A retrospective look at the 2008 recruiting class

A retrospective look at the 2008 recruiting class from the Houston Chronicle:

Five years ago this week, college football programs across the country thought they were bringing in the next crop of stars.

Some did - Stanford found its quarterback in Stratford's Andrew Luck, while Copperas Cove's Robert Griffin III, who went second in the 2012 NFL draft behind Luck, signed with Baylor.

Others didn't - Jermie Calhoun was Texas' No. 2-ranked recruit and signed with Oklahoma, where he saw limited time before transferring to Division II Angelo State.

With national signing day Wednesday, here is a look back at the Class of 2008:

National perspective

Terrelle Pryor was the nation's top recruit, according to Rivals.com, drawing comparisons to Vince Young, who led Texas to a national championship in 2005. The ESPN 150 gave its top spot to dynamic defensive end Da'Quan Bowers. Both reached the NFL in 2011 - Bowers as a second-round pick and Pryor in the supplemental draft after a scandal at Ohio State.

Hits

Everyone who saw Luck in high school knew he was special. Rivals.com ranked him as the sixth-best quarterback in the country. One recruit the 2012 NFL draft's No. 1 pick trailed was Dayne Crist, who transferred to Kansas after losing his starting job at Notre Dame. Julio Jones and A.J. Green were the top two recruits at wide receiver. Both excelled in college and are doing the same as pros.

Misses

Arthur Brown, No. 6 in the ESPN 150, signed with Miami and was thought to be the next great Hurricanes linebacker. Two disappointing seasons later, he transferred to Kansas State. Closer to home, Sam McGuffie became a YouTube sensation while staring at Cy-Fair but never lived up to the hype. After playing as a freshman at Michigan, he transferred to Rice.

Surprises

The state of Texas produced three five-star recruits, according to Rivals.com, and 42 more with four stars. But those who received "only" three stars included Emmanuel Acho, Seth Doege, Trent Hunter, Jacquizz Rodgers and Kendall Wright. Hunter quickly became a mainstay in Texas A&M's secondary, while Wright teamed with RG3 in leading Baylor to a 10-win season in 2011.

Local

Darron Thomas didn't follow Luck and Griffin's success in the NFL, but the former Aldine star started two seasons at Oregon, helping lead the Ducks to the 2011 BCS title game and 2012 Rose Bowl. Darryl Stonum starred at Dulles before signing with Michigan. Two seasons after setting a program record for most kickoff return yards in a season (2009), he was suspended and eventually ended up at Baylor.

Read more: http://www.houstonchronicle.com/sports/article/Luck-RG3-made-class-of-20...