Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/741084
Park, Mich.; Joel Honigford of Sugar- creek, Ohio; Philip Paea of Berrien Springs, Mich.; and Andrew Steuber of Darien, Conn. All have received three stars from Rivals. The Wolverines' highest-rated recruit as of mid-October was McCa:rey, who is rated by Rivals as the No. 3 dual- threat quarterback in the country. The 6-foot-4, 185-pounder is the younger brother of Stanford All-America run- ning back Christian McCa:rey. The biggest surprise in the Big Ten so far has been Maryland's strong per- formance. Ever since the Terrapins' new head coach, D.J. Durkin, received a verbal commitment from five-star de- fensive end Josh Kaindoh on April 29, the Terps have been in Rivals' top 20. Kaindoh, who is attending IMG Acad- emy in Bradenton, Fla., chose Maryland over Penn State, Ohio State and Notre Dame. In addition to the standout defensive end, the Terps have received verbal commitments from four four-star prospects: quarterback Kasim Hill and defensive lineman Camaron Spence of Washington, D.C.; defensive back Deon Jones of Oxon Hill, Md.; and o:ensive lineman Marcus Minor of Hyattsville, Md. Meanwhile, Rutgers and its 9rst-year head coach, Chris Ash, have surprised many observers with their success, es- pecially in New Jersey. Of the 20 players in the Scarlet Knights' class, 14 are from the Garden State. The Scarlet Knights' highest-rated New Jersey verbal commitments are both from four-star players: o:ensive lineman Micah Clark of Holmdel and wide receiver Bo Melton of Egg Harbor City. The Knights' other four-star verbal commitment is from linebacker Tyson Fogg of Towson, Md. But what really has Rutgers fans excited is the fact that Ash has received verbal commitments from six of New Jersey's top 25 players in the Class of 2017. Another Big Ten school that is putting together a solid class is Iowa. Kirk Fer- entz, the Big Ten's longest-serving head coach, is capitalizing on the Hawkeyes' 12-2 9nish and Rose Bowl appearance last season. Halfway through the 2016 football season, Iowa had the 9;h-best recruit- ing class in the Big Ten with 17 verbal commitments. The Hawkeyes' top prospect is Rivals' No. 1 strongside de- fensive end in the country, four-star prospect A.J. Epenesa of Ed- wardsville, Ill. Epenesa is a legacy recruit; his father, Eppy Epenesa, played defen- sive tackle at Iowa in the 1990s. Other notable Iowa verbal commitments include four- star running back Eno Ben- jamin of Wylie, Texas; four-star cornerback Chevin Calloway of Dallas; and three-star defensive back Djimon Colbert of Shawnee Mission, Kan. The last Big Ten school to be ranked in Rivals' top 25 as of this writing was Ne- braska. At the top of the Cornhuskers' 15-member class are 9ve four-star play- ers: quarterback Tristan Gebbia of Cal- abasas, Calif.; wide receivers Keyshawn Johnson Jr. of Calabasas, Calif., and Jaevon McQuitty of Columbia, Mo.; linebacker Avery Roberts of Wilming- RAISING KAINDOH A five-star defen- sive end, Kaindoh put Maryland in the Rivals.com top 20 in the spring. Photo courtesy of Rivals.com