Big Ten Recruiting Roundup:  Offense

By now, frequent visitors to this site have gotten to know Nebraska’s 2012 recruiting class very well.  But how does it compare to other conference schools?  Sure, you might have seen recruiting rankings that compare NU’s collection of talent to the other Big Ten programs as a whole.  But what do we learn when we get under the hood?

First, here’s a quick overall summary.  Whether your criteria is total points or average stars, Ohio State appeared to bring in the top class, Michigan was second best and Nebraska third according to Rivals.com.  You might get a different feel based on other recruiting sites.   Rivals isn’t as heavily influenced by class size as some other sites nor does it so heavily discount junior college players (which at least for Nebraska under Bo Pelini, have been quality acquisitions), which is why its rankings ring truest.  Michigan State, Wisconsin, Purdue  and Iowa appear to be a tier below the top group and the rest of the classes are bunched along the bottom in terms of average stars.  To get a real feel though, you have to go position by position. 

 

Quarterbacks

Surprisingly, there wasn’t a quarterback that earned a four-star rating from Rivals.com recruited anywhere in the Big Ten.  So NU’s Tommy Armstrong appears as good a prospect as you can find in the conference.  Purdue signed four quarterbacks, perhaps in hopes of moving some to other positions or just in hopes that one strong one emerges.  Minnesota, Iowa, and Indiana similarly nabbed a pair.  If four-star athlete Alonzo Moore were considered a quarterback, then the Huskers would probably have the top class at quarterback.  Three schools (Michigan, Illinois, Northwestern) had no signees at the position.      

 

Running Backs

Mostly three-star running backs were taken with the key exceptions being two four-star runners by Ohio State and one each for Michigan and Iowa.  The Buckeye tandem weigh in at 200 pounds plus and the Hawkeye nearly as big at 195.  But Wolverine back Dennis Norfleet was a smallish 5’7” and 170 lbs.  That may be why they also added a pair of three-star rushers that tipped the scales at 200 pounds or more.  Purdue didn’t sign a running back.

 

Wide Receivers

No team added more than a single four-star recruit at wide receiver.  Ohio State, Penn State, Michigan, Michigan State, and Nebraska all managed to find one.  The Huskers were the only school in that group to take just a single wideout.  Again, if you counted Moore as a receiver, Nebraska would have the most four-star talent at the position.  Only Illinois failed to get at least one pass-catcher with three stars. 

 

Tight End

Nine schools signed three star tight ends.  Indiana also signed a two-star tight end.  The only tight end signed by Illinois was a two-star player.  Wisconsin and Iowa did not sign tight ends.  

 

Offensive Line

This is the area where Michigan and Ohio State really distinguished themselves.  The Buckeyes signed five linemen, and three of them had four-stars.  The Wolverines signed four offensive lineman, one of them had five stars, and two more had four stars.  Iowa, Wisconsin, and Nebraska each managed to add a four-star offensive lineman, among the others that they took.  Five two-star lineman were taken (one each for Purdue, Iowa, Indiana, Northwestern, and Minnesota).

 

Next up will be the defense, along with the athletes and kickers.