Time to decide for nations top prospects

Going into the early signing period, all the committed prospects in the Rivals150 are expected to follow through on their pledges by signing with their respective schools. However, 27 prospects in the Rivals150 remain uncommitted. Here is a look at what to expect from those 27 prospects and a handful of other top prospects.

Uncommitted but expected to sign:

Herb Pope - Down to Maryland, Pittsburgh, Memphis, New Mexico State, Oklahoma and Texas. Pope will visit Texas this weekend and then is expected to sign with one of the above schools.

James Anderson - Will announce between Oklahoma State and Kansas on Wednesday.

Jai Lucas - Still refusing to tip his hand, Lucas is choosing between Maryland, Kentucky, Oklahoma and Oklahoma State. He is expected to sign this week, but it might be later than earlier.

Rico Pickett - Recently decommitted from Alabama. Pickett still has Alabama listed as his favorite and Alabama is the only school he has visited. He is also looking at Illinois, Florida State and North Carolina State.

Cliff Tucker - Scheduled to visit Maryland, his favorite school, this weekend. It would be a shocker if he doesn't sign with the Terps after the visit.

Josh Owens - Stanford appears to be the front-runner for Owens.

Guys still up in the air:

Anthony McClain - Chances are that McClain will wait till the late period. Connecticut is his favorite, and if he were to sign early it would likely be with the Huskies. He might unofficially visit Connecticut this weekend.

Eshaunte Jones - Jones announced in late August that he would reclassify to 2008 and that Indiana is his leader. He is expected to choose a school this week, and it is down to Indiana and Kentucky.

Darnell Gant - Oregon has targeted Gant with its last scholarship and Washington is also involved. It is unclear at this point whether or not Gant will sign early.

Eric Wallace - There is a good chance that Wallace will wait until the spring. He decommitted from Virginia this fall, and Louisville, Ohio State and Florida are currently in the mix.

Leonard Washington - USC is his leader, but it is unclear at this point whether Washington will sign early.

Rivals150 prospects expected to sign late:

O.J. Mayo - Not a lot of news out there on Mayo. Don't expect anything to happen during the early signing period. It is still a strong possibility that he trains for a year, maybe at Sonny Vacarro's potential basketball academy, instead of playing in college. If Mayo does play in college, USC is the likely destination.

Patrick Patterson - Scheduled to visit Virginia this weekend. With Kentucky, Florida, Duke and Wake Forest also on his list, Patterson is recently on record saying he will trim his list throughout the season and sign during the late period.

Mamadou Diarra - Hasn't taken any visits yet and is expected to sign in the spring. USC, Oklahoma State and Baylor top his list.

Jason Henry - Still has a lot of work to do academically. He unofficially visited Tennessee last weekend.

Tracy Smith - North Carolina State and Oklahoma State top Smith's list, but he is not in a position academically to sign early.

Teeng Akol - Working hard on his academics, Akol is contemplating reclassifying to 2008. If he signs, it will be in the spring.

Quinton Watkins- Illinois, San Diego State, Nevada, Pepperdine, New Mexico, New Mexico State and Washington are all on Watkins' list, but he needs to improve his SAT score before he signs.

Darrington Hobson - Focused on academics right now.

Tyrel Reed - Presently not speaking to the media, Reed is expected to wait things out until the spring.

Elgin Bailey - Still waiting for his test score on one of the college prep tests. Bailey likes Ole Miss, Mississippi State, Missouri and Tennessee.

Jamine Peterson - Schools are waiting to see how Peterson does academically.

Isaiah Rusher - Recently having changed high schools, Rusher won't do anything this fall.

Marcus Simmons – Academics are the focus right now for Simmons. Nothing should happen here in the fall.

Terrell McKenzie - Expected to wait till the spring.

Aaron Pogue-Still has work to do academically. A number of schools will be interested in the big man if he gets the job done in the classroom.

Ronnie Moss - Still in need of a qualifying college prep test score. Moss is hoping to catch the attention of coaches during the season.

Other top prospects not in the Rivals150:

Rihards Kuksiks - Expected to sign with either Arizona State, St. John's or Virginia Tech on Wednesday.

Chris Warren - Expected to sign with either Ole Miss, VCU or Old Dominion on Wednesday.

Damian Saunders - Expected to sign with Marquette on Wednesday.

Jordan Crawford - Down to Xavier and Indiana at the moment.

Ibrahima Thomas - Came back from Stillwater with Oklahoma State as his leader. Fresno State and Auburn are also in the hunt. Unsure whether he will sign in the fall or the spring.