Evaluating five No. 1 classes and picking a new No. 1

	In retrospect, Clinton Portis' 1999 recruiting class should have been No. 1 in the nation. John Biever/SI
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A year ago next week, Tennessee fans basked in the glory (albeit temporarily) of landing the nation's No. 1 recruiting class. This year, that honor is expected to be bestowed on Florida.

Question: Do such rankings necessarily equate to similar success on the field?

Answer: Sometimes yes, sometimes, not at all.

The best time to truly measure the strength of a recruiting class is several years later. Signing-day rankings are entirely theoretical, based on the assumption that all those "five-star" prospects will turn into college All-Americas -- and all those two-star guys the other schools signed will barely be able to put on their pads properly. Revisiting a class years later, however, often reveals that some of those five-stars never even became starters. Some flunked out, suffered too many injuries or transferred. Meanwhile, some other school's lesser-heralded recruits were busy playing their way to national championships and high NFL draft selections.

SI.com reevaluated the consensus No. 1 classes over the most recent measurable five-year period (1999-2003). Some proved to be right on the money. Others went terribly awry. In each case, we also scoured other prominent classes that year and, where applicable, crowned a "revised" No. 1 based on how it turned out.

Note: the consensus No. 1 class used for each year was the one tabbed No. 1 at the time by the majority of the following recruiting services: SuperPrep (Allen Wallace), Prep Football Report (Tom Lemming), The National Recruiting Advisor (Bobby Burton), National Blue Chips (Max Emfinger) and Scout.com (2002-03 only).

1999 No. 1: Texas

Standouts: OL Derrick Dockery, DE Cory Redding, TE Bo Scaife, QB Chris Simms, DT Marcus Tubbs

Starters: DB Rod Babers, OL Robbie Doane

Busts: DB Monti Collie, WR Artie Ellis, WR O.J. McClintock, OL Alfio Randall, RB Ivan Williams

Assessment: The presence of Simms and Redding, USA Today's offensive and defensive players of the year that season, created enormous expectations of Mack Brown's first full class, which, despite a five-year record of 50-15, was largely regarded as a disappointment. The class certainly produced some stars -- including five current NFL players -- but, in retrospect, wasn't all that deep.

Who should've been: Miami

Standouts: DB Julian Battle (All-SEC at Tennessee), DB Philip Buchanon, OL Vernon Carey, QB Ken Dorsey, WR Andre Johnson, OL Bryant McKinnie, RB Clinton Portis

Starters: DB Maurice Sikes

Busts: RB Jason Geathers, DL Marquis Johnson

Assessment: Fresh off probation, the Hurricanes were still flying somewhat under the radar at the time, and the class failed to crack most top-10 lists. Dorsey, Johnson, Portis and McKinnie became the offensive stars of Miami's 2001 national championship team. McKinnie, Buchanon, Johnson and Carey were first-round NFL draft picks, and Portis the 2002 Offensive Rookie of the Year.

2000 No. 1: Florida

Standouts: DB Guss Scott, TE Ben Troupe

Starters: WR Kelvin Kight, WR Carlos Perez, DL Ian Scott, OL Shannon Snell, OL Max Starks

Busts: QB Brock Berlin (transferred to Miami), DB DeShawn Carter, RB Willie Green, DL Darrell Lee, DB Tre Orr

Assessment: Berlin was one of the most hyped recruits in years, so his failure to win the starting job at UF and subsequent transfer to Miami forever put a damper on this class, particularly when the Gators' slide to mediocrity began shortly thereafter under coach Ron Zook. In truth, the class wasn't a complete disaster like some Florida fans remember it, but it certainly didn't live up to its billing.

Who should've been: Auburn

Standouts: RB Ronnie Brown, QB Jason Campbell, LB Karlos Dansby, RB Rudi Johnson, DB Carlos Rogers, DB Junior Rosegreen

Starters: LB Bret Eddins, FB Brandon Johnson, DL Jay Ratliff

Busts: WR Silas Daniels, DL Marcus White (transferred to Murray State)

Assessment: Campbell was the only nationally-prominent name in a class that cracked just one major top-10 list, but he, Brown, Rogers and Rosegreen were all cornerstones of the Tigers' 13-0 season in 2004, while Dansby was an All-SEC performer and Rudi Johnson, a junior college transfer, was SEC Offensive Player of the Year in his one season with the Tigers.