Big Ten Recruiting Class Rankings 11-28-10
A new commit for the Wolverines means this hits the front page. Action since last rankings:
11-21-10 Notre Dame loses commitment from Justice Hayes.
11-22-10 Michigan gains commitment from Justice Hayes.
11-23-10 Northwestern loses commitment from Sean Cotton.
11-24-10 Iowa loses commitment from Melvin Gordon.
11-25-10 Purdue gains commitment from Doug Gentry.
11-27-10 Penn State gains commitment from Matt Zanellato.
Rivals and Scout have updated their rankings over the past couple weeks, so there are some shakeups in there.
| Big Ten+ Recruiting Class Rankings | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | School | # Commits | Rivals Avg | Scout Avg | ESPN Avg |
| 1 | Ohio State | 18 | 5.76 | 3.78 | 79.17 |
| 2 | Notre Dame | 16 | 5.70 | 3.50 | 78.94 |
| 3 | Nebraska | 17 | 5.71 | 3.41 | 78.75* |
| 4 | Michigan | 14 | 5.68 | 3.36 | 78.36 |
| 5 | Michigan State | 16 | 5.65 | 3.25 | 76.75 |
| 6 | Wisconsin | 21 | 5.58 | 2.86 | 72.10 |
| 7 | Indiana | 21 | 5.54 | 2.71 | 75.24 |
| 8 | Iowa | 15 | 5.59 | 2.93 | 76.53 |
| 9 | Northwestern | 11 | 5.55 | 2.73 | 77.09 |
| 10 | Minnesota | 15 | 5.53 | 2.60 | 73.87 |
| 11 | Illinois | 17 | 5.44 | 2.59 | 72.00 |
| 12 | Penn State | 6 | 5.47 | 2.67 | 70.17 |
| 13 | Purdue | 10 | 5.47 | 2.10 | 66.70 |
Rivals rankings are on the "RR" scale, which is on a scale from about 5 to about 6.1. Unrated prospects are given a 5.1 rating, on par with the worst of any Big Ten commit last year. Scout is on the 5-star system (unranked players earn star), and ESPN uses grades out of 100 (unranked is 40 or 45). Full data after the jump.
| #1 Ohio State - 18 Commits | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Position | State | Rivals | Scout | ESPN |
| Michael Bennett | DT | OH | 6.0 | 4 | 80 |
| Braxton Miller | QB | OH | 6.0 | 5 | 82 |
| Kenny Hayes | DE | OH | 5.9 | 4 | 79 |
| Steve Miller | DE | OH | 5.8 | 5 | 84 |
| Nick Vannett | TE | OH | 5.8 | 4 | 80 |
| Chase Farris | DE | OH | 5.8 | 4 | 79 |
| Brian Bobek | OL | IL | 5.8 | 4 | 79 |
| Evan Spencer | WR | IL | 5.7 | 4 | 81 |
| Jeremy Cash | S | FL | 5.7 | 4 | 80 |
| Ron Tanner | S | OH | 5.7 | 4 | 78 |
| DerJuan Gambrell | CB | OH | 5.7 | 4 | 77 |
| Devin Smith | WR | OH | 5.7 | 4 | 78 |
| Jeff Heuerman | TE | FL | 5.7 | 3 | 80 |
| Joel Hale | DT | IN | 5.7 | 3 | 79 |
| Chris Carter | OL | OH | 5.7 | 3 | 78 |
| Conner Crowell | LB | MD | 5.7 | 3 | 78 |
| Tommy Brown | OL | OH | 5.6 | 3 | 78 |
| Antonio Underwood | OL | OH | 5.6 | 3 | 75 |
No change for the Buckeyes.
| #2 Notre Dame - 16 Commits | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Position | State | Rivals | Scout | ESPN |
| Stephon Tuitt | DE | GA | 6.0 | 4 | 80 |
| Ben Koyack | TE | PA | 5.9 | 4 | 81 |
| Matt Hegarty | OL | NM | 5.9 | 4 | 83 |
| DaVaris Daniels | WR | IL | 5.8 | 4 | 81 |
| Eilar Hardy | S | OH | 5.8 | 4 | 79 |
| George Atkinson III | S | CA | 5.8 | 4 | 79 |
| Jarrett Grace | LB | OH | 5.7 | 4 | 78 |
| Anthony Rabasa | DE | FL | 5.7 | 3 | 81 |
| Tony Springmann | OL | IN | 5.7 | 3 | 78 |
| Josh Atkinson | CB | CA | 5.7 | 3 | 78 |
| Conor Hanratty | OL | CT | 5.6 | 4 | 76 |
| Ben Councell | DE | NC | 5.6 | 3 | 78 |
| Brad Carrico | OL | OH | 5.6 | 3 | 77 |
| Matthias Farley | CB | NC | 5.5 | 3 | 77 |
| Jalen Brown | CB | TX | 5.5 | 3 | 78 |
| Kyle Brindza | K | MI | 5.4 | 3 | 79 |
Justice Hayes was turned off by the sketchy vibe on his official visit, and decommitted.
| #3 Nebraska - 17 Commits | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Position | State | Rivals | Scout | ESPN |
| Aaron Green | RB | FL | 5.9 | 5 | 85 |
| Tyler Moore | OL | FL | 5.9 | 4 | 78 |
| Bubba Starling | QB | KS | 5.8 | 4 | 81 |
| Jamal Turner | QB | TX | 5.8 | 4 | 81 |
| Charles Jackson | CB | TX | 5.8 | 4 | 81 |
| Ryne Reeves | OL | NE | 5.8 | 4 | 79 |
| Tevin Mitchell | CB | TX | 5.8 | 4 | 79 |
| Ryan Klachko | OL | IL | 5.8 | 4 | 78 |
| David Santos | LB | TX | 5.8 | 3 | 79 |
| Zach Sterup | OL | NE | 5.8 | 3 | 78 |
| Daimion Stafford | S | CA | 5.8 | 3 | NR |
| Kevin Williams | DT | OH | 5.7 | 3 | 79 |
| Max Pirman | LB | OH | 5.6 | 3 | 78 |
| Daniel Davie | S | NE | 5.5 | 3 | 75 |
| Taariq Allen | WR | TX | 5.5 | 2 | 75 |
| Nicklas Sade | K | NC | 5.4 | 3 | 78 |
| Aaryn Bouzos | CB | CA | 5.4 | 2 | 76 |
No change.
| #4 Michigan - 14 Commits | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Position | State | Rivals | Scout | ESPN |
| Demetrius Hart | RB | FL | 6.0 | 4 | 80 |
| Justice Hayes | RB | MI | 5.9 | 4 | 79 |
| Brennen Beyer | DE | MI | 5.8 | 4 | 79 |
| Kellen Jones | LB | TX | 5.7 | 4 | 79 |
| Jake Fisher | OL | MI | 5.7 | 4 | 77 |
| Dallas Crawford | CB | FL | 5.7 | 3 | 80 |
| Delonte Hollowell | CB | MI | 5.7 | 3 | 79 |
| Shawn Conway | WR | MI | 5.7 | 3 | 78 |
| Kevin Sousa | QB | FL | 5.7 | 3 | 78 |
| Chris Rock | DE | OH | 5.6 | 3 | 78 |
| Jack Miller | OL | OH | 5.5 | 3 | 78 |
| Tony Posada | OL | FL | 5.5 | 3 | 78 |
| Greg Brown | CB | OH | 5.5 | 3 | 77 |
| Antonio Kinard | LB | OH | 5.5 | 3 | 77 |
Wolverines pick up RB/Slot Justice Hayes, and pass their in-state rivals in the process. Even if Michigan's next two commits were on par with the worst in either school's class (unlikely, since the current bottom 2 are committed to Michigan State), they'd be higher on average.
| #5 Michigan State - 16 Commits | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Position | State | Rivals | Scout | ESPN |
| Lawrence Thomas | LB | MI | 6.1 | 5 | 80 |
| Donavon Clark | OG | OH | 5.7 | 4 | 78 |
| Darien Harris | LB | MD | 5.7 | 3 | 79 |
| Taiwan Jones | LB | MI | 5.7 | 3 | 78 |
| Roger Williamson | CB | OH | 5.7 | 3 | 78 |
| Mikail McCall | RB | IL | 5.7 | 3 | 77 |
| Ed Davis | LB | MI | 5.7 | 3 | 77 |
| Arjen Colquhoun | S | ON | 5.7 | 3 | 76 |
| Connor Cook | QB | OH | 5.7 | 2 | 76 |
| Onaje Miller | RB | MI | 5.6 | 4 | 78 |
| Joel Heath | DE | OH | 5.6 | 4 | 76 |
| Jack Allen | OL | IL | 5.6 | 3 | 78 |
| AJ Sims | CB | GA | 5.6 | 3 | 78 |
| Mark Scarpinato | DT | WI | 5.5 | 3 | 76 |
| Trae Waynes | CB | WI | 5.4 | 3 | 75 |
| Paul Lang | TE | PA | 5.4 | 3 | 68 |
No change.
| #6 Wisconsin - 21 Commits | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Position | State | Rivals | Scout | ESPN |
| Jake Keefer | LB | WI | 5.8 | 4 | 78 |
| Austin Traylor | DE | OH | 5.8 | 3 | 78 |
| Sam Arneson | TE | WI | 5.7 | 3 | 78 |
| Jesse Hayes | DE | OH | 5.7 | 3 | 78 |
| James Adeyanju | DE | IL | 5.7 | 3 | 77 |
| Mike Caputo | LB | PA | 5.7 | 3 | 77 |
| AJ Jordan | WR | OH | 5.6 | 3 | 80 |
| Makinton Dorleant | CB | FL | 5.6 | 3 | 77 |
| Derek Watt | LB | WI | 5.6 | 3 | 77 |
| Austin Maly | TE | WI | 5.6 | 3 | 76 |
| Bennett Okotcha | CB | TX | 5.6 | 3 | 76 |
| Eric Steffes | TE | WI | 5.6 | 3 | NR |
| Terrance Floyd | CB | FL | 5.6 | 2 | 77 |
| Ray Ball | OL | OH | 5.5 | 3 | 77 |
| Jordan Frederick | LB | WI | 5.5 | 3 | 75 |
| Trayion Durham | RB | OH | 5.5 | 3 | 75 |
| Derek Landisch | LB | WI | 5.5 | 3 | 74 |
| Frederick Willis | WR | WI | 5.5 | 2 | NR |
| Kenzel Doe | WR | NC | 5.4 | 2 | 75 |
| Tyler Marz | OL | MN | NR | 2 | NR |
Wisconsin has been on fire lately, and may pick up Iowa decommit Melvin Gordon as soon as this week.
| #7 Indiana - 21 Commits | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Position | State | Rivals | Scout | ESPN |
| Raymon Taylor | CB | MI | 5.8 | 3 | 77 |
| Zack Shaw | LB | OH | 5.8 | 3 | 76 |
| Cody Latimer | WR | OH | 5.7 | 2 | 73 |
| D'Angelo Roberts | RB | IN | 5.6 | 3 | 77 |
| Jake Reed | TE | IN | 5.6 | 3 | 77 |
| Jalen Schlachter | TE | MI | 5.6 | 3 | 75 |
| Ralston Evans | OL | IN | 5.6 | 3 | 74 |
| Tre Roberson | QB | IN | 5.6 | 2 | 76 |
| Forisse Hardin | S | KY | 5.6 | 3 | 74 |
| Bernard Taylor | OL | MI | 5.5 | 3 | 76 |
| CJ Robbins | DE | IL | 5.5 | 3 | 75 |
| Nick Stoner | S | IN | 5.5 | 3 | 74 |
| Kirk Harris | OL | KS | 5.5 | 2 | 77 |
| Kyle Kennedy | LB | IN | 5.5 | 2 | 76 |
| Mark Murphy | S | OH | 5.5 | 2 | 75 |
| Kenny Mullen | CB | IN | 5.4 | 3 | 74 |
| Shafer Johnson | DT | MI | 5.4 | 3 | 77 |
| Jay McCants | WR | OH | 5.4 | 3 | 75 |
| Mike Replogle | LB | OH | 5.4 | 3 | 74 |
| Donte Phillips | DE | WI | 5.4 | 2 | 74 |
| Nick VanHoose | DB | OH | 5.4 | 3 | 74 |
Will the firing of Bill Lynch result in an unraveling of the recruiting class for IU?
| #8 Iowa - 15 Commits | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Position | State | Rivals | Scout | ESPN |
| Jordan Walsh | OL | IL | 5.8 | 4 | 79 |
| Austin Blythe | OL | IA | 5.8 | 3 | 79 |
| Ray Hamilton | TE | OH | 5.8 | 3 | 79 |
| John Raymon | DE | PA | 5.7 | 3 | 78 |
| Torrey Campbell | RB | FL | 5.6 | 3 | 78 |
| Riley McMinn | DE | IL | 5.6 | 3 | 77 |
| Jake Rudock | QB | FL | 5.6 | 3 | 78 |
| Marcus Grant | WR | MA | 5.6 | 3 | 76 |
| Melvin Spears | LB | TX | 5.5 | 3 | 79 |
| Henry Krieger-Coble | TE | IA | 5.5 | 3 | 78 |
| Nick Law | CB | MD | 5.5 | 3 | 77 |
| Cole Fisher | LB | NE | 5.5 | 3 | 74 |
| Jake Duzey | TE | MI | 5.5 | 3 | 73 |
| Mike Orloff | LB | MA | 5.5 | 2 | 70 |
| Austin Vincent | WR | TX | 5.4 | 2 | 73 |
Melvin Gordon jumps ship, and is now only considering the rival Badgers. Despite the loss, I considered moving Iowa past Indiana in the rankings, but didn't quite pull the trigger.
| #9 Northwestern - 11 Commits | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Position | State | Rivals | Scout | ESPN |
| Christian Jones | WR | TX | 5.7 | 3 | 81 |
| Shane Mertz | OL | NJ | 5.6 | 3 | 79 |
| Jack Konopka | OL | IL | 5.6 | 3 | 79 |
| Zack Oliver | QB | LA | 5.6 | 3 | 78 |
| Jarrell Williams | CB | IL | 5.6 | 3 | 76 |
| Matt Frazier | OL | IL | 5.6 | 3 | 75 |
| Max Chapman | DE | FL | 5.6 | 2 | 78 |
| Geoff Mogus | OL | OH | 5.5 | 3 | 75 |
| Cameron Dickerson | WR | NJ | 5.5 | 2 | 73 |
| Mark Szott | TE | IL | 5.5 | 3 | 77 |
| Treyvon Green | RB | TX | 5.3 | 2 | 77 |
Sean Cotton decommits for academic reasons.
| #10 Minnesota - 15 Commits | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Position | State | Rivals | Scout | ESPN |
| Tommy Olson | OL | MN | 5.7 | 3 | 79 |
| Matt LaCosse | ATH | IL | 5.6 | 3 | 78 |
| Max Shortell | QB | KS | 5.6 | 3 | 74 |
| Quinn Bauducco | LB | CA | 5.6 | 3 | 74 |
| Peter Westerhaus | TE | MN | 5.6 | 2 | 76 |
| Kyle McAvoy | OL | IL | 5.5 | 3 | 79 |
| Marquise Vann | LB | OH | 5.5 | 3 | 78 |
| Jephete Matilus | LB | FL | 5.5 | 2 | 77 |
| Mike Moore | LB | TX | 5.6 | 3 | 77 |
| Luke McAvoy | OL | IL | 5.5 | 3 | 75 |
| Devin Crawford-Tufts | WR | MN | 5.5 | 2 | 74 |
| Russell Haughton-James | OL | FL | 5.5 | 2 | 74 |
| Sam Rohr | TE | WI | 5.4 | 3 | 74 |
| Cameron Brown | WR | TX | 5.5 | 2 | 74 |
| Samuel Oyenuga | CB | TX | 5.5 | 2 | NR |
No change.
| #11 Illinois - 17 Commits | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Position | State | Rivals | Scout | ESPN |
| Clint Tucker | DT | IL | 5.7 | 3 | 79 |
| Zeph Grimes | S | SC | 5.6 | 3 | 77 |
| Chris Boles | OL | OH | 5.6 | 3 | 77 |
| Reilly O'Toole | QB | IL | 5.6 | 3 | 76 |
| Tony Durkin | OL | IL | 5.5 | 3 | 74 |
| Carl Williams | CB | FL | 5.5 | 3 | 77 |
| Josh Ferguson | RB | IL | 5.5 | 3 | 75 |
| Chris O'Connor | DE | IL | 5.5 | 3 | 75 |
| Ralph Cooper | LB | SC | 5.5 | 2 | 78 |
| Scott McDowell | OL | IL | 5.4 | 3 | 75 |
| Ted Karras | OL | IN | 5.4 | 2 | 77 |
| Marquise Mosley | WR | TX | 5.4 | 2 | 74 |
| JT Thornton | CB | FL | 5.4 | 2 | 77 |
| Daniel Rhodes | TE | NC | 5.4 | 2 | 73 |
| Hunter Wells | OL | IL | 5.3 | 3 | NR |
| Justin DuVernois | K | FL | NR | 2 | 70 |
| Henry Dickinson | LB | TN | NR | 2 | NR |
No change.
| #12 Penn State - 6 Commits | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Position | State | Rivals | Scout | ESPN |
| Shawn Oakman | DE | PA | 5.8 | 4 | 77 |
| Angelo Mangiro | OL | NJ | 5.7 | 4 | 81 |
| Jordan Kerner | DE | PA | 5.5 | 3 | 77 |
| Kyle Carter | TE | DE | 5.4 | 3 | 76 |
| Matt Zanalleto | WR | VA | 5.3 | NR | NR |
| Anthony Alosi | OL | NJ | NR | NR | 70 |
Low-rated WR Matt Zanellato picks PSU.
| #13 Purdue - 10 Commits | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Position | State | Rivals | Scout | ESPN |
| Taylor Richards | CB | FL | 5.6 | 2 | 77 |
| Russell Bellomy | QB | TX | 5.5 | 3 | 78 |
| Robert Kugler | TE | PA | 5.5 | 3 | 78 |
| Brandon Cottom | LB | PA | 5.5 | 3 | 76 |
| Akeem Hunt | RB | GA | 5.5 | 3 | 75 |
| Michael Rouse | DT | IL | 5.5 | 2 | 73 |
| AJ King | WR | FL | 5.5 | NR | 75 |
| Shane Mikesky | WR | IN | 5.5 | NR | NR |
| Doug Gentry | RB | TX | 5.5 | NR | NR |
| Randy Gregory | DE | IN | NR | 2 | NR |
The Boilermakers are right on Penn State's heels, but a trio of unranked commits to each of Scout and ESPN is holding them back.
November 28th, 2010 at 6:25 PM ^
but how do you compute the overall "rank" ?
November 29th, 2010 at 1:25 AM ^
... I was wondering the same thing
November 29th, 2010 at 11:57 AM ^
Basically a power ranking. Whose class seems better.
November 28th, 2010 at 6:52 PM ^
I don't understand how ESPN can have a guy like Dee Hart an 80, while Rivals will likely bump him up to their highest ranking before signing day. It doesn't matter but I just don't see why there's such a vast difference.
November 28th, 2010 at 7:10 PM ^
the rankings are determined by humans.
November 28th, 2010 at 7:40 PM ^
It is nice to finally be ahead of MSU, that puts us only behind tOSU and Nebraska in the BT. RR is doing a good job recruiting considering the circumstances. And PSU with only 6 recruits? And that is after JoePa said he is returning.
November 28th, 2010 at 8:21 PM ^
We need much better defensive recruits. We need the big guys to play competetively in the B10.
Also please please offer a good kicker and bring him on board. We lost maybe 30 points this season due to place kicking alone.
November 28th, 2010 at 8:41 PM ^
No pressure kicking at Boise now a days....
November 28th, 2010 at 9:55 PM ^
Who heads up the Defensive recruiting efforts? Is it the position coaches or Gerg? If Gerg I think I may have figured out why we are lagging in picking up the highly ranked recruits on that side of the ball.
November 28th, 2010 at 10:31 PM ^
Is our defensive recruiting really that bad this year? I mean, 4 of our top 7 recruits are on defense, and of the guys left who are high on us, most are on defense as well - Zettel, Frost (well, maybe), Walls, Countess, Cooper. Guys like Desmond Morgan and others are still on our radar on defense as well, not to mention some of the long shots like Jernigan, HaHa or Karlos Williams.
Anyone who says our defensive recruiting is bad this year might as well say our recruiting overall is bad because we're doing equally well on both sides of the ball.
November 29th, 2010 at 12:22 AM ^
Only 6 recruits thus far for the Lions. Paterno IS coming back, right? What gives?
And the Hoosiers - 21 freaking recruits landed, and Glass pulls the plug (and the rug) out on Bill Lynch. I wonder how many will hit the bricks for other offers or be scavenged?
November 29th, 2010 at 10:25 AM ^
Could the fact that JoePa is coming back be a problem for PSU? I would imagine that recruits would be constantly left guessing if NEXT year is the year JoePa finally retires. The fact that he's stated he'll be back another year doesn't lend itself to much long-term stability. It seems extremely likely that anyone who commits in this class WILL be going through a coaching change. That might be as much of a deterrent as anything.
November 29th, 2010 at 12:24 AM ^
once posted that GERG doesn't do much recruiting, doesn't travel, doesn't recruit aside from meeting with prospects on official visits, etc.
Surprising and disappointing if true.
I think GERG is more of an x's and o's, film junkie, then an outgoing, relationship building recruiter.
November 29th, 2010 at 10:52 AM ^
I've heard the same thing. It would be nice if our next DC could do both.
November 30th, 2010 at 1:41 AM ^
Do you think the "controversy" about RR possibly/unlikely being cashiered is stopping recruits ? If so then shouldn't Brandon tell us he's staying ?
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