I have come up with my first set of regional rankings. The regions included
are the SEC/ACC region which also included Louisville, Miami, and Virginia
Tech. A key for the table headings is below.
Re-signs from the previous class are not
factored into the rankings, but JuCos were. Although Junior College players are
weighted based on the years of eligibilty they have.
The total rank is My Subjective
opinion based on player knowledge and the player rankings by TheInsiders.com.
If you have a question or comment about the rankings, please visit the Super
Prep Recruiting Forum.
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These rankings will be updated every Wednesday until January. In January, they
will be updated daily.
#1 LSU: The Tigers finished with the #1 Class in the Region
last year, and Nick Saban and company have picked up right where they left off.
This class has excellent balance and is heavy on the big eaters. Several
Offensive linemen and Defensive Tackles dot the commitment list. LSU is going to
be hard to catch this year in the recruiting races.
Headliner: Glenn
Dorsey
Big Fish on the Hook: Early
Doucet
#2 Miami: The rich keep getting richer in Coral Gables. This class is
a bit top heavy with running backs, but one can never have enough big, fast
athletes, and each will have the chance to play early.
Headliner: Charlie
Jones
Big Fish on the Hook: Willie
Williams
#3 Maryland: The Terrapins may be one of the biggest surprises of the
season. Maryland has one of the best coaching staffs in the country, and now
they are upgrading the talent level to a championship level.
Headliner: J.J.
Justice
Big Fish on the Hook: Derrick
Harvey
#4 Georgia: The Bulldogs closed the gates on the Peach State last
year, and they are in the process of doing the same again this year. While there
are too many good players in the state of Georgia for the Bulldogs to get them
all, they have certainly been getting their pick of the litter (no pun
intended).
Headliner: Charles
Johnson
Big Fish on the Hook: Brandon
Miller
#5 Alabama: The Crimson Tide still can't sign a full class, but they
are no longer recruiting under the cloud of NCAA sanctions and the Tide is
poised to have its best class in several years.
Headliner: Nikita
Stover
Big Fish on the Hook: David
Brown
#6 Virginia: No one has questioned Al Groh's ability to bring in
talents, and this is another solid Class. Tom Santi was a coup at tight end to
pull him out of Tennessee. The best newcomer in this class doesn't count towards
the rankings. Philip Brown is the best corner I've seen this year, but he
counted on last year's class.
Headliner: Tom
Santi
Big Fish on the Hook: Olu
Hall
#7 Arkansas: Here's the scary thing about the Hawg class, the four
players widely considered the four top prospects in their class are at Hargrave
and don't count on this year's rankings. They have an early #7 ranking, and four
huge players coming from Hargrave.
Headliner: Fred
Barnett
Big Fish on the Hook: Peyton
Hillis
#8 Tennessee: The Vols have dipped into the Junior College ranks to
pick up some Beef on the offensive and defensve line. No matter how good this
class may turn out to be, Tennessee is going to be judged on filling its need at
QB.
Headliner: Demonte
Bolden
Big Fish on the Hook: Chase
Patton
#9 South Carolina: The Gamecocks recruited extremely well the past
two years, and they are on the right track again. South Carolina closed with a
bang last season and with some of the big fish still on the hook, they are
poised to do so again.
Headliner: Jonathan
Joseph
Big Fish on the Hook: Leon
Hart
#10 North Carolina: North Carolina's class is very similar to
Arkansas'. While they have a solid core of players for the class of 2004, they
have four absolute studs at Hargrave Military Academy. Arkansas has the
offensive line there, and North Carolina has the defensive line. Players like
Terry Hunter should make an immediate impact.
Headliner: Martell
Thatch
Big Fish on the Hook: Demario
Pressley
#11 Auburn: One of the big topics on the Auburn message board has
been, how will this administrative mess affect recruiting? Auburn is still on
several big time players, so Tommy Tuberville and his staff will have the chance
to answer that question.
Headliner: Brad
Lester
Big Fish on the Hook: Tony
Bell
#12 Florida State: Anyone expect Florida State to finish out of the
Top 10 in the Region? I don't. Florida State is taking its time and will close
with a bang, just like every year. The commitments that are already in the fold
are top notch.
Headliner: Jamaal
Edwards
Big Fish on the Hook: Xavier
Lee
#13 Vanderbilt: Vanderbilt is short on scholarship numbers, so this
is as high as they will likely climb for this class, but this has been a great
recruiting effort for the Commodores. They have met their needs at running back,
added a big play wide receiver and tight end, and some beef on the offensive
line.
Headliner: Brad
Allen
Big Fish on the Hook: Lamar
Divens
#14 Georgia Tech: Georgia Tech has made more of an effort to commit
the home state this year, and it has paid off with some big in state
commitments. Tech is a couple of prospects away from breaking through to the
next level in recruiting this year.
Headliner: Eric
Williams
Big Fish on the Hook: Calvin
Johnson
#15 Kentucky: The Wildcats have met their needs at running back and
then some this year. Joe Casey is a big bruising back that will help mix with
the speed that the cats signed last season. Rafael Little is an athlete that can
play running back, receiver, or defensive back.
Headliner: Joe
Casey
Big Fish on the Hook: Mario
Urrutia
#16 Clemson: The Tigers loaded up on some blue collar prospects
early, and with a big finish to the season, Clemson looks like they could add
some star power late.
Headliner: Cullen
Harper
Big Fish on the Hook: Cory
Lambert
#17 Ole Miss: The Rebels just completed their most successful season
in years, and recruiting is just starting to heat up. Corey Kizer and Chris
Bowers are big time. Most of the top players in Mississippi make their decisions
late, and Ole Miss is right there with almost all of them.
#18 Virginia Tech: The Hokies have gotten off to a slow start in overall
numbers, but they have some big time talent on the list already. The heir
apparent at running back looks to be on the commitment list already.
Headliner: George
Bell
Big Fish on the Hook: Eddie
Royal
#19 Duke: Ted Roof has recently come into Georgia and picked up some
stellar commitments. His most important recruiting job will to be keep running
back Justin Boyle. He is currently listed at linebacker, but he will be
re-ranked at running back, and his stock has soared with a strong senior season.
Headliner: Justin
Boyle
Big Fish on the Hook: Dannell
Ellerbe
#20 NC State: NC State is all over the state of Florida this year,
and while they aren't long on numbers yet, they have a lot of room to add blue
chippers from instate and out.
Headliner: Gerard
Miller
Big Fish on the Hook: Willie
Young
#21 Wake Forest: Wake Forest has several scholarships left open and
have been one of the most underrated programs on the field and on the recruiting
trails in the south the past three years.
Headliner: Jeremy
Thompson
Big Fish on the Hook: Marcus
Edwards
#22 Mississippi State: The Bulldogs have owned the state of
Mississippi the past two years, but this was a slow year with the uncertainty of
the coaching situation. Now that Sylvester Croom has been named coach, look for
State to begin their ascent up the recruiting charts.
Headliner: Roland
Terry
Big Fish on the Hook: Terrell
Jackson
#23 Florida: Okay, so the Gators are sitting from next to last on the
December list. How long should that last? One week? Two Weeks? Ron Zook and his
staff have poised themselves for another monster recruiting season.
Headliner: Markus
Manson
Big Fish on the Hook: Xavier
Carter
#24 Louisville: The Cardinals are new to the Regional Recruiting
rankings, and they haven't even begun to warm up yet.
Headliner: Maurice
Mitchell
Big Fish on the Hook: Brian
Brohm
Key:
Rank: Current ranking of recruiting classes
Team: Team name in ranking
Commits: Total # of commitments to date
Total *: Total number of stars for verbal commitments, Non-Ranked Players
were estimated
Avg *: Average stars per player committed
Avg. Player Rank: Average player rank for each player at each position. Non
Ranked players were estimated. Kickers and Punters were not included in this
calculation because the
small number of players at the positions skews the rankings.
Headliner: Top Verbal Commitment
Big Fish on the Hook: Top Player on the board that said school has a
better than average chance of signing.