Big Ten Recruiting Rankings 4-30-13
At long last, ESPN released their 2014 rankings, which means I no longer have an excuse to not put this together. With a new recruiting cycle comes some changes to the rankings:
- Between the addition of two teams (Rutgers and Maryland) to these rankings in the past year, the Irish falling off the schedule after 2014, and reading the same damn comment every week, it's settled... to hell with Notre Dame.
- Gone is the rudimentary points system. In its place, I'm using the 247 Composite Rankings, which combines data from all four recruiting services into, well, composite rankings. This not only gives an unbiased and comprehensive overview of each team's standing in the conference, but by adding the national ranking we get an idea of where the teams stand in the bigger picture and where the largest gaps are between teams in the conference.
- Using the 247 Composite Rankings again, I've added columns in the top table for the number of five-, four-, and three-star prospects in each team's class.
If you've got any suggestions, please leave a comment or send me an email. Without further ado...
Chart? Chart:
Big Ten+ Recruiting Class Rankings | ||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
247 Comp. Rank (Ovr) | School | # Commits | 5* | 4* | 3* | Rivals Avg | Scout Avg | 24/7 Avg | ESPN Avg | Avg Avg^ |
1 (6) | Michigan | 8 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 3.50 | 3.50 | 3.75 | 3.75 | 3.63 |
2 (9) | Ohio State | 7 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 3.43 | 3.71 | 3.86 | 3.43 | 3.61 |
3 (18) | Rutgers | 8 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 2.63 | 2.63 | 2.88 | 2.50 | 2.66 |
4 (19) | Penn State | 6 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 3.17 | 3.33 | 3.33 | 3.33 | 3.29 |
5 (20) | Michigan State | 6 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 3.17 | 3.33 | 3.50 | 3.00 | 3.25 |
6 (25) | Wisconsin | 4 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 3.50 | 4.00 | 3.75 | 3.50 | 3.69 |
7 (30) | Northwestern | 5 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 3.00 | 2.80 | 3.40 | 2.60 | 2.95 |
8 (39) | Iowa | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3.33 | 3.00 | 3.67 | 3.33 | 3.33 |
9 (46) | Minnesota | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3.00 | 3.00 | 3.33 | 2.33 | 2.92 |
10 (48) | Illinois | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3.00 | 3.00 | 3.00 | 2.67 | 2.92 |
11 (62) | Maryland | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3.50 | 3.00 | 3.00 | 2.50 | 3.00 |
12 (72) | Nebraska | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3.00 | 3.00 | 3.00 | 2.00 | 2.75 |
13 (74) | Purdue | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2.00 | 2.00 | 3.00 | 3.00 | 2.50 |
14 (NR) | Indiana | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
^The average of the average rankings of the four recruiting services (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.
NOTE: Unranked recruits are counted as two-star players.
On to the full data after the jump.
#1 Michigan - 8 Commits | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Name | Position | State | Rivals | Scout | 24/7 | ESPN |
Mason Cole | OL | FL | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
Michael Ferns | LB | OH | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
Drake Harris | WR | MI | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
Bryan Mone | DT | UT | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
Ian Bunting | TE | IL | 3 | 3 | 4 | 4 |
Juwann Bushell-Beatty | OT | NJ | 3 | 3 | 4 | 4 |
Wilton Speight | QB | VA | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 |
Maurice Ways | WR | MI | 3 | 3 | 3 | NR |
Michigan debuts at the top after picking up three commits in the span of a week. With Drake Harris on the verge of five-star status on a couple of the sites and guys like Bunting, Bushell-Beatty, and Ways expected to get a bump in future rankings, their already-impressive star average (3.63) may go up soon.
#2 Ohio State - 7 Commits | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Name | Position | State | Rivals | Scout | 24/7 | ESPN |
Kyle Berger | LB | OH | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
Damon Webb | CB | MI | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
Kyle Trout | OL | OH | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 |
Parris Campbell | RB | OH | 3 | 4 | 4 | 3 |
Sam Hubbard | LB | OH | 3 | 4 | 4 | 3 |
Marcelys Jones | OL | OH | 3 | 3 | 4 | 3 |
Dylan Thompson | DE | IL | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 |
Interesting to note, considering the conversation surrounding both programs' recruiting strategy in the last year, that five of OSU's seven commits come from Ohio, while Michigan's eight commits hail from seven different states.
#3 Rutgers - 8 Commits | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Name | Position | State | Rivals | Scout | 24/7 | ESPN |
Joshua Hicks | RB | FL | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
Justin Nelson | LB | NJ | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
Sidney Gopre | LB | NJ | 3 | 3 | 3 | NR |
David Njoku | WR | NJ | 3 | 3 | 3 | NR |
Tyler Wiegers | QB | MI | 3 | 3 | 3 | NR |
Zack Heeman | OL | NJ | NR | NR | 3 | 3 |
Jacquis Webb | OL | NY | NR | NR | 3 | NR |
Saquan Hampton | S | NJ | NR | NR | 2 | 3 |
As usual, Rutgers is building a solid but unspectacular class around local talent. Detroit Country Day QB Tyler Wiegers (you may know him as "hey, who's that guy throwing to Moe Ways?") could be an early sleeper pickup for them.
#4 Penn State - 6 Commits | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Name | Position | State | Rivals | Scout | 24/7 | ESPN |
Chris Godwin | WR | DE | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
Troy Apke | WR | PA | 3 | 4 | 3 | NR |
De'Andre Thompkins | WR | NC | 3 | 3 | 4 | 4 |
Troy Reeder | LB | DE | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 |
Mark Allen | RB | MD | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
Nick Scott | WR | VA | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
Ditto for Penn State, though they should be able pack a little more quality into a smaller class.
#5 Michigan State - 6 Commits | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Name | Position | State | Rivals | Scout | 24/7 | ESPN |
Deon Drake | LB | MI | 4 | 3 | 4 | 3 |
Chris Durkin | QB | OH | 3 | 4 | 4 | 3 |
Byron Bullough | LB | MI | 3 | 4 | 3 | 4 |
Enoch Smith Jr. | DT | IL | 3 | 3 | 4 | 3 |
Chase Gianacakos | OL | IL | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
Brian Allen | OL | IL | 3 | 3 | 3 | NR |
MSU is quietly setting the foundation for a decent class, and could get a boost from four-star Southfield DE Lawrence Marshall, who may decide soon and appears ticketed for East Lansing if he does.
#6 Wisconsin - 4 Commits | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Name | Position | State | Rivals | Scout | 24/7 | ESPN |
Craig Evans | DT | WI | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
Jaden Gault | OL | WI | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
George Panos | OL | WI | 3 | 4 | 4 | 3 |
Conor Sheehy | DE | WI | 3 | 4 | 3 | 3 |
Clearly, Gary Anderson's staff has focused first and foremost on locking up top in-state talent, and in that regard they've done quite well.
#7 Northwestern - 5 Commits | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Name | Position | State | Rivals | Scout | 24/7 | ESPN |
Clayton Thorson | QB | IL | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 |
Jordan Thomas | S | TX | 3 | 3 | 4 | 3 |
Cameron Queiro | LB | NJ | 3 | 3 | 3 | NR |
Solomon Vault | RB | MD | 3 | NR | 3 | NR |
Ben Oxley | OL | OH | NR | 3 | 3 | NR |
After getting four-star QB Matt Alviti in the 2013 class, Northwestern already has a four-star signal-caller in place for 2014 in Clayton Thorson.
#8 Iowa - 3 Commits | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Name | Position | State | Rivals | Scout | 24/7 | ESPN |
Ross Pierschbacher | OL | IA | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
Jay Scheel | WR | IA | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 |
Lucas LeGrand | OL | IA | NR | NR | 3 | NR |
Like Wisconsin, except not as good.
#9 Minnesota - 3 Commits | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Name | Position | State | Rivals | Scout | 24/7 | ESPN |
Jeff Jones | RB | MN | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 |
Dimonic McKinzy | QB | KS | 3 | 3 | 3 | NR |
Steven Richardson | DT | IL | NR | NR | 3 | NR |
Dimonic McKinzy is your early frontrunner for Big Ten Recruit Name of the Year.
#10 Illinois - 3 Commits | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Name | Position | State | Rivals | Scout | 24/7 | ESPN |
Nick Allegretti | OL | IL | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
Tito Odenigbo | DE | OH | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
Mike Dudek | WR | IL | 3 | 3 | 3 | NR |
Not a particularly strong start for Illinois, perhaps because there were legitimate calls for Tim Beckman's job after his disastrous 2-10 first season in Champaign.
#11 Maryland - 2 Commits | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Name | Position | State | Rivals | Scout | 24/7 | ESPN |
William Ulmer | QB | DC | 4 | 3 | 4 | 2 |
Jared Cohen | OL | MD | 3 | 3 | 2 | 3 |
Slow start, but there's plenty of talent in the surrounding area to fill out a class.
#12 Nebraska - 1 Commit | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Name | Position | State | Rivals | Scout | 24/7 | ESPN |
Luke Gifford | S | NE | 3 | 3 | 3 | NR |
Nebraska tends to make a late push in recruiting, and they'll undoubtedly move up from here over time.
#13 Purdue - 1 Commit | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Name | Position | State | Rivals | Scout | 24/7 | ESPN |
Brandon Garner | LB | TX | 2 | NR | 3 | 3 |
Not a surprise that Purdue has a lone commit considering (1) they have a new coach and (2) it's Purdue.
#14 Indiana - 0 Commits
:-(
I'm telling you, everyone pisses all over Rutgers but they could be a sleeping giant. Look for them to start a decent interesting rivalry with Penn State. And if I'm Sparty, I would be as worried about them as I would be with Michigan/OSU/PSU.
If I had to guess who I thought would win more Big Ten games over the next 5 years between Rutgers and MSU, I'd pick Rutgers. Not by a lot, but by some.
I consider Rutgers & MSU to be twins seperated at birth.
It will be interesting to see how their "relationship" evolves.
Indiana pretty much sucks.
jeebus the big ten cant recruit for shit. outside about 3-4 teams.
I think it's like that in most conferences.
How do you calculate how many 3, 4, and 5 star recruits a school has in the composite box up top?
Up top in the composite box with all the schools, it indicates that MSU has no 4 star recruits but then when MSU's recruits are listed individually 4 of their players have a 4th star from at least one service.
With OSU, in the composite box up top they are listed as having five 4 star recruits but then down below all 7 of their recruits have at least one 4th star from one of the servces.
Go to the 24/7 website and look at any player's ranking. They get a star ranking frm 24/7 as well as a composite. Ace is using the composite which is calculated based on the 4 major recruiting sites.
I suspect that since Michigan's recruiting class is going to be smaller this year (out of necessity) that it might slip in the national and conference rankings if we fail to pull in both Da'Shawn Hand and Jabrill Peppers. Now if everything goes right with those guys we could still be looking at a top 5 class even with only 15-16 members.
It is interesting to see how well Michigan is recruiting across such a wide area while Ohio has been focusing at home. I'm not sure that it really speaks to the school's recruiting strategies as much as it speaks to the level of talent Michigan high school football produces on a year-by-year basis when compared with Ohio. Michigan has the additional thorn of another Big Ten school only a few dozen miles up I-96... Not that State has managed to pull in very many contested recruits, but I wouldn't discount them as a reason for Michigan's national focus.
As for the recruiting class itself, I really like how there's definite pursuit of potential rather than "sure things". Ian Bunting and Juwann Bushell-Beatty are those kinds of developmental risks that have all the tools to be All-Americans, but need time and coaching to really shine. I love that Michigan is finally deep enough at some positions (like TE and OL) to grab some of these guys. The payoff down the road could be huge.
When the "project" players are 4-stars then you know you are doing something right.
It blows my mind that Rutgers is a pretty mediocre outfit that could very well end up with the 4th or 5th-best recruiting class this year. I'm happy I root for one of the top programs in this conference, because by gawd I'd be annoyed by the ineptitude of my staff if I was Wisconsin, Illinois, or Iowa.
It makes sense considering they are the 11th largest state and don't have much competition for in-state talent. I know NJ is not a big football state, but they have a pretty impressive list of players from the state.
Plus they don't have much competition for NY's recruits either. They amazing thing isn't that Rutgers is recruiting so well the past decade, it's why they weren't able to for the 7 decades before that.
I don't really follow recruiting and was wondering what the pace of commits is this year vs. in years past - and if there is any difference year to year.
Put differently, I am curious if more or less of the top talent is commited at this point in the recruiting cycle than in previous years.
about Rutgers or Maryland football recruiting and I'm not about to start.
To hell with Rutgers and Maryland!!!
Totally, I did not care about Rutgers recruiting 5 years ago. Or Maryland. But then there was this thing that happened where we will be playing them every year. So now I care.
so here are the memes this year
1. Why no Notre Dame?
2. Why no Brady Pallante?
3. Ace didn't make these rankings! They are 247 composite!!
4. Indiana= :(
Everyone got it? Good
Once mid-season hits Indiana will start racking up recruits, like last year IIRC, and that meme will disappear. That means there are only 6 months or so to beat it to death.
Indiana finished in the top half of the conference last year, if I'm not mistaken.
Thanks for doing your job ACE.
PS. Your job is awesome. Love it everyday.
I couldn't help but laugh out loud with the frowny face under Indiana. Also, you think Penn State has enough WRs???
I wonder how many of those guys are being recruited as WRs. Lots of times WR type guys could also be DBs or RBs, and although sometimes the sites will then list those guys as ATH, they don't always.
Rutgers had 7 NFL draft choices and seems to generally get 3 star players. Does this mean that MSU has been replaced as the ultimate power in talent development? Do the weeds in New Jersey have enough room for Dantonio to lay in them for an opportune moment or are they too full of mafia related corpses? Would corpses stop Dantonio from said laying?
for eliminating the Fighting Irish from your Big Ten rankings. They now reside in another conference (sort of) with their own schedule, which soon will not include the Wolverines. Notre Dame is totally irrelevant to any conference rankings you'd want to post.
Re: Big Ten Recruit Name of the Year...I'll see your Dimonic McKinzy and raise you a Tito Odenigbo.
Speight
, Berger , Wiegers , Apke , Ulmer, und mein haupt (main) Mann, Pierschbacher! Geh' Blau!
Quietly hanging out with Sparty, Wisconsin and Iowa.
April 30th, 2013 at 11:13 PM ^
[tired complaint about how you rank recruiting classes]
just a thought. I'll be back to remind you about [tired complaint] again next week
Sorry you have yielded to the persistent carping about ND being included in the recruiting rankings. As an Irish alum, I regularly visit your board as it is consistently updated with insightful writing. No matter our personal feelings, UM & ND are comparable in many ways (admit it, both sets of fans regularly check out each other's teams as a yardstick for performance?). We face each other in football for two more years, recruit the same players (mostly), and have heightened passions whenever we meet in ANY sport. Why then for at least as long as we meet in football, ignore the Irish in recruiting rankings? Just asking.
the kids in this years class are going to have a minimal impact at best in the ND-M series. They will appear in one game and most of them will be redshirting. Also, it's an early season game, so even the kids who don't redshirt are barely going to play much in that game. As of this cycle, I'm past the point of caring about who Notre Dame lands other than in head-to-head battles. A shame though. I enjoyed the Notre Dame rivalry much more than MSU.
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