Published: 12:30 PM, 02/04/2010

Last updated: 12:40 PM, 02/04/2010

By: Steve Behr Sports Editor

The national holiday has come and gone. College football can get back to blocking and tackling.
The National Signing Day, or one of the most over-hyped event in sports, was Wednesday. It was the day when thousands of prep football players, big and small, fast and not as fast, smart and not as smart, kept coaches employed or possibly looking for new work if they don't pan out.
Appalachian State did its share of collecting stars - those that are given out by rivals.com. The Internet site which is usually used by writers, sports information directors and fans to gage how well their schools recruited, rated seven future Mountaineers who signed letters Wednesday.
Three of them, all from Georgia Military College, got three stars. Another has committed, but is not officially a Mountaineer just yet. Still, that's not for a mid-major. Three others, all incoming freshmen, got two stars.
According to rivals, Appalachian State's recruiting class ranks 120th overall in the nation, but tops for the FCS. Western Carolina is 125th.
Does it all really matter?
Armanti Edwards had no stars next to his name when he signed with Appalachian State. He was recruited by some ACC schools, but as a defensive back or receiver.
When ASU recruited him, he was just a guy on a list who was similar to some guy named CoCo Hillary. All Edwards did was develop into arguably the best player in FCS-Division I-AA history.
You'll just have to forgive me if I don't get all giddy about signing day. Quite frankly, I haven't seen any of Appalachian State's newest players play just yet, so I'm not sure just how good they are.
We have Web sites like rivals, but just who knows who will work out and who won't? Much of their ratings are based on size, 40-times and how they do in camps.
Meanwhile, a history lesson in ASU recruiting. A wide receiver from Fort Wayne, Ind. got a half-scholarship with a defensive tackle from the same Indiana town a few years back. The defensive tackle was a serviceable starter at nose tackle and fullback, Corey Jones.
The receiver, DaVon Fowlkes, rewrote the ASU receiving record book and finished third in the Walter Payton Award voting.
His college quarterback, Richie Williams, was recruited by N.C. State until a knee injury chased the Wolfpack away. Williams, a Camden, S.C. native, chose ASU over The Citadel and set passing records that Edwards shattered. Williams played professionally in Canada.
I've seen players with good credentials, one a three-star recruit, barely see the field. I've seen walk-ons - all-time running back Kevin Richardson rings a bell - flourish with the Mountaineers.
You never really know.
It happens on all levels. Five-star recruit Terrell Pryor has been everything Ohio State could ask for. Five-star running back Darrell Scott at Colorado got beaten out by a back not recruited by anybody but the Buffaloes. Scott transferred out after two injury-plagued seasons at CU.
So, congrats to Appalachian State and its class of 2010. On paper, the Mountaineers look like they've done well. They got some badly needed help at offensive line and at defensive line. They also added three junior college transfers and a player who is already enrolled at ASU and served in the Iraq war.
But that's all on paper. The proof will be on the field.

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