Ohio State leaving Big Ten in dust in recruiting rankings Posted by Kevin McGuire on February 5, 2014, 3:13 PM EST Getty ImagesThe SEC may be dominant at the top fo the Rivals team rankings a little more than midway through National Signing Day, but the Ohio State Buckeyes are once again in the mix among the top recruiting classes in the nation. Ohio State is also leaving many of their Big Ten rivals in the dust when comparing recruiting profiles so far. The updated team rankings compiled by Rivals currently sees Ohio State ranked third overall, trailing Alabama and LSU and sitting just ahead of defending BCS champion Florida State and an impressive Tennessee class. The Buckeyes have 23 players in their Class of 2014, including 15 four-star recruits and one five-star player. That is some serious quality depth being added to the roster in Columbus by Urban Meyer and his staff. You have to move all the way down to No. 21 to find the next Big Ten team in the Rivals team rankings and only two other Big Ten schools are ranked in the top 25 according to Rivals. The 2013 Big Ten champions from Michigan State are ranked 21st overall. The Spartans lost a commitment to Ohio State today when defensive end Darius Slade out of New Jersey made a last-minute decision to sign with Ohio State. That took some of the steam out of the recruiting victory for in-state talent Malik McDowell, but the Spartans continue to develop tough players that sometimes fly under the radar. Penn State is putting together a solid class despite missing some scholarships as well. The Nittany Lions are currently ranked No. 23 by Rivals after completing their day’s action. Penn State head coach James Franklin and his staff did a solid job in a short period of time by adding six four-star players to add depth wherever possible. Franklin has said many players should expect to be available to play right away this season due to limited roster options under NCAA sanctions. What should be concerning for the big Ten is the fact Penn State was able to pull together just the third top 25 class with NCAA sanctions while programs such as Michigan (No. 31), Nebraska (No. 32) and Wisconsin (No. 33) are lagging behind. If the Big Ten is going to compete with the likes of the SEC and Pac 12, these are all programs that will have to put together some more respected classes in the future. Of course, Ohio State has dominated in recruiting since Urban Meyer arrived as head coach two years ago and last year the Buckeyes failed to win the Big Ten. Recruiting victories are nice, but Michigan State will tell you what victories really matter. Rivals.com Big Ten Team Rankings No. 3 Ohio State No. 21 Michigan State No. …
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