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Ohio State Football: Big Ten East passes SEC West in recruiting?

By Charlie Lockhart

TUSCALOOSA, AL - OCTOBER 14: Head coach Nick Saban of the Alabama Crimson Tide reacts during the game against the Arkansas Razorbacks at Bryant-Denny Stadium on October 14, 2017 in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
TUSCALOOSA, AL - OCTOBER 14: Head coach Nick Saban of the Alabama Crimson Tide reacts during the game against the Arkansas Razorbacks at Bryant-Denny Stadium on October 14, 2017 in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images) /
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Big Ten East schools are recruiting well with Ohio State and Penn State leading the way.

It was no surprise when the Ohio State recruiting class was ranked as high as it was after the early signing period began. However, it may have come as a surprise to some that other Big Ten East teams have recruited as well as they have.

In fact, they compare favorably with teams from the SEC West in the rankings. That’s not an easy task with so many highly rated high school players in the south.

While many pundits have acknowledged the quality of football played in the Big Ten East is among the best in the country, it was thought most teams in the division couldn’t keep up on the recruiting trail with the SEC West. It appears they may have this year.  

Let’s take a look at the Big Ten East and their 247Sports Composite rankings at the moment compared to the final rankings in 2017.

  • 2)  Ohio State:  Nothing has changed as Urban Meyer seems to own this position.
  • 4)  Penn State:  James Franklin’s class has moved up 11 spots after another outstanding season.
  • 12)  Michigan:  No top 5 ranking so far this year, an 8-4 record and another loss to Ohio State the reason?
  • 19)  Maryland:  18 last year so D.J. Durkin is rolling on the east coast.
  • 24)  Michigan State:  Up from No. 36, Mark Dantonio once again has one of the most underrated classes in the country with 9 Ohio recruits. Born and raised in the “Buckeye state”, he knows where to look for undervalued football players.
  • 42)  Rutgers:  Tied with last year’s rankings but that’s not bad for head coach Chris Ash. Schools like Ohio State, Michigan and Alabama raid New Jersey for top-flight recruits. If the Scarlet Knights continue to improve, expect their recruiting rankings to do so as well.
  • 44)  Indiana:  This blew me away with the Hoosiers moving up 18 spots. I passed them over and went to the second 50 teams not thinking Indiana was ranked that high. I guess recruits believe head coach Tom Allen has the Hoosiers heading in the right direction.

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Now for a look at the current standings of SEC West Division teams:

  •   6)  Alabama
  • 10)  Auburn
  • 16)  LSU
  • 21)  Mississippi State
  • 27)  Texas A&M
  • 36)  Ole Miss
  • 69)  Arkansas

Not only does the Big Ten East have two schools ranked in the top four but lead in team average ranking over the SEC West 21 to 26.4..

There is still a long time before the final signing day in February so rankings will change. In fact, they have changed some since I began writing this article.

However the final rankings shake out, it appears the teams in the division can now compete with the best, on the recruiting trail as well as on the football field.

Next: Predictions for Big Ten bowl games

Evidently when a team performs well they can attract even more talented players to their program whatever region of the country they play in. The schools in the Big Ten East are proving that to be the case.

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