Alabama locked up the No. 1 ranking thanks to a flurry of signing day commitments, most notably a pair of in-state, five-star linebackers Ben Davis and Mack Wilson and four-star cornerback Shyheim Carter from Louisiana.

Nate Craig-Myers, left, poses for a selfie before announcing his commitment to Auburn during national signing day Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2016, at Tampa Catholic High School in Tampa Fla.

Now that we have that out of the way, these are how the conferences stack up against one another and where they rank in terms of their combined 2016 recruiting classes.

Clemson won the first big battle of national signing day after cornerback Trayvon Mullen, the No. 18 player according to ESPN and second-ranked at his position, committed to the Tigers.

One of the new signees was a last-minute prospect on Alabama's board; Saban hadn't even seen his tape until after the national championship game.

Alabama has added another tight-end to its roster with Irvin Smith, a three-star prospect, who has made a decision to sign with the Crimson Tide after recently decommiting from Texas A&M.;

SIGNING DAY DECISIONS: Seven of the top 15 players in the 247Sports Composite were uncommitted heading into signing day.

"We make one of those, at least I feel good about our chances to close the game out", Howland said. That undercut Kirby Smart, who had been recruiting Wilson before leaving to become the head coach at Georgia.

"You can never bet against (Alabama)", said Mike Farrell, the national recruiting director for Rivals. Alabama has been quietly lurking on the backend of the top 10 for weeks, but when it came crunch-time, they closed like what they are - a champion. That's a trait guys like Nick Saban and Les Miles, and apparently Hugh Freeze, have used to take them to the top of their profession.

Senior center Gavin Ware came off the bench to score a career-high 28 points. It is the sixth consecutive win in the series for the Crimson Tide, the longest streak in the series since winning six straight from 1985-87.

Alabama's class the way it is now constituted breaks down into two five-star recruits, eight four stars and eight three stars. They definitely like taller corners, guys who can be physical, play the ball and have great skill sets.