Volume 5 brings 17 new players to the Big Ten.
Pope Pulls Players?
April's visit to Italy and Pope Francis brought in plenty of headlines, but more important for Michigan football, Harbaugh received a league leading three commitments in May. Quarterback Joe Milton (.910), and offensive tackles Ryan Hayes (.916) and Jalen Mayfield (.842) helped the Wolverines gain a Big Ten leading 45.55 composite points and climb two spots in the rankings.
Mayfield gave his verbal to Minnesota in February, but decommitted in March shortly after receiving an offer form the Wolverines. To little surprise, Mayfield made the flip this month. Hayes, a Michigan native, is the highest rated verbal in the conference this cycle.
Nebraska and Wisconsin also received three verbals in May. ATH Mario Goodrich (.911) and WR Carmeron Brown (.879) pledged to Mike Riley and the Cornhuskers. The two Missourians were the main cogs in Nebraska's 34.1 point jump. Barret Pickering of Alabama became the first kicker in the Big Ten's 2018 class when he committed on May 2.
Twitter Troubles
Paul Chryst and Wisconsin had an interesting May. The program received pledges from SDE Isaiah Mullens (.857), WDE Cormac Sampson (.848) and QB Chase Wolf (.836). Mullens plays for Harvest Prep and is the cousin of former Ohio State basketball player BJ Mullens. However, the more compelling story revolves around Chase Wolf.
The Cincinnati St. Xavier quarterback committed on May 5 and gave the Badgers two signal-callers for the class of 2018. That situation became more interesting when Ben Bryant (.857) received an offer from Georgia on May 11. Bryant posted the news on the old Twitter That apparently rubbed Chryst the wrong way and Bryant's offer was pulled on May 12.
Leak In The Boat?
PJ Fleck and his staff came out swinging rowing on the recruiting trail. His staff picked up five recruits last cycle and entered May with a conference leading 14 players. This time around, Fleck had two players jump ship and lost 9.55 composite points.
OT Oyenmwen Uzebu (.864) and DT Noah Shannon (.854) were the two players to back out of their commitments. Uzebu joined the '18 class on April 15, but changed his mind on May 14. Shannon's change of heart was even shorter. The DT committed on May 9, but backed out on May 28. The loss of the two linemen dropped the Gophers two spots in the Big Ten recruiting rankings.
Flex Tape might be needed to stop the leak in PJ Fleck's boat.
Tick Tock...
It's just a matter of time before Ohio State takes over the top spot from Penn State, but that time is not now. James Franklin and the Nittany Lions are clinging to a 0.31 point lead. The Buckeyes, who have three fewer players, would be on top today had QB Justin Fields and OT Nanu Asiedu not received massive bumps in their ratings.
Fields, the No. 1 rated dual-threat quarterback, had his rating rise 11 points this month. Asiedu's rating went up 8 points. For those wondering, Dallas Gant's rating did climb 12 points after he joined the Buckeyes on May 16, but that was countered with CB Sevyn Banks ten point drop.
July was when I projected the changing of the guard, but don't be surprised if it happens in June.
This piece has information on:
- 247's B1G Rankings
- Comprehensive Stars Chart
- Top B1G committed players by position and Ohio State's top offers
- Charting the B1G's 2018 average player ratings
- Charting Ohio State's committed players
- Committed players by school
- Open commit/decommit board in the comment section
The 2018 Composite Team Rankings as of 5/31/2017 according to 247
For the fifth consecutive update, Penn State remains the top team in the Big Ten. However, this might be the last time those words are written in 2018. Ohio State is one commit away from becoming king of the hill and June might be the month it happens.
Two Up, Two Down
This cycle, all of the action occurred between spots three through six. Nebraska and Michigan climbed two spots as Northwestern and Minnesota dropped two spots. The Cornhuskers and Wolverines were bolstered with three commits, while the Gophers lost two players.
Iowa, Maryland and Wisconsin did not climb in the rankings, but each team did get double digit gains in the composite ratings. Minnesota and Indiana were the only teams to lose points. The Hoosiers lost ATH Cam Jones and that had a 13+ point hit on their composite rating.
Races To Watch
We are heading toward the halfway point of the race and the overall picture is starting to come into focus. The jockeying for second through fourth should be a fun one to watch. What places will Michigan Nebraska and Penn State finish in? Can Northwestern and Minnesota hold on and finish in the top 8? Will Maryland make a push to land in the top half of the conference?
| B1G RANK | TEAM | COMP. RATING | change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | PENN STATE | 227.83 | + 7.23 |
| 2 | OHIO STATE | 227.52 | + 14.57 |
| 3 (+2) | NEBRASKA | 184.50 | + 34.10 |
| 4 (+2) | MICHIGAN | 179.03 | + 45.55 |
| 5 (-2) | NORTHWESTERN | 154.72 | + 0.35 |
| 6 (-2) | MINNESOTA | 144.85 | - 9.55 |
| 7 | WISCONSIN | 132.31 | + 19.49 |
| B1G AVERAGE | 117.90 | ||
| 8 | MARYLAND | 113.31 | + 23.41 |
| 9 | MICHIGAN STATE | 102.56 | + 18.65 |
| 10 | IOWA | 83.28 | + 26.57 |
| 11 | INDIANA | 38.84 | - 13.27 |
| 12 | ILLINOIS | 26.63 | |
| 13 | RUTGERS | 25.17 | - 4.57 |
| 14 | PURDUE | 10.00 | |
| AVERAGES | 117.90 | + 12.41 |
Zamir White will make his decision in June. The nation's No. 1 rated running back is reportedly deciding between Georgia and Ohio State. White is a talented back and will make huge impact on the program he selects.
— Zeus34 (@zeus1_34) April 19, 2017
B1G STARS BREAKDOWN
Ohio State and Penn State remain the only teams in the conference to have 5★ commits. The Buckeyes lead with three and the Nittany Lions have two. Taron Vincent, Brenton Cox and Emory Jones are Ohio State's 5★ players and Justin Fields and Ricky Slade are Penn State's.
New No. 1
With the addition of OT Bryce Effner and Minnesota's commits bailing, PSU climbed two spots and currently has the most stars in the Big Ten. Northwestern stayed at second as the Gophers lost two players and two spots down to third. Others climbing the rankings were Nebraska and Michigan.
The Cornhuskers passed Ohio State to take the fourth spot and the Wolverines slid past Wisconsin for sixth. Rutgers added a player and is now tied with Illinois for 12th. Michigan State and Indiana fell back one spot each.
Star Gazing
Only one player had his star rating change. Ohio State's Brenton Cox went up from a 4★ to a 5★ this cylce. Every other player in the Big Ten kept their rating from May.
94 percent of the Big Ten's commits are 4★ and 3★ players. To put Ohio State's recruiting in perspective, 23 percent of the conference's 4★ commits and 60 percent of the 5★ players are Buckeyes.
| RANK | TEAM | 5★ | 4★ | 3★ | 2★ | NR | TOTAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 (+2) | PENN STATE | 2 | 5 | 6 | 13 | ||
| 2 | NORTHWESTERN | 1 | 11 | 1 | 13 | ||
| 3 (-2) | MINNESOTA | 12 | 12 | ||||
| 4 (+1) | NEBRASKA | 6 | 5 | 11 | |||
| 5 (-1) | OHIO STATE | 3 | 7 | 10 | |||
| 6 (+1) | MICHIGAN | 7 | 3 | 10 | |||
| 7 (-1) | WISCONSIN | 10 | 10 | ||||
| B1G AVERAGE | 0.4 | 2.1 | 5.0 | 0.1 | 7.6 | ||
| 8 | MARYLAND | 2 | 5 | 7 | |||
| 9 (-1) | MICHIGAN STATE | 2 | 4 | 6 | |||
| 10 | IOWA | 6 | 6 | ||||
| 11 (-1) | INDIANA | 3 | 3 | ||||
| 12 | ILLINOIS | 2 | 2 | ||||
| 12 (+1) | RUTGERS | 2 | 2 | ||||
| 14 | PURDUE | 1 | 1 | ||||
| B1G TOTAL | 5 | 30 | 70 | 1 | 106 |
Cmmitted pic.twitter.com/06R86sDhc1
— Dallas Gant (@dallas_gant) May 16, 2017
2018's Highest-Rated Big Ten Commits
Some new names are at the top of the list for the position battles. Five of Ohio State's ten commits are currently the best at their position. If you look at the players Urban Meyer has offered, the Buckeyes could be in for a huge 2018.
The Big Ten East owns 14 of the 18 positions. Nebraska is the only team in the Big Ten West with players on the board.Will a team add a fullback this cycle?
| POS. | PLAYER | 247 COMP. | POS RK | SCHOOL | OSU'S TOP COMMIT / OFFER |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DUAL | JUSTIN FIELDS | 997 | 1 | PENN STATE | EMORY JONES (984 / 2) |
| PRO | JOE MILTON | 910 | 9 | MICHIGAN | ARTUR SITKOWSKI (962 / 4) committed to Miami 2/27 |
| APB | RICKY SLADE | 983 | 1 | PENN STATE | JAELEN GILL (977 / 2) |
| RB | BRIAN SNEAD | 958 | 4 | OHIO STATE | ZAMIR WHITE (998 / 1) |
| FB | |||||
| WR | JUSTIN SHORTER | 974 | 8 | PENN STATE | JALEN HALL (992 / 2) |
| TE | ZACK KUNTZ | 955 | 3 | PENN STATE | JEREMY RUCKERT (957 / 2) |
| C | WILL FARNIOK | 835 | 16 | NEBRASKA | VERDIS BROWN (922 / 2) |
| OG | EMIL EKIYOR | 952 | 3 | MICHIGAN | JAMAREE SALYER (995 / 1) |
| OT | NANA ASIEDU | 966 | 6 | PENN STATE | MAX WRAY (965 / 8) |
| DEFENSE | |||||
| SDE | BRENTON COX | 985 | 2 | OHIO STATE |
XAVIER THOMAS (999 / 1) committed to Clemson 4/18/2017 |
| WDE | TATE WILDEMAN | 861 | 31 | NEBRASKA | MICAH PARSONS (998 / 1) |
| DT | TARON VINCENT | 994 | 1 | OHIO STATE | MICHAEL THOMPSON (987 / 2) |
| ILB | NICK TARBURTON | 893 | 15 | PENN STATE | TERDJA MITCHELL (977 / 2) |
| OLB | DALLAS GANT | 939 | 5 | OHIO STATE |
PAYTON WILSON (955 / 3) committed to North Carolina 5/1/2017 |
| CB | BRENDAN RADLEY-HILES | 965 | 9 | NEBRASKA | PATRICK SURTAIN JR (998 / 1) |
| SAF | JAIDEN WOODBEY | 982 | 3 | OHIO STATE | BJ FOSTER (991 / 1) |
| ATH | MARIO GOODRICH | 911 | 11 | NEBRASKA | BLUE SMITH (941 / 4) |
New player.
| RANK | TEAM | FEB | MAR | APR | MAY | JUN | JUL |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | OHIO STATE | .978 | .979 | .981 | .967 | .965 | |
| 2 | PENN STATE | .931 | .934 | .929 | .923 | .918 | |
| 3 (+1) | MICHIGAN | .941 | .935 | .937 | .903 | .904 | |
| 4 (-1) | NEBRASKA* | .913 | .913 | .911 | .904 | .902 | |
| 5 (+1) | MICHIGAN STATE | .923 | .883 | .883 | .873 | .875 | |
| 6 (-1) | MARYLAND | .818 | .885 | .873 | |||
| BIG AVERAGE | .890 | .880 | .874 | .866 | .866 | ||
| 7 | WISCONSIN | .857 | .845 | .850 | .855 | .852 | |
| 8 | MINNESOTA | .849 | .848 | .851 | .850 | ||
| 9 | NORTHWESTERN | .835 | .835 | .853 | .849 | .849 | |
| 10 | IOWA | .829 | .829 | .836 | .845 | .846 | |
| 11 | ILLINOIS | .822 | .834 | .834 | |||
| 12 | INDIANA | .800 | .800 | .823 | .833 | .831 | |
| 13 | RUTGERS | .803 | .827 | ||||
| 14 | PURDUE | .800 | .800 |
*Kickers, punters and long snappers are not included in player averages.
There wasn't much movement in the average player ratings. Like the composite ratings, the action was between third and sixth. Michigan and Michigan State climbed one spot each as Nebraska and Maryland each lost a position.
Meyer and the Buckeyes continue to see their average player rating drop, but that is happening with the majority of teams as classes continue to evolve. With more 5★ and 4★ players on the horizon, the 2018 Ohio State recruiting class could be one for the ages.
Michigan, Michigan State and Rutgers were the only teams in the conference to see an increase in their player averages. Maryland (12 points) and Penn State (5 points) had the largest drops.
Which teams do you think will rise and fall over the next month? One thing is almost certain and that is Meyer and Ohio State will finish the 2018 race at the top.
Urban Meyer is creating something special with the 2018 class.
| RANK | PLAYER | FEB | MAR | APR | MAY | JUN | JUL | AUG | SEP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | TARON VINCENT | 993 | 994 | 994 | |||||
| 2 | BRENTON COX | 973 | 973 | 985 | |||||
| 3 | EMORY JONES | 984 | 984 | 983 | 985 | 984 | |||
| 4 | JAIDEN WOODBEY | 984 | 982 | 982 | 981 | 982 | |||
| 5 | JAELEN GILL | 982 | 981 | 978 | 977 | ||||
| 6 | MAX WRAY | 967 | 965 | 965 | |||||
| 7 | BRIAN SNEAD | 967 | 966 | 965 | 959 | 958 | |||
| 8 | JOSH PROCTOR | 955 | 956 | 956 | |||||
| 9 | DALLAS GANT | 939 | 939 | ||||||
| 10 | SEVYN BANKS | 917 | 917 | 907 |
2018 B1G Commitments as of 5/31/17
Below you will find every team in the Big Ten and the players in the 2018 class who have committed to play at each university.
- Players in bold are new commits since 5/1/2017.
- The +/- represents the movement in a player's rating since 5/1.
-
Kickers/punters/long snappers are not included in the team average.
| SCHOOL | NAME | POS | RANK | RATING | +/- | COMMIT DATE |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
BRIAN SNEAD EMORY JONES JAIDEN WOODBEY JAELEN GILL TARON VINCENT MAX WRAY JOSH PROCTOR BRENTON COX SEVYN BANKS DALLAS GANT |
RB DUAL SAF APB DT OT S SDE CB OLB |
4 2 3 2 1 8 8 2 25 5 |
958 984 982 977 994 965 956 985 907 939 |
-1 -1 +1 -1 +1 -10 +12 |
7/22/2016 7/29/2016 2/7/2017 3/1/2017 4/2/2017 4/15/2017 4/15/2017 4/25/2017 4/26/2017 5/16/2017 |
| AVG | 6.0 | 965 | -3 | |||
 |
JORDAN JUSEVITCH ELIJAH RODGERS KRISTIAN PECHAC |
SAF CB RB |
113 117 27 |
800 827 865 |
|
1/21/2017 4/1/2017 4/8/2017 |
| AVG | 85.7 | 831 | -2 | |||
 |
DURELL NCHAMI TYLER DESUE NIHYM ANDERSON AUSTIN FONTAINE EVAN GREGORY MALEAK BRYANT CHANCE CAMPBELL |
WDE DUAL OLB DT OG TE OLB |
46 17 56 7 14 36 61 |
856 866 850 958 897 842 842 |
+3 -3 |
3/13/2017 4/12/2017 4/13/2017 4/22/2017 4/22/2017 5/21/2017 5/26/2017 |
| AVG | 33.9 | 873 | -12 | |||
 |
OTIS REESE EMIL EKIYOR AIDAN HUTCHINSON MYLES SIMS CHRISTIAN TURNER GEMON GREEN GERMAN GREEN JOE MILTON JALEN MAYFIELD RYAN HAYES |
OLB OG SDE CB RB CB CB PRO OT OT |
9 3 8 15 28 32 97 9 24 17 |
926 952 914 941 863 888 836 910 895 916 |
-1 -1 +53 |
6/18/2016 10/2/2016 2/21/2017 4/7/2017 4/10/2017 4/20/2017 4/20/2017 5/7/2017 5/23/2017 5/27/2017 |
| AVG | 24.2 | 904 | +1 | |||
 |
XAVIER HENDERSON TRENTON GILLISON THEO DAY CHRISTIAN JACKSON EDWARD WARINNER MICHAEL DOWELL |
ATH TE PRO CB ILB S |
14 10 16 65 53 28 |
903 913 868 852 829 884 |
|
9/9/2106 1/29/2017 2/26/2017 3/1/2017 4/12/2017 5/29/2017 |
| AVG | 31.0 | 875 | +2 | |||
|
JUSTIN SHORTER PAT FREIERMUTH ZACK KUNTZ JUSTIN FIELDS ISAIAH HUMPHRIES CHARLIE KATSHIR JESSE LUKETA RICKY SLADE NICK TARBURTON TRENT GORDON NANU ASIEDU ANTWAN REED BRYCE EFFNER |
WR SAF TE DUAL SAF OLB OLB APB ILB CB OT OT OT |
8 8 3 1 29 40 14 1 12 38 7 25 69 |
958 936 955 997 883 862 889 983 893 875 966 888 846 |
+1 +3 -2 +11 -1 -1 +8 |
8/6/2016 8/16/2016 11/26/2016 12/1/2016 12/31/2016 2/2/2017 2/3/2017 2/3/2017 2/9/2017 3/29/2017 4/22/2017 4/22/2017 5/6/2017 |
| AVG | 19.6 | 918 | -5 | |||
 |
JARRETT PAUL JALEN CHATMAN |
CB DUAL |
126 34 |
818 835 |
|
4/22/2017 5/15/2017 |
| AVG | 80.0 | 827 | +23 |
QB Ben Bryant (.857) was released from his commitment from Wisconsin on May 12, one day after he posted receiving an offer from Georgia. Bryant is one of five players to reopen their recruitment in the Big Ten this cycle.
Humbled to receive an offer from The University of Georgia pic.twitter.com/o1wK07XVaZ
— Ben Bryant (@benbryant_7) May 12, 2017
| SCHOOL | NAME | POS | RANK | RATING | +/- | COMMIT DATE |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
CORAN TAYLOR JULIAN PEARL |
DUAL OT |
35 87 |
834 833 |
|
4/3/2017 4/21/2017 |
| AVG | 61.0 | 834 | ||||
 |
JEFFREY JENKINS DILLON DOYLE HENRY GEIL TYRONE TRACY TYLER LINDERBAUM SAMSON EVANS |
OG OLB RB RB DT ATH |
40 55 56 37 64 65 |
845 850 842 854 845 842 |
+13 -8 +6 |
1/22/2017 3/20/2017 4/23/2017 4/29/2017 5/1/2017 5/21/2017 |
| AVG | 52.8 | 846 | +1 | |||
 |
BENJAMIN SAPP III BRENNAN ARMSTRONG ELIJAH TEAGUE TERELL SMITH NOLAN EDMONDS ABI OKONJI LOGAN RICHTER AUSTIN BEIER JORNELL MANNS TYRIK HENDERSON ERIK GIBSON MARIONO SORI-MARIN |
CB DUAL DT CB RB SDE DT OG ATH CB WR OLB |
75 20 34 52 35 33 65 36 109 80 149 91 |
848 846 868 862 856 849 845 848 858 845 839 817 |
+4 +6 -2 -3 |
2/11/2017 2/19/2017 2/25/2017 3/10/2017 3/15/2017 3/25/2017 3/25/2017 3/30/2017 4/14/2017 4/19/2017 4/22/2017 4/28/2017 |
| AVG | 64.9 | 850 | -1 | |||
 |
CAMERON JURGENS MASRY MAPIEU ERIC FULLER WILL FARNIOK BRENDAN RADLEY-HILES MANUEL ALLEN TATE WILDEMAN CHASE WILLIAMS BARRET PICKERING CAMERON BROWN MARIO GOODRICH |
TE DT CB OC CB WR WDE WR K WR ATH |
5 67 25 16 9 34 32 19 1* 69 11 |
942 843 938 835 965 924 861 922 833* 879 909 |
-1 |
8/6/2015 6/17/2016 1/18/2017 4/8/2017 4/14/2017 4/15/2017 4/16/2017 4/23/2017 5/2/2017 5/7/2017 5/23/2017 |
| AVG | 26.2 | 902 | -2 | |||
 |
JASON WHITTAKER PAYNE HE'BERT CHARLES SCHMIDT CHARLIE MANGIEIRI DEVIN O'ROURKE BRIAN KAISER WYATT BLAKE ANDREW LEOTA JACOB JEFFERSON GREG NEWSOME GRAYSON MANN ETHAN BONNER JEREMIAH McDONALD |
PRO OT OG ATH SDE TE OG WDE WR CB ILB CB SAF |
18 95 37 69 9 39 23 38 188 50 33 147 38 |
865 833 847 841 912 840 862 855 829 864 844 783 868 |
|
12/10/2016 1/13/2017 3/5/2017 3/8/2017 3/10/2017 3/10/2017 3/17/2017 3/31/2017 4/1/2017 4/3/2017 4/7/2017 4/8/2017 4/10/2017 |
| AVG | 60.3 | 849 | ||||
 |
RAYMOND ELLIS | DT | 6 | 800 | 4/10/2017 | |
| AVG | 6.0 | 800 | ||||
 |
REGGIE PEARSON TRENT INGALLS BOYD DIETZEN CJ GOETZ MASON PLATTER MICHAEL FURTNEY JACK SANBORN CHASE WOLF CORMAC SAMPSON ISAIAH MULLENS |
SAF SAF SDE ILB OLB OT ILB PRO WDE SDE |
41 70 22 47 65 52 15 43 45 24 |
862 844 860 835 840 854 900 836 848 857 |
-6 17 |
8/27/2016 10/29/2016 2/20/2017 2/20/2017 2/20/2017 3/14/2017 3/22/2017 5/5/2017 5/13/2017 5/16/2017 |
| AVG | 42.4 | 854 | -1 |
| SCHOOL | NAME | POS | RANK | RATING | COMMIT DATE | DECOMMIT DATE | NEW SCHOOL |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
JOSEPH SCATES | WR | 65 | 933 | 1/18/2017 | 2/18/2017 | ALABAMA (LEADER) |
|
|
JALEN MAYFIELD | OT | 59 | 842 | 2/18/2017 | 3/26/2017 |
MICHIGAN 5/23/2017 |
 |
CHRIS BLEICH | OT | 33 | 896 | 4/7/2016 | 4/22/2017 | NEBRASKA (LEADER) |
|
|
MICAH PARSONS | WDE | 1 | 998 | 2/27/2016 | 4/23/2017 | OHIO STATE (LEADER) |
 |
MIKE BRUNER | OLB | 76 | 826 | 10/23/2016 | 4/25/2017 |
IOWA STATE (LEADER) |
 |
BEN BRYANT | PRO | 857 | 12/7/2016 | 5/12/2017 | CINCINNATI (LEADER) | |
|
|
OYENMWEN UZEBU | OT | 864 | 4/15/2017 | 5/14/2017 | UNCLEAR | |
|
|
RACHAD WILDGOOSE | S | 789 | 4/15/2017 | 5/25/2017 | GEORGIA (LEADER) | |
|
|
CAM JONES | ATH | 839 | 4/2/2017 | 5/25/2017 | MEMPHIS (LEADER) | |
|
|
NOAH SHANNON | DT | 854 | 5/9/2017 | 5/28/2017 | UNCLEAR |
If you receive news of a player committing to a B1G school during the month of April post it in the comment section.
