Michigan is poised for a major in-state recruiting haul that could include Ambry Thomas [left, Rapai]

When 247 created the industry composite rankings, there was no longer a good reason for me to continue putting together the old Big Ten recruiting rankings posts. In the absence of those, however, I haven't done a great job of providing an overview of conference recruiting in the roundups. This new, recurring feature should rectify that issue—I plan to publish these on a monthly basis.

While it should come as little surprise that Ohio State and Michigan have separated themselves from the pack, the current rankings of the rest of the conference aren't exactly what you'd expect. Via 247, here's how the Big Ten team rankings currently stand:

[After THE JUMP, separating the conference into tiers.]

The Big Two

There's no fun way to put this: not only does Ohio State have the top-ranked 2017 class in the country, they have it by a healthy margin. 12 of their 13 commits are composite four- or five-stars; the only exception is top-ranked kicker Blake Haubeil. The Buckeyes are heavily involved with several top uncommitted prospects, including five-stars Jeffrey Okudah, Trevon Grimes, and Chase Young. Four-star RB Todd Sibley is almost guaranteed to end up elsewhere after OSU told him he'd have to grayshirt, and five-star CB Shaun Wade is looking around a bit; there's likely to be attrition from within the class. That said, it's going to be very tough for any team—Michigan included—to overcome OSU's lead.

You are, in all likelihood, quite familiar with Michigan's class, which currently ranks ninth in the country. If Jim Harbaugh closes as expected, they're likely to be in the top-five range by Signing Day.

The Second Tier

Five-star DE Josh Kaindoh was a huge pickup for DJ Durkin.

There's a gap between OSU and Michigan, and then another one between Michigan and Iowa—while the Hawkeyes are only two spots behind the Wolverines in the national rankings, there's a healthy 25-point separation in their 247 Composite score. Iowa, Northwestern, Maryland, Nebraska, and Wisconsin currently form the second tier, one that's certain to change as a couple notable omissions fill out their classes.

Iowa looks likely to fall back to the pack. They got two big-time early commits, one a legacy in five-star IL DE AJ Epenesa, the other a surprising pickup in four-star TX RB Eno Benjamin. Six of their other eight commits are three-star in-state prospects and they're not among the favorites for other blue-chippers. This will still be a solid class for them if they hold onto Epenesa and Benjamin.

Northwestern is 12th nationally, one spot behind Iowa, due to sheer strength in numbers: they have 13 commits, but not a single four-star among them. Pat Fitzgerald has found success targeting Texas recruits the high-end Big 12 schools aren't heavily pursuing; Northwestern has five Texans in the class, more than any other state.

The hire of DJ Durkin has paid off on the recruiting trail for Maryland, ranked 15th nationally. If a Big Ten program is going to challenge the top two, it'll be Maryland, as Durkin is doing an excellent job of keeping DMV-area talent close to home. Five-star DE Josh Kaindoh, a DC transplant playing for IMG Academy, was a massive pickup in that regard, and the Terps are hanging right with OSU in the race for five-star MD DE Chase Young.

Mike Riley has pulled in nine commits from eight different states for Nebraska (17th nationally), including the sixth-ranked pro-style QB in Californian Tristan Gebbia. The Huskers are among the favorites for two top-tier California cornerbacks, five-star Darnay Holmes and four-star Deommodore "Clamp Clampington" Lenoir. Landing either would be a coup.

Five of Wisconsin's ten commits are in-state prospects, and it should come as little surprise that both of their four-star pledges are offensive linemen. The Badgers rank one spot behind the Huskers in the national team rankings, but Nebraska has a better shot at landing the top-end prospects to keep them in the top 20.

The Third Tier

Sooooooooo.

While Penn State only has eight commits and only ranks 21st in the country at the moment, they're going to surpass several of the teams listed above before the end of the cycle. There are already four four-stars in the class and James Franklin has PSU among the favorites for five-star APB De'Andre Swift, four-star OG Robert Hainsey, four-star OLB Nathan Proctor, and four-star TE Matt Dotson, to name a few.

After Chris Ash managed to convince a few top New Jersey recruits to stay in the state, at least for now, Rutgers comes up next in the rankings. Four-star NJ OT Micah Clark is the jewel of the class; if Rutgers falters during the season, which would come as little surprise, several other programs (Michigan potentially included) will try to pluck him from Ash's grasp.

At long last, we've reached Michigan State, which sits one spot behind Central Michigan at #31 in the team rankings—so far, their playoff appearance isn't paying off on the recruiting trail. Now that KJ Hamler has his much-coveted Oregon offer, legacy Hunter Rison could be the only prospect standing between MSU and a shutout among the top ten in-state players. Of the uncommitted players on that list, only Hamler and Deron Irving-Bey look like decent bets to end up in East Lansing; Oregon may have jumped into the lead for the former, while Michigan has picked up its pursuit of the latter.

The Basement

There's a veritable gulf between the Spartans and the rest of the Big Ten. MSU has eight commits and ranks 31st overall; Minnesota is next at #65 with three commits. Given the uncertainty surrounding the coaching staff after Jerry Kill's departure, it's hardly a surprise the Gophers are struggling to land recruits.

Given the hope that Lovie Smith would jump-start recruiting because of his NFL success, Illinois' class can only be categorized as a major disappointment. They also have three commits, only one ranked in the top 850 overall prospects, and they hardly have any Crystal Ball predictions in for three-star recruits—the lone four-star they had picks for, guard Kevin Jarvis, is committed to MSU.

Indiana follows with three three-star commits all ranked below 800th overall. That still puts them well ahead of Purdue, which has been stuck on one commit: low three-star dual-threat QB Griffin Alstott, son of Boilermakers legend Mike Alstott.