Recapping Memphis' early signing day: Who signed, who flipped to Arkansas, Ryan Silverfield

NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos...

Early signing day was a mixed bag for Memphis football.

The Tigers lost coach Ryan Silverfield to Arkansas on Nov. 30 and then had to prepare for signing day on Dec. 3 without a full-time coach. So it wasn’t surprising that Memphis didn’t gain much recruiting traction over the past few days.

Still, interim coach Reggie Howard and the rest of the Memphis staff managed to keep a good portion of the committed class intact, and the Tigers got plenty of signatures from high school players throughout the day.

The class includes two local commits who were part of The Commercial Appeal’s Dandy Dozen in Collierville defensive lineman Marshall Smith and DeSoto Central athlete Eric Perry.

Here’s a look at how signing day went for the Tigers.

Who flipped after Ryan Silverfield departure?

Silverfield hit the ground running for Arkansas right after he got to Fayetteville, and that work included flipping a couple Memphis commits. Receiver Jude Hall and cornerback Brandon Ford both signed with Arkansas on Dec. 3 after previously committing to Memphis.

Offensive tackle Dawson Matthews decommitted from Memphis after Silverfield’s departure and then signed with Memphis.

A full list of Memphis signees can be found here.

Where does Memphis’ recruiting class rank?

While everything isn’t done yet and some committed players still have not signed, Memphis still has one of the highest-ranked recruiting classes in the American Conference. The Tigers are No. 2 behind Temple, according to 247Sports. Those rankings also take the number of people in a class into account, and the Owls signed significantly more players than some of the teams near them.

Memphis is ranked No. 66 overall, according to 247.

There are plenty of coaching changes near the top of the conference. USF hired Brian Hartline to replace Alex Golesh, but his hiring was only announced on Dec. 3 and it’s unlikely he had much of an impact on recruiting. Ditto for Neal Brown at North Texas, who was announced as Eric Morris’ successor on Dec. 2. Tulane, like Memphis, has yet to announce its next coach.

When is the next signing period?

The early signing period started Dec. 3 and runs into Dec. 5. The regular signing period will be in February.

There will also be a transfer portal window from Jan. 2 to Jan. 16.

Reach sports writer Jonah Dylan at jonah.dylan@commercialappeal.com or on X @thejonahdylan.

This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Memphis football early signing day, who signed, who flipped in 2026 class

More at NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos