We've still got months to go until next year's National Signing Day, but some clear leaders have emerged in the Big Ten when it comes to targeting and landing the best college football prospects the nation has to offer. Here's the 5 Best Big Ten Football 2016 Recruiting Classes (So Far).
5. Nebraska Cornhuskers
5-Stars: 0
4-Stars: 2
3-Stars: 13
This is a workmanlike haul so far for new Huskers head coach Mike Riley, built on high-upside three-star commits who could easily hit the four-star mark with stellar senior seasons. Keep an eye out for pro-style quarterback Patrick O'Brien. He's been undersold by scouts throughout the recruiting process, but he's got the size (6-4, 225 lbs) and developing arm/touch to be a breakout star at the next level.
4. Michigan State Spartans
5-Stars: 0
4-Stars: 6
3-Stars: 14
Lost in the Michigan football hype this offseason are the Spartans who simply continue to kill the recruiting trail in the Midwest and Northeast while everyone is distracted. Mark Dantonio's 2016 recruiting class is a borderline top-ten overall haul so far, with defensive ends Josh King and Auston Robertson primed to be one of the most dominant edge-rushing tandems the Big Ten has seen in awhile.
3. Michigan Wolverines
5-Stars: 0
4-Stars: 9
3-Stars: 13
The Jim Harbaugh era is already paying dividends for the Wolverines. The program's combined 22 three- and four-star commits are 8 more than the program picked up in 2015 and 7 more than they picked up in 2013. The scary part is we still have months to go. While Michigan could lose some of their current crop before than, we expect the influx of blue-chippers to more than offset that for what will likely be a top-ten (or five) class altogether.
2. Penn State Nittany Lions
5-Stars: 0
4-Stars: 10
3-Stars: 9
James Franklin's second full recruiting class with Penn State stands to be the one that pushes Penn State back into the upper echelon of national college football powers. It's criminal that four-star RB Miles Sanders doesn't have five stars next to his name because we've got a sneaking suspicion that he'll be a Heisman candidate wowing the Happy Valley faithful before long.
1. Ohio State Buckeyes
5-Stars: 1
4-Stars: 14
3-Stars: 4
Was there any doubt? The defending national champions are the only Big Ten school with a consensus five-star commitment, and he just happens to be the brother of the current roster's best defensive player (DE Nick Bosa, brother of Joey). In addition, Ohio State is current outdistancing Penn State with four more four-star pickups -- a wide array of impact skill-position talents (WR Austin Mack, QB Tristen Wallace) and defensive standouts (DE Jonathon Cooper, OLB Tuf Borland) from around the nation.
The rich keep getting richer.
Back to the Big Ten Newsfeed