Penn State Nittany Lions

Elite 11 to include heavy Big Ten influence

Published Jun. 16, 2015 1:07 p.m. ET

foxsports

While the results from a handful of bowl games in January might have created a false impression of where the Big Ten stands in comparison to the rest of college football after a decade or so in decline, there is something else going on that might indicate betters days are ahead for the league.

More than half of the schools in the league are off to relatively good starts in this recruiting cycle.

That is reflected with eight Big Ten teams in the top 40 in the nation in Scout.com's national rankings as of this writing, but Nittany Lions Den notes another development of this offseason that could bode well for the future of the league.

The invitation of Jake Zembiec, a three-star prospect from Rochester, N.Y., to the Elite 11 quarterback competition gives the Big Ten six of the 18 spots in that elite field.

Zembiec, a Penn State commit, is scheduled to be joined by future Big Ten signal callers Michigan State's Messiah deWeaver, Maryland's Dwayne Haskins, Nebraska's Patrick O'Brien, Michigan's Brandon Peters and Anthony Russo of Rutgers.

Nobody wins without a talented roster, and there is no more important position than quarterback. The league has struggled to produce such prospects over the past 20 years, but has a strong group coming back in 2015.

And now it appears the next crop could be just beyond the horizon.

(H/T Nittany Lions Den)