Many of the best stories involving the Big Ten and recruiting rankings in recent years have centered on how teams or players defied the star system.
There were former walk-ons like Jack Conklin and Carl Nassib who went on to become All-Americans, or lightly recruited guys like J.J. Watt and Darqueze Dennard who blossomed into superstars. Programs like Wisconsin and Iowa earn praise for developing overlooked prospects into all-conference gems while consistently outperforming the recruiting gurus' expectations. Michigan State built a powerhouse by smartly evaluating and then coaching up two- and three-star recruits into studs, though the Spartans have spent more time in the blue-chip waters lately.