Derek Jeter and Tom Brady showed up as promised in Ann Arbor, Mich. Wolverines Coach Jim Harbaugh, a onetime Michigan quarterback, tossed footballs into the crowd seated in a campus auditorium. Jim Leyland, the former Detroit Tigers manager, appeared onstage with the hip-hop group Migos. Did they dab? Dab they did.

It was all part of Michigan’s self-proclaimed Signing of the Stars, a flamboyant national signing day pep rally streamed live on Wednesday by The Players’ Tribune — the website founded by Jeter, a Michigan native — and intended to build the hype around this year’s class of prospective Wolverines football players.

Several hundred miles east, in New Jersey, miniature hot dogs and other snacks were being served in the auditorium at Paramus Catholic High School, where a more modest event celebrated seven seniors who announced their commitments.

Rashan Gary, a 6-foot-4, 280-pound defensive tackle who was the country’s most prized recruit, arrived by limousine from ESPN’s headquarters in Bristol, Conn. A few hours earlier, Gary had announced on live television that he had chosen Michigan over his other finalist, Clemson.

Those events and hundreds of others were part of the latest national signing day, an annual event that in recent years has evolved into a sports carnival — Fat Wednesday? — as programs seek to rev up their fans and make one last pitch to on-the-fence prospects. Michigan’s event was the most orchestrated bit of pageantry, with perhaps the exception of safety Deontay Anderson from Marvel, Tex., who announced for Ole Miss in a sky diving video.

One tradition that was not unusual was Alabama hauling in the top-rated class for the seventh time in the nine years that Coach Nick Saban has had a full season to recruit. The day’s biggest surprise was Texas, which leapt double digits in the estimations of some recruiting sites after several prized high school players chose the Longhorns. This year’s class will bolster the job security of Coach Charlie Strong as he enters his third year looking for his first winning season.

After the ceremony at Paramus Catholic, a FaceTime communication from Harbaugh was projected onto the auditorium’s big screen. He was joined by Chris Partridge, Paramus Catholic’s former coach, who joined Michigan’s staff last season as director of player personnel and was recently promoted to linebackers and special teams coach.

Harbaugh extended an “open-door” invitation to any member of the Paramus Catholic Paladins to take a look at Michigan, although he added, “I’m obviously excited to get the big guy.”