We haven’t reached the busiest part of the recruiting calendar yet, but things are gradually heating up on the trail.
Let’s take a look at recent developments within the Big Ten.
Note: All rankings come from the 247Sports Composite.
1. A month ago, USC’s recruiting efforts looked pretty mediocre. The Trojans’ 2025 recruiting class consisted of just one player: five-star quarterback Julian “JuJu” Lewis, who was scheduled to tour other campuses in March.
Over the past week and a half, USC has bolstered its class with the addition of seven commits. Four of those commits are among the nation’s top 100 prospects, headlined by five-star defensive lineman Justus Terry, a Georgia native.
Having each of the top 100 recruits play defense illustrates the areas USC has emphasized this cycle. The Trojans’ defense has lacked talent and depth under Lincoln Riley, so this class — assuming it stays together — would provide a huge boost for new defensive coordinator D’Anton Lynn.
The most recent shine came from San Clemente (Calif.) four-star linebacker Matai Tagoa’i, who committed to USC on Monday and is the first Cal commit in the Trojans’ 2025 class.
“I think he felt a connection there and wanted to stay on the West Coast,” San Clemente coach Jaime Ortiz said. “(He) really seemed to get along with Lynn and (linebackers coach Matt) Entz. (He) was originally going to do all of his travels, but he kept coming back to wanting to be at USC.
Of course, it’s natural to wonder if the Trojans can keep this class — which ranks seventh nationally — together. It’s populated primarily by out-of-state prospects, who are often more likely to continue looking around, and there are eight months until the early signing period. There is also a need for more elite offensive linemen.
But USC should benefit from a change in NIL philosophy, so we’ll have to wait and see what happens over the summer and throughout the fall.
2. Ohio State’s class ranked fourth nationally a month ago, and it could be argued at the time that it was the most impressive group in the country. The class is even better now.
Four-star defensive lineman London Merritt announced his commitment to Ohio State on Friday. On Saturday, the Buckeyes landed the commitments of four-star linebacker Tarvos Alford and four-star wideout De’zie Jones. Then, they finished the weekend with a commitment from four-star safety DeShawn Stewart, who is Jones’ teammate at DePaul Catholic in Wayne, NJ.
Alford is the No. 63 player nationally and Merritt is just outside the top 100 at No. 101.
The Buckeyes’ average player rating of 95.15 is the best nationally. Seven players rank among the top 100. Ten of them have four stars or better. The Buckeyes recruit elite players and continue to be a national recruiting program – eight states are represented among the 11 commits.
3. One of the most notable recent commitments was three-star Laguna Beach (Calif.) quarterback Jackson Kollock’s commitment to Minnesota.
Kollock, ranked No. 454 in the class, had been committed to Kalen DeBoer in Washington, but reopened his commitment once the staff moved to Alabama. He recently visited San Diego State and Cal but is committed to the Gophers.
“Honestly, it was their consistency,” Kollock quarterback coach Danny Hernandez said when asked about Minnesota’s pursuit. “They made him a priority throughout the whole process. Even when he committed to the UW, they remained friendly. They visited Laguna several times, and when he enlisted, it was his second trip. He loves (PJ) Fleck and believes in their culture. He feels at home there and they have all done a great job making him feel that way.
As of mid-March, Minnesota has yet to receive a commitment in its 2025 class. Kollock is one of three recent additions and is currently the centerpiece of the class. The same day Kollock committed, the Gophers traded three-star defensive lineman Torin Pettaway from Wisconsin. Minnesota also added three-star corner Zachry Harden from Georgia. The Gophers’ class is ranked 46th nationally.
4. Pettaway was one of two recent Wisconsin punts. Three-star athlete Cody Haddad, an Ohio native, decided to go in a different direction after a recent visit to Ohio State.
The Badgers’ seven-member class moved from ninth to 14th. Wisconsin was never going to finish in the top 10, but it’s always tough to lose commits. Luke Fickell signed a top-25 class in his first full cycle, so it will be interesting to see if he can stack another good class on top of that.
5. Tuesday night, four-star Pittsburgh, Calif., high safety Jadyn Hudson revealed her four finalists. Ohio State, Tennessee and USC were included in the group, which is no surprise. UCLA was also listed as a finalist. Brandon Huffman, 247Sports national recruiting editor, reported that Hudson had already planned a visit with the Bruins for the end of May.
NEWS: Four-star safety Jadyn Hudson only has 4️⃣ schools left, he tells me for @on3recruits
The 6’2 185 S from Pittsburg, Calif., is ranked among the top 190 recruits in the ’25 class (by On3)
Where should he go?👇🏽 pic.twitter.com/ph9vbkZL00
-Hayes Fawcett (@Hayesfawcett3) April 3, 2024
This news is further evidence that UCLA will be much more active on the recruiting trail under new coach DeShaun Foster.
UCLA’s high school recruiting during Chip Kelly’s tenure could be described as lethargic. And the Bruins need to make some progress with their lousy efforts. But this is a program that should be recruiting at least at the top-25 level, something Kelly has only done once. UCLA signed seven straight top-20 classes from 2012-2018, including three ranked in the top 15.
Foster is changing that approach and putting a new emphasis on high school recruiting. Time will tell how quickly local recruits will buy in.
Elsewhere in the league
• Maryland’s class received a nice boost with the commitment of four-star linebacker Carlton Smith, a Virginia native who also had reported offers from Penn State, Notre Dame, Miami and Florida, among others. He’s one of two blue-chip prospects — joining athlete Jett White — in a class that ranks 35th nationally.
• Northwestern sits two spots ahead of Maryland at 33rd in the rankings. The Wildcats received a commitment from three-star quarterback Marcus Romain, a Georgia native, who reports an offer from Boston College and interest from various Ivy League programs.
• Other programs around the conference have been relatively quiet. Nebraska hasn’t added a commit in this class since August. Indiana hasn’t received any commitments since early February. Penn State added no commits in March, but still ranks fifth nationally and is seeking four-star quarterback Matt Zollers, who will announce his decision Thursday afternoon. Oregon has a top-25 class, but hasn’t added any recruits to its class in the past month and has changed. Michigan has not received a commitment for the 2025 class since Sherrone Moore was named head coach, while Michigan State is the only school in the league without a 2025 commitment.
Things will change in the coming weeks and months, especially as some top programs such as Oregon, Penn State and Michigan begin welcoming prospects to campus. Stay tuned.
(Ohio State coach Ryan Day photo: Adam Cairns / Columbus Dispatch / USA Today)