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USA Today Sports Media Group
USA Today Sports Media Group
Sport
Phil Harrison

Big Ten football team recruiting rankings after the drama of the early signing period

Well, that was fun — depending on what your definition of fun is. The first day of the early signing period went and came on Wednesday and there was more drama than a daytime soap opera throughout this great nation of ours. And yeah, Ohio State was right in the thick of it as always.

If it wasn’t clear, the further momentum of name, image and likeness, as well as the dynamic of the transfer portal has changed how hard it is to attract — and more importantly — hold onto, big-time college prospects in college football.

We saw that on Wednesday, and it’s not going to get any less dramatic in the future. We saw plenty of flips, rumors, delays, and other shenanigans that made us all think about traffic congestion during big city rush hour, and it may not be over.

Once all the dust settled and the smoke cleared from when the circus met the bull fighting on Wednesday, we got a look at where every team landed in the Big Ten. Ohio State, Oregon, Penn State, and Michigan had good, and in some cases, great days, but how did the entire league stack up when compared to each other?

Here’s a look at where all the Big Ten teams stack up according to the 247Sports Team Composite rankings after the first day of the early signing period. Remember, there’s still a couple of days left for things to change, and then there’s still the traditional signing day in February. However, things are more-or-less where they will be with some modest changes coming later.

So, who won the day in recruiting in the Big Ten on Wednesday?

18
Northwestern Wildcats

Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports

247Sports Team Composite Metrics

Total Score | 136.54

Total Commitments | 15
5-Star Commits | 0
4-Star Commits | 0
3-Star Commits | 11

National Ranking | No. 95

17
UCLA Bruins

Rob Gray-USA TODAY Sports

247Sports Team Composite Metrics

Total Score | 167.33

Total Commitments | 11
5-Star Commits | 0
4-Star Commits | 3
3-Star Commits | 8

National Ranking | No. 68

16
Indiana Hoosiers

USA TODAY SMG

247Sports Team Composite Metrics

Total Score | 183.81

Total Commitments | 17
5-Star Commits | 0
4-Star Commits | 1
3-Star Commits | 16

National Ranking | No. 59

15
Michigan State Spartans

USA TODAY SMG

247Sports Team Composite Metrics

Total Score | 197.38

Total Commitments | 19
5-Star Commits | 0
4-Star Commits | 1
3-Star Commits | 18

National Ranking | No. 48

14
Illinois Fighting Illini

David Banks-USA TODAY Sports

247Sports Team Composite Metrics

Total Score | 199.96

Total Commitments | 19
5-Star Commits | 0
4-Star Commits | 2
3-Star Commits | 17

National Ranking | No. 43

13
Maryland Terrapins

Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports

247Sports Team Composite Metrics

Total Score | 204.68

Total Commitments | 22
5-Star Commits | 0
4-Star Commits | 2
3-Star Commits | 20

National Ranking | No. 39

12
Minnesota Golden Gophers

Matt Krohn-USA TODAY Sports

247Sports Team Composite Metrics

Total Score | 207.28

Total Commitments | 19
5-Star Commits | 0
4-Star Commits | 2
3-Star Commits | 17

National Ranking | No. 38

11
Rutgers Scarlet Knights

USA TODAY SMG

247Sports Team Composite Metrics

Total Score | 209.10

Total Commitments | 24
5-Star Commits | 0
4-Star Commits | 3
3-Star Commits | 20

National Ranking | No. 37

10
Washington Huskies

Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports

247Sports Team Composite Metrics

Total Score | 211.31

Total Commitments | 16
5-Star Commits | 0
4-Star Commits | 7
3-Star Commits | 9

National Ranking | No. 36

9
Iowa Hawkeyes

Barbara J. Perenic/Columbus Dispatch

247Sports Team Composite Metrics

Total Score | 213.76

Total Commitments | 21
5-Star Commits | 0
4-Star Commits | 5
3-Star Commits | 15

National Ranking | No. 33

8
Purdue Boilermakers

USA TODAY SMG

247Sports Team Composite Metrics

Total Score | 216.26

Total Commitments | 25
5-Star Commits | 0
4-Star Commits | 4
3-Star Commits | 20

National Ranking | No. 29

7
Wisconsin Badgers

USA TODAY SMG

247Sports Team Composite Metrics

Total Score | 235.98

Total Commitments | 22
5-Star Commits | 0
4-Star Commits | 9
3-Star Commits | 13

National Ranking | No. 22

6
Nebraska Cornhuskers

Dylan Widger-USA TODAY Sports

247Sports Team Composite Metrics

Total Score | 247.15

Total Commitments | 29
5-Star Commits | 1
4-Star Commits | 7
3-Star Commits | 21

National Ranking | No. 19

5
USC Trojans

John Hefti-USA TODAY Sports

247Sports Team Composite Metrics

Total Score | 250.76

Total Commitments | 20
5-Star Commits | 0
4-Star Commits | 11
3-Star Commits | 9

National Ranking | No. 18

4
Michigan Wolverines

USA TODAY SMG

247Sports Team Composite Metrics

Total Score | 261.14

Total Commitments | 27
5-Star Commits | 0
4-Star Commits | 18
3-Star Commits | 9

National Ranking | No. 15

3
Penn State Nittany Lions

(Photo by Ben Jackson/Getty Images)

247Sports Team Composite Metrics

Total Score | 265.46

Total Commitments | 25
5-Star Commits | 0
4-Star Commits | 17
3-Star Commits | 8

National Ranking | No. 14

2
Oregon Ducks

USA TODAY SMG

247Sports Team Composite Metrics

Total Score | 285.80

Total Commitments | 25
5-Star Commits | 0
4-Star Commits | 20
3-Star Commits | 5

National Ranking | No. 6

1
Ohio State Buckeyes

USA TODAY SMG

247Sports Team Composite Metrics

Total Score | 288.81

Total Commitments | 21
5-Star Commits | 5
4-Star Commits | 12
3-Star Commits | 3

National Ranking | No. 4

Contact/Follow us @BuckeyesWire on X (formerly Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Ohio State news, notes, and opinion. Follow Phil Harrison on X.

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