Running back Marlon Lucky passed on USC in favor of Nebraska's rebuilding effort. Darren Carroll/SI

For decades, they stood among college football's preeminent powers, but the past few years haven't been as kind to Nebraska and Penn State. Wednesday's National Signing Day could be the first major step toward reversing their fortunes.

Nebraska's transition under Bill Callahan was even rougher than expected last season, with the Huskers suffering their first losing record since 1961. From day one, however, the ex-Super Bowl coach has been focused on this upcoming signing class. Knowing he would need to assemble an entirely different breed of athletes from the ones recruited to play Nebraska's old option-based system, Callahan instructed his staff to devote at least an hour of every day last season to recruiting and to broaden the program's traditionally regionalized talent search to include nearly the entire country.

The result, to be officially unveiled Wednesday, is a diverse group of prospects that could wind up ranked among the top five classes nationally. It includes players from 14 different states, from Florida to California, Minnesota to Maryland, and, most important, fills all of the Huskers' most pressing needs.

"They've got a lot of things going for them," said Scout.com national recruiting analyst Jamie Newberg, whose service currently rates Nebraska's class No. 6 in the country. "First of all, this is Nebraska, which has one of the most storied traditions in all of college football. No. 2, Bill Callahan coached in the NFL. That's where these kids want to be, and they know he can help get them there.

"And No. 3, the Huskers need athletes -- they need a different type of player that they don't have there now. It's a great selling point to kids that they have the opportunity to play early."

The face of the Huskers' new direction is Harrison Beck, rated the No. 11 quarterback prospect by Scout.com. As anyone who suffered through the painful experience of watching Nebraska's offense last year can attest, QB Joe Dailey struggled mightily in Callahan's West Coast system. Beck, a smart, strong-armed, pro-style QB from Clearwater, Fla., shunned his home-state powers last summer when he committed to the Huskers, becoming the highest touted of five high school or juco QBs Callahan has recruited since taking the job 14 months ago.

"A lot of people asked me, 'Why didn't you go to Miami or Florida?'" said Beck. "I think when you go to those schools, you're just another number. I have the opportunity to go to Nebraska and be part of a new era of Nebraska football."

Nebraska's offensive upgrade efforts were hardly limited to quarterback. Thanks in large part to savvy recruiter John Blake, the former head coach at Oklahoma who Callahan hired as his defensive line coach, the Huskers beat out national champion USC for the services of Marlon Lucky (North Hollywood, Calif.), the nation's No. 2 running back prospect. He's the highest-profile runner Nebraska has landed since Ahman Green. The Huskers also went to Pasco, Wash., and nabbed top-20 running back prospect Leon Jackson, a 4.4 speedster who may wind up playing safety.

Callahan's staff plucked the juco ranks to address deficiencies on the offensive and defensive lines and at wide receiver. Nebraska is expected to sign 10 such players, including tight end Justin Tomerlin (Butler County, Kan.), who decommitted from Michigan State. Other highly ranked high school commits include DT Ndamukong Suh (Portland, Ore.), LB Phillip Dillard (Jenks, Okla.) and WR Chris Brooks (St. Louis), who switched his commitment from Missouri to the Huskers.

"The coaches [at Nebraska] make you feel so comfortable," said Beck. "From the minute you get there, they let you know you're their No. 1 guy, the guy they need to help them get back to that elite level. I've probably gotten 300 to 400 hand-written letters since last January when they first offered me. Just little notes like, 'Come help us win a national championship.'"

National championships have been a remote possibility lately in Happy Valley, where once-proud Penn State has suffered losing records in four of the past five seasons. Joe Paterno insists, however, the Nittany Lions are closer to regaining respectability than many think, and he may be right. They produced one of the nation's best, young defenses last season and lost several close games.

The one thing they've been sorely lacking, though, is playmakers, a need Paterno has addressed in a big way this recruiting season.

"Last year they had a good class [with QB Anthony Morelli and LB Dan Connor], and this year's class is probably on par," said Newberg. "But this year they have two true difference-makers in Derrick Williams and Justin King."

Williams, a native of Greenbelt, Md., who at one point this season was rated the No. 1 prospect in the country by Scout.com, shocked the recruiting world in December when he chose Penn State over Florida. Williams played quarterback and defensive back in high school, but possesses great hands and 4.4 speed and will likely make the move to receiver (a la Peter Warrick or Michael Clayton), where the Nittany Lions have lacked a big-play threat since Bryant Johnson in 2002.

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Williams, who graduated high school early and began taking classes in State College on Jan. 10, said at the news conference where he announced his commitment, "Penn State hasn't had a person like what I can do. I think that I can catch a five-yard pop and make people miss and take it to the house. I need to give people some excitement there."

During the recruiting process, Williams befriended King, a Pittsburgh native who committed to the Nittany Lions last fall. Scout.com's No. 2-rated cornerback and No. 12 prospect overall, King is another elite athlete with blazing speed who could be equally valuable as a kick returner. "I have a feeling he could have the same impact at Penn State as Ted Ginn Jr. did at Ohio State," said Newberg.

While the overall strength of the Lions' class is debatable -- Scout.com currently has it ranked 30th -- there's no question Paterno succeeded in his attempt to load up on speed. In addition to Williams and King, he landed several other burners, most notably CB Knowledge Timmons (York, Pa.), a state champion track sprinter.

Of course, getting the players to campus will be only half the battle for both teams. After all, current Nittany Lions senior Michael Robinson was a similarly touted athlete coming out of high school but has struggled while bouncing between several different positions. And Nebraska's question marks aren't limited to its offense.

Nevertheless, both Huskers and Nittany Lions fans will have more reasons to smile come Wednesday than they've had in some time.

Meyer's instant impact

Like Callahan did, you can usually count on a new coach at a high-profile program to take the recruiting scene by storm once he's had a full season to recruit, but scrambling to salvage that first class -- especially if the coach gets a late start -- can be a near-impossible task. Florida's Urban Meyer, however, has defied the odds.