The Big Ten’s football season is officially over, and it definitely closed with more of a whimper than a bang. After a strong start to the bowl season, Michigan State, Northwestern, and Iowa were all embarrassed in high profile bowl games. Now the conference can look towards the offseason, where many recruiting battles are still out there to be won. Here is the Big Ten’s Recruiting Status Report heading into the last 30 days of the 2016 recruiting cycle.
Big Ten Recruiting Status Report
SITTING PRETTY
Michigan
Remember when Jim Harbaugh was struggling mightily to fill out his class during the 2015 cycle? Well he hasn’t had any problem this year, as the Wolverines hold 23 commitments and already have six members of the class enrolled for the spring. While there are several stars to choose from, the headliners of this class have got to be the four-man haul Michigan brought in at offensive line. Ben Bredeson, Devery Hamilton, Michael Onwenu, and Erik Swenson were all highly coveted recruits that choose to join the Maize and Blue. Harbaugh is far from finished this year, as the Wolverines are set to host nine recruits during the month of January.
Star of the Class: offensive line (Bredeson, Hamilton, Onwenu, Swenson)
Sleeper: strong safety Josh Metellus
Dream Recruit: outside linebacker Khaleke Hudson
Ohio State
Urban Meyer and his Buckeyes fell just short of their national championship goals, finishing the season 12-1 but failing to qualify for the college football playoff. Now Meyer must look towards a future without as many as 14 players that will be moving from Columbus to the NFL. Don’t feel too bad for the Buckeyes though, as they have once again acquired a top five class heading into the final month. The star of Ohio State’s 18 man class is Nick Bosa, a five-star defensive end and younger brother to current Ohio State star Joey Bosa. The Buckeyes also reinforced their tight end position this cycle, acquiring commitments from three of the best tight ends in the country in Luke Farrell, Jake Hausmann, and Kierre Hawkins. Heading into the final month, Ohio State is still looking to add a couple more recruits, most notably Oklahoma defensive tackle commit Chris Daniels and the safety tandem of Jordan Fuller and Damar Hamlin.
Star of the Class: defensive end Nick Bosa
Sleeper: outside linebacker Tuf Borland
Dream Recruit: defensive tackle Chris Daniels
Wisconsin
Paul Chryst did an amazing job of squeezing nine wins out of a team that was without their best running back while also having to start four redshirt freshmen on the offensive line due to injuries. Now the Badgers can look forward to a bright future under Chryst due to their 22 commitments with a month left till signing day. The star of the class is most likely running back/wide receiver AJ Taylor from Kansas City, as the 5’11” speed demon gives Wisconsin speed that it was missing this season. Wisconsin is pretty much full at this point, but they are still chasing one more big time recruit, wide receiver and Minnesota commit Dredrick Snelson will be visiting Wisconsin the week before signing day.
Star of the Class: running back/wide receiver A.J. Taylor
Sleeper: quarterback Kare’ Lyles
Dream Recruit: wide receiver Dredrick Snelson
Iowa
The Hawkeyes season can be divided into two parts. The first part was a glorious run to 12-0 where Iowa played mistake free football on their way to the number four national ranking. The other part was the 0-2 finish to the season where the Hawkeyes had their hearts broken by Michigan State and then had their hearts ripped out in a demoralizing blowout loss to Stanford. The Iowa staff has done a solid job of capitalizing on their surprise season, acquiring 24 commitments with just a month remaining in the recruiting cycle. It is a very balanced class so its difficult to choose a headliner, but if I had to pick one it would probably be cornerback Emmanuel Rugamba from Naperville, Illinois. With their class almost completely full, Iowa can now focus the majority of their attention on reeling talented tackle prospects Matt Farniok and Alaric Jackson.
Star of the Class: cornerback Emmanuel Rugamba
Sleeper: tight end Shaun Beyer
Dream Recruit: offensive tackle Matt Farniok
DOING PRETTY GOOD
Penn State
James Franklin’s second season at Penn State wasn’t exactly smooth sailing, as an awful offensive line nearly led to Christian Hackenburg’s decapitation during the season. Despite all their issues, the Nittany Lions still reached seven wins and can now look forward to the recruiting season. Penn State currently has 19 commitments with a month till signing day, with the headliner being Pittsburgh running back Miles Sanders. The Nittany Lions also reinforced the offensive line, receiving four commitments in the trenches. Now Penn State will look to finish the season strong by bringing a pair of linebackers in Khaleke Hudson and Brendan Ferns.
Star of the Class: running back Miles Sanders
Sleeper: outside linebacker Shaka Toney
Dream Recruit: inside linebacker Brendan Ferns
Michigan State
The Spartans season of destiny certainly didn’t end the way they wanted it to, as Alabama crushed MSU 38-0 in the Cotton Bowl. Now Dantonio and company need to regroup and replace one of the best senior classes in school history. The Spartans currently hold 18 commitments with a month until signing day, with the headliner being stud defensive end Josh King from Darien, Illinois. Michigan State still has multiple openings in their class, and they are trying to give King a sidekick in current Penn State commit Karamo Dioubate, who is scheduled to visit East Lansing on January 22nd.
Star of the Class: defensive end Josh King
Sleeper: center Matt Allen
Dream Recruits: defensive end Karamo Dioubate
Minnesota
The Golden Gophers will have to move forward in the future without beloved head coach Jerry Kill, who retired from football due to health concerns. Kill entrusted his team with his longtime right hand man Tracy Claeys, who now must find a way to get the Gophers over the hump and into the Big Ten title game. The Gophers currently have 21 commitments, with seven already being enrolled for spring classes. The star of the class is without a doubt outside linebacker Carter Coughlin, a local product who stuck with the Gophers despite offers from Ohio State and Oregon. Now Minnesota just needs to worry about protecting their commitments, as several conference foes are trying to swipe Minnesota’s commitments, most notably wide receiver Dredrick Snelson.
Star of the class: outside linebacker Carter Coughlin
Sleeper: defensive end Taiyon Devers
Dream Recruit: running back Kobe McCray
Northwestern
Pat Fitzgerald and his Wildcats proved that their two 5-7 season were just a mirage, as they rode the legs of Justin Jackson and a tremendous defense to a resurgent 10-3 season. Now the Wildcats are looking to build on their success, as they currently hold 20 commitments heading into the final month of recruiting. The star of the class is cornerback Roderick Campbell, a St. Louis native that gives Northwestern a replacement for Nick VanHoose. Heading into the final month, Fitzgerald will be looking to add another receiver to the fold, as they are attempting to flip Michigan wide receiver commit Nate Johnson on the final weekend.
Star of the Class: cornerback Roderick Campbell
Sleeper: quarterback Aidan Smith
Dream Recruit: wide receiver Nate Johnson
HAS SOME WORK TO DO
Maryland
2015 was a rough year for the Terrapins, as their coach was sort of fired midway through the season, then given a vote of confidence, and then actually fired all in the span of 10 days. The Terps are hoping for a brighter future under new head coach D.J. Durkin, but they have a lot of ground to make up in January. Maryland currently holds just 14 commitments and their most important recruit, quarterback Dwayne Haskins Jr., is being pressed hard by Ohio State to flip to the Buckeyes. Maryland needs to keep Haskins so that he and five-star linebacker Keandre Jones can serve as their cornerstones in the rebuild. Durkin and his staff currently have just two prospects scheduled to visit this month, though wide receiver Dredrick Snelson is a very high quality prospect and will be visiting on the 22nd.
Star of the Class: middle linebacker Keandre Jones
Sleeper: offensive tackle Brian Plummer
Dream Recruits: Keeping quarterback Dwayne Haskins Jr., wide receiver Dredrick Snelson
Nebraska
Mike Riley and the Cornhuskers finished a bizarre season on a high note, as they rode a crushing ground attack to a 37-29 upset of UCLA in the Foster Farms Bowl. Now Nebraska needs to get to work filling out their class, as they currently have just 15 commitments in a class that they want to have filled with 27 players. The star of the class is guard John Raridon, the top interior linemen recruit in the Midwest who has been committed to the Huskers since September 2014. Nebraska looks poised for a big finish to their class, as they are hosting as many as ten official and unofficial visitors in the 22nd. This is a team that could shock some people and end up in the top 20 by February 5th.
Star of the Class: offensive guard John Raridon
Sleeper: wide receiver Derrion Grim
Dream Recruits: offensive tackle Matt Farniok, wide receiver Desmond Fitzpatrick
Illinois
Bill Cubit is now officially the head coach of the Illinois Fighting Illini, as he did an admirable job of keeping the team together in 2015 after the embarrassing scandal surrounding former coach Tim Beckman. The Illini currently hold 18 commitments in their class, with the star of the class being running back Kentrail Moran from O’Fallon, Illinois. Illinois is set to host four official visitors this month, with none being as important as middle linebacker recruit Sam Brodner, who is deciding between Illinois and Syracuse.
Star of the Class: running back Kentrail Moran
Sleeper: tight end Griffin Palmer
Dream Recruit: middle linebacker Sam Brodner
Rutgers
The Scarlet Knights had a rough 2015, as coach Kyle Flood was suspended for grade tampering early in the season and was eventually fired after Rutgers stumbled to a 4-8 season. New coach Chris Ash has a ton of work to do to salvage Rutgers recruiting class, as the Scarlet Knights currently hold just 13 commitments. The star of the class is strong safety Patrice Rene, but his commitment may be in question, as he is scheduled to visit North Carolina on the 15th. Expect Rutgers to scour the lesser known recruits in the northeast and in Florida in order to get their class up to 20+ recruits.
Star of the Class: strong safety Patrice Rene
Sleeper: cornerback Damon Hayes
Dream Recruit: outside linebacker Dymelle Parker
Purdue
Darrell Hazell’s seat has got to be scalding hot in East Lafayette, as the Boilermakers have won just 6 games during his three years at the helm. Hazell will have to look to recruiting to help solve Purdue’s issues, but he has some work to do this January. Purdue currently has 15 commits in their class, with the star being offensive tackle Luke Campbell from Lewis Center, Ohio. Expect Purdue to scour the lower profile prospects in Texas and Florida to get their class up to 25 by February 5th.
Star of the Class: offensive tackle Luke Campbell
Sleeper: wide receiver Benaiah Franklin
Dream Recruit: offensive tackle Sean Foster
Indiana
The Hoosiers finally made it to a bowl game and probably saved head coach Kevin Wilson’s job in the process, but now Indiana has to pretty much start over with quarterback Nate Sudfield, running back Jordan Howard, and left tackle Jason Spriggs all heading to the NFL. Wilson has some serious work to do to fill out their class, as they currently hold just 12 commits with a month to go. The star of the class is Richard Lagow, a junior college transfer who will get the first crack at replacing Nate Sudfield at QB. Indiana may be poised for a big finish, as the Hoosiers will be hosting 13 recruits during the month of January, including Iowa running back commit Toks Akinribade.
Star of the Class: quarterback Richard Lagow
Sleeper: wide receiver Phil Benker
Dream Recruit: running back Toks Akinribade
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