National Signing Day is one of my favorite days on the calendar. It's fascinating to discover who signed with various colleges, what players changed their minds at the last minute, and most intriguing, how the players signed with the schools and what the recruiting process was like.

On the whole, college coaches love their recruiting classes. More than anything, it's hope for the future. Recruiting analysts will quickly measure a class based on what players did in high school and/or summer camps. However, the true measure of a recruiting class comes three to five years after the players are signed.

Some teams, such as Fort Hays State University, will sign transfers in the summer that can make an immediate impact. In the past few years, the Tigers have picked up several key players in the summer, notably All-American wideout O.J. Murdock and quarterback Anthony Sheppard.

But the bulk of the squad -- and the team's success -- comes from what happens on National Signing Day.

I recently looked at the last five Fort Hays State University football classes to determine the success of the Tigers' Signing Day classes. The 2007 and '08 classes were very productive, while the '09 and '10 classes produced little.

Many of the Tigers' impact players came from Kansas.

2007

This was a very strong class that helped Fort Hays finish 6-5 in 2009, the Tigers' only winning season in six years of MIAA play. Many of these players started for multiple seasons, especially on the defensive side of the ball. The class is headlined by linebacker Alex Whitehill and defensive lineman Jacob Crossman, eventual All-Americans. 2007 also produced Garrett Nikkel, Nick Dreitz, Michael Walker, Brock Einspahr and Justin Glenn, players that all saw significant playing time on defense. Crossman, Whitehill and Nikkel, each four-year players, are from Kansas.

2008

Again, many of the key contributors are from Kansas, including several players that helped in 2009, 2010, 2011 and likely this year. It's headlined by Ethan Kosjer, the Tigers' All-American punter, and Mike Garrison, the three-year starter at quarterback who holds multiple school records and twice earned all-conference honors. The class also includes offensive lineman John "Hawk" Rouse and defensive end Kyle Perry, who collected all-MIAA honors this past fall. As well, the class produced Austin Hubert, Layton Hickel, Grant Brown and Aaron Burton, all Kansas recruits. Kosjer, Garrison, and Hubert were Kansas products, too.

2009-10

These two seasons were the last two years of the Kevin Verdugo era and produced few impact players, especially 2010. From the 2009 class, only three players - receiver Keaton Callins, defensive back Stephen Marcotte and linebacker A.J. Woodall -- ± still remain with the program. Wideout Chris Williams had a strong season in 2010, but then left the program. Tim Parker started at defensive back in 2010, but then rarely played at all last year.

2009 has not produced a single all-MIAA player.

2010

Even worse than 2009. The class was small, with just nine players. Just one player, running back Ed Smith, is still with the program. Smith was signed a few weeks after Signing Day, but I included him in this group. No MIAA players from this group. 2009 and '10 were also heavy on out-of-state players. The lack of quantity and quality left Fort Hays with a depleted roster in last year's spring football practices.

2011

Obviously, it's too soon to tell with many of the players in the 2011 class. However, the Tigers already have two impact players in defensive back Sherod Murdock and offensive tackle Logan Jones, a duo that started all season. Defensive lineman Jesse Trent, from Dodge City, and defensive back Andreas Ashwood are among those who could have an impact this year.

2012

On Wednesday's National Signing Day, I asked second-year coach Chris Brown if the little production from 2009 and '10 affected the 2012 class, a 37-player lineup that included 27 high schoolers. Brown simply wanted to sign as many good players as possible.

Many of those could have an impact next fall.

Brown said Treyvais Alexander, a junior transfer wideout from Hinds (Miss.) Community College; Tarean Austin, a junior transfer quarterback from University of New Mexico; and Jeremy Jones, a junior fullback from San Bernardino (Calif.) Valley Community College, could play immediately. Among the freshman, Brown listed Ellis' Jared Herl, Hays High's Zach Binder and Liberal's Justin McPhail as some who could see the field. Smith Center halfback Truitt Kuhlmann, one of the best running backs to ever come out of the storied Redmen program, could be an impact player, but will likely need some time.

"He was kind of a late (recruited) guy for us as well," Brown said. "He came up with mom and his aunt. He is going to be a very good player for us here in a few years. We just got to get some strength on him, some size, just get him a little bit faster and understand the game of how fast the speed is at Division II football, but I think eventually he is going to be a very, very good player for us."