College Football

Michigan, Big Ten making noise as college football's focus returns to recruiting

Updated Apr. 14, 2023 11:51 a.m. ET

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Michael Cohen

College Football and College Basketball Writer

Earlier this month, the Michigan football social media accounts shared a video of head coach Jim Harbaugh and his assistant coaches hooting, hollering and hopping around for joy following the commitment of five-star quarterback Jadyn Davis, the No. 27 overall prospect in the 247Sports Composite for the 2024 recruiting cycle.

It was a big win for Michigan, whose back-to-back Big Ten titles and consecutive appearances in the College Football Playoff cemented the Wolverines as one of the strongest programs in the country at a time when their results on the recruiting trail didn't seem to match. Harbaugh's 2023 recruiting class barely cracked the top 20 nationally and finished without a top 150 prospect. They lost the top-ranked player in the state (five-star QB Dante Moore) to UCLA and the third-ranked player in the state (four-star DL Jalen Thompson) to Michigan State.

But any disconnect between Michigan's on-field success and off-field recruiting prowess has vanished in the last few months, as Harbaugh and his staff reeled in one blue-chip prospect after another: two players in the top 100 nationally; five in the top 200 nationally; and eight in the top 400 nationally. The only schools with better classes for 2024 are Georgia and Ohio State.

Beginning this weekend, recruiting returns to the forefront in college football as the beginning of the spring evaluation period collides with the re-opening of the transfer portal on April 15. Coaches across the country will be visiting high school prospects during the day and courting portal candidates via text messages, phone calls and Zoom sessions at night. Fortifying the current roster while also constructing the next.

Here's a look at where every Big Ten program stands in the 2024 recruiting cycle as of Thursday evening.

Ohio State
National ranking: 2
Number of commits: 10
Average prospect score: 94.20
Breakdown: two 5-stars; seven 4-stars, one 3-star

Highest rated: WR Jeremiah Smith (No. 2 overall, No. 1 WR)

Newly-minted offensive coordinator Brian Hartline continues to stockpile some of the best wide receivers in the country. Smith and fellow wideout Mylan Graham give the Buckeyes two five-star receivers in the 2024 recruiting cycle, and both are ranked among the top five nationally at their position. Hartline also signed two of the country's top 10 receivers in 2023 and three of the top 15 in 2021. The other high-profile names already committed to Ohio State are four-star quarterback Air Noland (No. 71 overall, No. 8 QB) and four-star running back James Peoples (No. 81 overall, No. 5 RB). Eight of the program's 10 commits are on the offensive side of the ball.

Michigan
National ranking: 3
Number of commits: 11
Average prospect score: 91.49
Breakdown: one 5-star; seven 4-stars; three 3-stars

Highest rated: QB Jadyn Davis (No. 27 overall, No. 4 QB)

Harbaugh and his staff celebrated a major recruiting victory when Davis announced his decision earlier this month. Securing a commitment from the Charlotte, North Carolina, native ensures the quarterback torch at Michigan will be passed from one former five-star recruit in J.J. McCarthy to another after a long spell of mediocrity at the position to begin Harbaugh's tenure. The Wolverines already have scored commitments from five players ranked among the top 200 nationally following a disappointing 2023 cycle in which they signed just two such prospects. Beating Ohio State for four-star tailback Jordan Marshall (No. 84 overall, No. 6 RB) was a huge recruiting win for Michigan.

Penn State
National ranking: 7
Number of commits: 8
Average prospect score: 90.78
Breakdown: zero 5-stars; six 4-stars; two 3-stars

Highest rated: ATH Quinton Martin (No. 34 overall, No. 3 ATH) 

A commitment from Martin earlier this month means Penn State has snagged the top player in Pennsylvania for three consecutive years after signing four-star offensive tackle J'ven Williams (No. 40 overall, No. 6 OT) in 2023 and five-star tailback Nicholas Singleton (No. 31 overall, No. 1 RB) in 2022. Martin, who was recruited as a running back, could eventually join Singleton and fellow rising sophomore Kaytron Allen in one of the most talented backfields in college football. The class also includes three cornerbacks rated among the top 50 at their position in Jon Mitchell (No. 163 overall, No. 16 CB); Kenneth Woseley (No. 383 overall, No. 34 CB) and Antoine Belgrave-Shorter (No. 574 overall, No. 50 CB). Four of Penn State's first eight commitments in 2024 are from in-state products.

Iowa
National ranking: 16
Number of commits: 7
Average prospect score: 88.16
Breakdown: zero 5-stars; two 4-stars; five 3-stars

Highest rated: IOL Cody Fox (No. 225 overall, No. 14 IOL)

A year after whiffing on three top-150 prospects from Iowa, the Hawkeyes are building the nucleus of their class around in-state products with early commitments from three of the four best players in the cycle. They're also among the early favorites for four-star offensive tackle Grant Brix (No. 118 overall, No. 7 OT), the top-ranked player in the state from Logan, Iowa, hard by the Nebraska border. The lone commit from outside the Midwest is three-star quarterback James Resnar from Jacksonville, Florida, who holds additional scholarship offers from North Carolina, Georgia Tech, Indiana and Wake Forest, among others. Fox is the only player rated among the top 400 nationally.

Minnesota 
National ranking: 18
Number of commits: 8
Average prospect score: 85.87
Breakdown: zero 5-stars; two 4-stars; eight 3-stars

Highest rated: IOL Riley Sunram (No. 475 overall, No. 28 IOL)

The Gophers are off to a solid start in the national rankings after signing back-to-back classes outside the top 40 in 2022 and 2023. Head coach P.J. Fleck has commitments from three of the top eight players in Minnesota, though none of the state's best prospects are among the top 400 players in the country for the current cycle. Nonetheless, the Gophers are gathering some momentum on the recruiting trail with five of their eight commitments coming in the last six weeks. The next player to commit might be three-star safety Zahir Rainer (No. 771 overall, No. 66 S) from Richmond, Virginia. Rainer holds scholarship offers from Colorado, Virginia, Ole Miss, Penn State, Virginia Tech and Duke, among others.

Wisconsin
National ranking: 20
Number of commits: 5
Average prospect score: 88.59
Breakdown: zero 5-stars; two 4-stars; three 3-stars

Highest rated: TE Grant Stec (No. 253 overall, No. 11 TE)

After scrambling to build relationships fast enough to save the '23 recruiting class, new head coach Luke Fickell is well on his way to compiling a strong group in his first full cycle. In Stec, he secured a player with scholarship offers from the likes of Arkansas, Florida, Penn State and Tennessee. And in three-star quarterback Mabrey Mettauer (No. 445 overall, No. 26 QB) he found a developmental piece that also piqued the interest of Arizona State, Arkansas, Baylor, LSU, Ole Miss and North Carolina, among others. The Badgers already have three commitments this month alone in a sign that Fickell and his staff are beginning to roll.

Purdue 
National ranking: 27
Number of commits: 5
Average prospect score: 86.77
Breakdown: zero 5-stars; one 4-star; four 4-stars

Highest rated: QB Marcos Davila (No. 239 overall, No. 13 QB)

The biggest recruiting win of first-year head coach Ryan Walters' brief tenure with the Boilermakers came last month, on March 6, when Davila chose Purdue from a strong offer sheet that included Colorado, TCU, Miami, Mississippi State, Texas A&M and West Virginia, among others. Davila threw for 3,051 yards, 36 touchdowns and 12 interceptions as a junior last fall, his second season as the starter. He's one of just three quarterbacks rated four stars or better to commit to the Boilermakers since 2013. None of Davila's fellow commits are ranked among the top 700 prospects nationally entering the spring evaluation period.

Michigan State
National ranking: 37
Number of commits: 3
Average prospect score: 90.48
Breakdown: zero 5-stars; two 4-stars; one 3-star

Highest rated: CB Jamari Howard (No. 102 overall, No. 12 CB)

Head coach Mel Tucker made sweeping changes to his recruiting and support staff this spring after eight players decommitted from Michigan State during the 2023 recruiting cycle, four of which were four-star prospects. The search to fill some of those roles is ongoing. Tucker's current recruiting class is well behind the Big Ten leaders in commitments ahead of the critical spring recruiting period. Jamari Howard and fellow four-star cornerback Jaylen Thompson (No. 374 overall, No. 32 CB) should eventually help a pass defense that ranked 87th nationally in 2022 and dead last in 2021 out of 130 FBS schools. Interior lineman Andrew Dennis (No. 725 overall, No. 46 IOL) is the Spartans' only commitment from an in-state prospect, and he's the No. 14 player in Michigan for the 2024 cycle.

Nebraska
National ranking: 41
Number of commits: 3
Average prospect score: 88.25
Breakdown: zero 5-stars; one 4-star; two 3-stars

Highest rated: ATH Roger Gradney (No. 304 overall, No. 27 ATH)

First-year head coach Matt Rhule began overhauling Nebraska's roster with a massive 2023 recruiting class that included 28 high school prospects and 11 more additions through the transfer portal for a group that ranked 31st nationally. The 2024 cycle has started a bit more slowly for the Cornhuskers, who have yet to land a player from the top 300. Gradney, who is being recruited as a safety, was their only commit prior to April 1. But Rhule and his staff are still in the mix for five-star quarterback Dylan Raiola, the No. 1 player in the country and the nephew of Nebraska offensive line coach Donovan Raiola. That's the kind of prospect who can turn a program's fortunes.

Rutgers
National ranking: 42
Number of commits: 3
Average prospect score: 87.20
Breakdown: zero 5-stars; one 4-star; two 3-stars

Highest rated: ATH Gabriel Winowich (No. 368 overall, No. 33 ATH)

The Scarlet Knights appeared to be gathering some steam on the recruiting trail in 2022 when head coach Greg Schiano put together a class ranked 33rd nationally that was anchored by a quartet of four-star prospects. That excitement faded a bit last cycle, in 2023, when Rutgers faded to 62nd in the country and failed to land anyone among the top 750. But four-star athlete Gabriel Winowich gives Schiano a player to build around for the remainder of the spring and summer as recruits start making official visits. He's also received a pledge from three-star quarterback AJ Surace (No. 684 overall, No. 38 QB), who holds additional scholarship offers from Duke, Michigan State and Tennessee, among others.

Maryland
National ranking: 59
Number of commits: 2
Average prospect score: 86.40
Breakdown: zero 5-stars; zero 4-stars; two 3-stars

Highest rated: LB Justin Okoronkwo (No. 619 overall, No. 58 LB)

The Terrapins will need a productive spring and summer to make up ground on the 2023 recruiting class that finished 32nd nationally and had three four-star prospects. Head coach Mike Locksley found top-rated prospect Justin Okoronkwo in Germany, where he played for the Fursty Razorbacks. Okoronkwo's only other scholarship offers are from Michigan and Penn State. Maryland has yet to receive a commitment from anyone in the DMV area — Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia — for the current recruiting cycle.

Northwestern
National ranking: 68
Number of commits: 1
Average prospect score: 86.52
Breakdown: zero 5-stars, zero 4-stars, one 3-star

Highest rated: TE Patrick Schaller (No. 771 overall, No. 29 TE 

The Wildcats are still looking to find their footing after a disastrous 2022 campaign in which they lost 11 consecutive games to end the season. Some of that despair seems to have leaked onto the recruiting trail, where Northwestern's only commitment is from a player who grew up 30 minutes from campus. Head coach Pat Fitzgerald has put together a top-50 class just twice since 2017.

Illinois
National ranking: 81
Number of commits: 1
Average prospect score: 83.78
Breakdown: zero 5-stars, zero 4-stars, one 3-star

Highest rated: OT Brandon Hansen (N/A overall, No. 95 OT)

Illinois head coach Bret Bielema has dedicated significant resources to retaining in-state prospects as a means of turning the program's tide in recruiting. A year ago, Bielema suffered a backbreaking defeat to Michigan when four-star defensive back Jyaire Hill, the No. 2 player in the state, chose the Wolverines late in the cycle. That left the Illini with just three of the top 20 players in Illinois. Bielema faces another uphill battle this year with three of the state's top six prospects already committed to Notre Dame, Clemson and Wisconsin. 

Indiana
National ranking: N/A
Number of commits: 0
Average prospect score: N/A
Breakdown: N/A

Highest rated: N/A

It's easy to forget the Hoosiers were one of the best teams in the Big Ten during the pandemic-shortened 2020 season. Head coach Tom Allen led Indiana to a 6-1 mark in the regular season with wins over No. 8 Penn State, No. 23 Michigan and No. 16 Wisconsin. Since then, Indiana has won six of its last 18 games and fallen well behind in recruiting. The two best in-state prospects for 2024 are already committed to Ohio State. The two players after that are said to be heavy Notre Dame leans. And the fifth-best prospect in Indiana is committed to Colorado.

Michael Cohen covers college football and basketball for FOX Sports with an emphasis on the Big Ten. Follow him on Twitter @Michael_Cohen13.

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Michael Cohen