By DAVE DYE
FOXSportsDetroit.com
Jan. 19, 2011
Jim Tressel and Ohio State's coaching staff are recruiting as if they plan to win another six Big Ten championships in a row.
Based on Scout.com's rankings, the Buckeyes are on track to finish with a top-5 recruiting class for the third time in the last four years.
Only Texas ranks ahead of Ohio State with two weeks remaining before the official signing day.
Scout.com also ranked Ohio State with the No. 1 class in 2009 and No. 4 in '08. The only slip was last year when the Buckeyes finished 20th.
"They're by far the highest ranked Big Ten team," said Allen Trieu, a Midwest recruiting analyst for Scout.com. "You look at the talent they've brought in, they're running away with the conference crown in recruiting this year."
Ohio State is the only Big Ten team ranked in Scout.com's top-20. Nebraska, which joins the conference next season, is No. 23, Michigan State 28, Iowa 29, Wisconsin 34, Penn State 35 and Illinois 40.
The rankings can change frequently as signing day approaches. No team is more deserving of an incomplete grade right now than Michigan because of the extremely late hiring of Brady Hoke to replace Rich Rodriguez as coach. Hoke needs to do a lot of scrambling to salvage a decent class.
Tressel was in a similar position when he was hired in mid-January 10 years ago, but now he just keeps reloading.
The top recruit this time is five-star quarterback Braxton Miller, who started for four years at his high school in Huber Heights, Ohio.
Miller (6-foot-2, 185 pounds) is ranked as the No. 2 quarterback in the nation behind Jeff Driskel (Oviedo, Fla.), who has committed to Florida.
Scott Kennedy, the director of scouting for Scout.com, calls Miller "a true dual-threat quarterback."
With Terrell Pryor suspended for the first five games next season, Miller could get some playing time a little sooner than expected.
"Ohio State looks set for another few years at quarterback with him coming in," Trieu said.
Miller will have two four-star receivers joining him
