2012 recruiting

Barring a late-breaking commitment—say, Alex Kozan—these are your final Big Ten recruiting rankings for the class of 2012. After Ohio State's late charge under Urban Meyer, the Buckeyes finish atop the rankings; Michigan is a relatively close second and from there it's a precipitous drop to Notre Dame and the rest of the Big Ten. You can find the previous edition of the rankings here—changes are not listed because there were far too many.

Chart? Chart:

Big Ten+ Recruiting Class Rankings
Rank School # Commits Rivals Avg Scout Avg ESPN Avg 24/7 Avg Avg Avg^
1 Ohio State 25 3.68 3.76 3.48 3.68 3.65
2 Michigan 25 3.56 3.64 3.36 3.56 3.53
3 Notre Dame 16 3.50 3.69 3.50 3.56 3.56
4 Michigan State 18 3.11 3.17 3.11 3.11 3.13
5 Nebraska 17 3.35 2.94 2.88* 3.29 3.12
6 Purdue 26 2.92 2.62 2.78* 2.88 2.80
7 Iowa 24 2.92 2.71 2.63* 2.92 2.75
8 Penn State 19 2.79 2.95 2.58 3.11 2.86
9 Northwestern 20 2.90 2.85 2.60 2.85 2.80
10 Wisconsin 12 3.08 3.08 2.92 3.25 3.08
11 Indiana 25 2.72 2.52 2.39* 2.60 2.56
12 Minnesota 27 2.70 2.37 2.12* 2.63 2.46
13 Illinois 19 2.74 2.63 2.16 2.63 2.54

*ESPN doesn't rate JuCos, so they are counted as unranked recruits for the sake of consistency (trust me, it makes sense when you look at the spreadsheet).

^The average of the average rankings of the four recruiting services (aka the previous four columns). The figure is calculated based on the raw numbers and then rounded, so the numbers above may not average out exactly.

On to the full data, after the jump.

Cass Tech linebacker Royce Jenkins-Stone was just the fourth player to commit to Brady Hoke's class of 2012, doing so last April. The consensus four-star recruit has since won a state championship with the Technicians and played in the Army All-American Game, and he's looking to continue that run of success at Michigan. I got the chance to chat with Royce over the weekend—via text, hence the short-ish answers—and we discussed his goals for his freshman year and career along with a few other topics:

ACE: How was the Army Game for you? It had to be fun being there with James [Ross, Royce's childhood friend] and your future teammates.

ROYCE: Yeah, it was a great experience. Everyone competed and had fun.

ACE: What are your goals for your freshman year?

ROYCE: Get my weight to 235 [Royce is currently listed at 215 on Rivals, though he looked bigger in person this fall], learn the defense, and see if I can at least get in the rotation.

ACE: You and the whole 2012 class come in with some big expectations. Do you ever feel pressure from that, or more just excitement?

ROYCE: Just excitement because everyone in this class is all about getting better and getting on that field.

ACE: What's it like to know you'll be playing for Greg Mattison as your defensive coordinator next year?

ROYCE: It's good to know you have a coach that knows what he's doing and not leaving when you get there.

ACE: When your Michigan career is over, what do you want to look back on and say you've accomplished.

ROYCE: [I want to say I've been an] All-American and All-Big Ten in my sophomore, junior, and senior year.

ACE: Do you expect to go out on top at Michigan like you did at Cass Tech?

ROYCE: Yeah. I plan on getting a national championship when I get there and before I leave.

The recruiting rankings are front-paged this week as we have a change at the top. Unfortunately, you probably know the change, and you're almost certainly not going to like it: Ohio State jumps Michigan after picking up four recruits (and the Wolverines losing Caleb Stacey, though that wouldn't have mattered in terms of the standings). Otherwise, the team rankings hold steady as we near signing day. Action since last rankings:

1-15-12: Taylor Decker changes commitment from Notre Dame to Ohio State. Illinois picks up T.J. Neal.

1-16-12: Penn State picks up Jordan Lucas.

1-17-12: Ohio State picks up Joey O'Connor. Gunner Kiel changes commitment from LSU to Notre Dame. Minnesota picks up Roland Johnson.

1-18-12: Ohio State picks up David Perkins. Minnesota picks up K.J. Maye.

1-20-12: Camren Williams changes commitment from Penn State to Ohio State.

1-21-12: Caleb Stacey changes commitment from Michigan to Cincinnati. Nebraska picks up LeRoy Alexander. Zach Jackson changes commitment from Illinois to TCU. Illinois picks up Justin Hardee. Minnesota picks up Ben Lauer.

Chart? Chart:

Big Ten+ Recruiting Class Rankings
Rank School # Commits Rivals Avg Scout Avg ESPN Avg 24/7 Avg Avg Avg^
1 Ohio State 23 3.70 3.74 3.43 3.61 3.62
2 Michigan 23 3.57 3.65 3.39 3.57 3.54
3 Notre Dame 17 3.53 3.76 3.53 3.59 3.60
4 Wisconsin 12 3.33 3.33 3.17 3.50 3.33
5 Penn State 14 3.07 3.14 3.07 3.21 3.13
6 Michigan State 14 3.14 3.14 3.00 3.07 3.09
7 Iowa 18 3.00 2.94 2.83* 2.83 2.90
8 Nebraska 12 3.41 2.92 2.90* 3.33 3.14
9 Purdue 25 2.92 2.48 2.72* 2.76 2.72
10 Northwestern 20 2.75 2.65 2.55 2.65 2.65
11 Indiana 23 2.65 2.48 2.38* 2.43 2.49
12 Illinois 14 2.71 2.71 2.50 2.57 2.63
13 Minnesota 28 2.68 2.29 1.92* 2.25 2.28

*ESPN doesn't rate JuCos, so they are counted as unranked recruits for the sake of consistency (trust me, it makes sense when you look at the spreadsheet).

^The average of the average rankings of the four recruiting services (aka the previous four columns). The figure is calculated based on the raw numbers and then rounded, so the numbers above may not average out exactly.

On to the full data, after the jump.