are ranked in the ESPN 300.

The  USC Trojans enjoyed their signing day, as they landed four-star receiver  Joseph Lewis, ranked 16th overall, among their 14 ESPN 300 commitments/signees Wednesday.

It started early for the Trojans with linebacker  Levi Jones, the 65th-ranked player in the ESPN 300 out of Austin (Texas) Westlake High School, choosing the Trojans over Florida State, Florida and UCLA. The 6-foot-4, 215-pound linebacker visited all of his finalists, but he said it was his visit on Jan. 20 that persuaded the four-star prospect to sign with the Trojans.

Jones put a different spin on the pick-a-hat ceremony as he revealed his decision. He took off his jacket to reveal a long-sleeve Florida T-shirt. He then pulled off the Florida shirt to reveal a Florida State shirt underneath. He then removed the Florida State shirt and was left with a USC shirt on.

Jones then put on a USC hat and said, "Fight on."

The Trojans weren't done there, as they also landed offensive tackle  Austin Jackson (No. 54 in the ESPN 300), No. 1 receiving tight end Josh Falo (No. 92 overall) and defensive tackle Jay Tufele (No. 119). They also got athlete  Greg Johnson (No. 116), who is a teammates of Lewis' at Los Angeles Augustus F. Hawkins High School.

LSU also enjoyed a productive signing day -- its first under new coach Ed Orgeron.

The Tigers signed Under Armour All-American K'Lavon Chaisson, the fourth-ranked defensive end who is ranked No. 34 overall in the ESPN 300. LSU also landed four-star safety  Todd Harris (No. 83) and linebacker Tyler Taylor.

In all, the Tigers now have 15 ESPN 300 signees/commitments.

Orgeron is attempting to have the highest-ranked recruiting class by a new head coach since ESPN's rankings began in 2006. Urban Meyer had the No. 6 class at Ohio State in 2012, matching the ranking of Jimbo Fisher at Florida State in 2010.

Michigan also made a splash by landing a commitment from Aubrey Solomon, the 63rd-ranked player in the ESPN 300. The fifth-ranked defensive tackle in the country picked the  Wolverines over Alabama and Georgia.

Solomon originally committed to Michigan several months ago, but he backed off that pledge when he received a thank you note for a Michigan recruiting event that he never attended. Jim Harbaugh and his staff were able to overcome the small blunder to sign one of the top defensive linemen in the country.

Michigan now has 17 ESPN 300 commitments/signees and currently has the fourth-ranked recruiting class in the country, trailing only Alabama, Georgia and Ohio State.

In other signing-day news around the country:

•  Jeff Thomas, the eighth-ranked wide receiver in the country and No. 55 overall in the ESPN 300, announced his commitment to the  Miami Hurricanes over Tennessee, Illinois and Oregon. Coach Mark Richt has put together a solid class for the Hurricanes by landing 10 ESPN 300 players.

• Under Armour All-American DE Markaviest Bryant (No. 100) signed with Auburn. He also had offers from Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia and LSU.

• CB Chevin Calloway (No. 120), another Under Armour All-American, signed with Arkansas. Calloway, who originally committed to Iowa, also had offers from Nebraska, Ole Miss, Texas and Texas A&M.

•  Leonard Warner, the second-ranked inside linebacker in the country (No. 130), committed to  Florida State over Georgia and Stanford.

• Javon Kinlaw (No. 17 in the ESPN JC 50) signed with  South Carolina over Texas A&M and Tennessee.

• Charlie Strong, who landed with South Florida after being fired at Texas, had two notable signings in his first class for the Bulls -- four-star receiver Kevaughn Dingle, who had originally committed to the Hurricanes, and cornerback Naytron Culpepper, who chose USF over Maryland, Michigan State, Mississippi State and South Carolina.

• The Longhorns' first class under coach Tom Herman will rank outside the top 20 nationally, making it one of the lowest rated UT classes since the ranking started more than a decade ago. It also will not include any of the players ranked among the 10 best in the state of Texas.

•  Hunter Rison, the son of former NFL receiver Andre Rison, signed with  Michigan State, the same school where his father was a star. Hunter Rison is also a wide receiver. He's already enrolled at Michigan State and will participate in spring practice.

• Best name of the day? That goes to Illinois State signee Kobe Buffalomeat, a 6-foot-7, 287-pound offensive tackle from Lawrence, Kansas. After tweeting the signing, the Redbirds' commit quickly became an internet favorite.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.