Blue White Illustrated

I f you were to look at the Rivals.com re- cruiting rankings for the Class of 2021, your primary takeaway would likely be that the Big Ten is o: to a tremendous start. As of late May, there were eight Big Ten schools in Rivals' top 25. Ohio State was leading not just the conference but the nation as a whole with its contingent of verbal commitments, a 19-player group that includes three 9ve-star re- cruits: defensive ends Jack Sawyer of Pickerington, Ohio, and Tunmise Adel- eye of Bradenton, Fla., and o:ensive lineman Donovan Jackson of Houston. The Buckeyes also have 12 four-star and three three-star prospects, having suc- ceeded in luring players from both near (Sawyer) and far (kicker Jesse Mirco of Melbourne, Australia). Behind Ohio State in the Rivals.com Team Rankings were Michigan (fourth), Minnesota (ninth), Iowa (10th), Rutgers (12th), Penn State (17th), Maryland (18th) and Wisconsin (21st). There are some familiar names on that list, but also some unfamiliar names. Rutgers and Maryland could hardly be consid- ered 9xtures in the top 20 of the Rivals recruiting rankings. I'll get to the reasons behind this phe- nomenon and show why it might be hard for both the Scarlet Knights and Terra- pins to maintain their top-20 rankings, but 9rst let's give credit where credit is due: Greg Schiano and Mike Locksley have done A-plus jobs to this point in the 2021 recruiting cycle. The Scarlet Knights entered June with 19 verbal commitments. They had failed to land verbal commitments from any four-star prospects, but 13 of the players in their class have received three-star ratings from Rivals, and nine of those players are from New Jersey. That's a critical distinction, because if Rutgers hopes to turn around its on-9eld for- tunes, Schiano will have to keep top in- state prospects from leaving home. A similar scenario seems to be emerg- ing at Maryland. Going into June, the Terps had landed 14 verbal commit- ments, with 12 of those prospects hailing from Maryland, Washington, D.C., or northern Virginia. Three of the 12 have received four-star ratings from Rivals: linebacker Demeioun Robinson and de- fensive tackle Marcus Bradley, both of Gaithersburg, Md., and defensive tackle Taizse Johnson of Washington. It's not surprising that Michigan had the nation's fourth-best recruiting class going into June; the Wolverines are fre- quent top-10 9nishers in the Rivals.com Team Rankings. But it's not so customary to see Iowa and Minnesota in the top 10, even at this stage in the recruiting cycle. The Hawkeyes had landed 15 verbal commitments as of this writing. That group is led by three four-star prospects: o:ensive linemen Connor Colby of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and David Davidkov of Winnetka, Ill., and line- backer Justice Sullivan of Eden Prairie, Minn. The Hawkeyes have recruited their home state extremely well. That's im- portant, because this year Iowa has one of its best high school classes in close to a decade. Kirk Ferentz has been able to land verbal commitments from seven of Iowa's top 10 prospects. But even more surprising than Iowa being ranked 10th by Rivals heading into June was seeing Minnesota one spot above the Hawkeyes. The Golden Go- phers had 17 verbal commitments, two of which were from four-star corner- backs: Steven Ortiz of Goodyear, Ariz., and Avante Dickerson of Omaha, Neb. The Golden Gophers' other 15 prospects all have received three stars, a list headed up by running back Mar'Keise Irving of Country Club Hills, Ill. That brings us to Penn State at No. 17. As of this writing, the Nittany Lions had 12 verbal commitments. Six of those commitments are from four-star prospects, with Rivals100 o:ensive lineman Landon Tengwall of Olney, Md., heading the list Penn State wasn't ranked in the top 10 as of late May, but it has a chance to end up there by February. That's because the Nittany Lions are continuing to actively recruit a number of four- and 9ve-star players. That list includes 9ve-star cor- nerback Tony Grimes of Virginia Beach, Va., and a potential 9ve-star lineman in Nolan Rucci of Lititz, Pa. The four-star players on their list include o:ensive linemen Rocco Spindler of Clarkston, Mich., Tristan Leigh of Fairfax, Va., and Rayshaun Benny of Oak Park, Mich.; re- ceiver Kaden Prather of Germantown, Md.; linebacker Jamari Buddin of Belleville, Mich.; defensive linemen Kelvin Gilliam Jr. of Highland Springs, Va., and Elliot Donald of Pittsburgh; and juco defensive back De'Jahn Warren of Lackawanna College in Scranton, Pa. The only problem for James Franklin and his sta: is that they will have to be quite selective with what could be their 9nal eight spots in the Class of 2021. Penn State may be able to sign no more than 20 players in its next class. The total will depend on whether a number of additional players join likely NFL Dra; entrants Micah Parsons and Pat Freiermuth and forgo their 9nal seasons. It will also depend on how many players enter the transfer portal following the 2020 season. The 9nal Big Ten team ranked in the PHIL'S CORNER Changes to recruiting calendar could make for a dramatic ending

• Cover