The 2011 recruiting season has come to an end for the most part (a couple recruits here or there have yet to decide), meaning recruiting rankings are basically finalized. The obvious disclaimer with all recruiting rankings is that stars don't guarantee success in college football, but rather they are an indicator of a player's potential on the next level. Signing a highly ranked class doesn't mean anything if the coaches don't do a good job with the talent they assemble (just look at Notre Dame for the last 15 years), but it is fun to talk about the rankings aspect of recruiting.
↵For the Big Ten, Ohio State finished with the highest-rated class on Rivals.com, coming in at No. 11 in the nation. Nebraska is second in the Big Ten, finishing 15th in the country. Michigan is next in the conference, coming in at No. 21 despite having a class in shambles just a few weeks ago. Iowa is fourth at No. 29, and Michigan State rounds out the top five of the Big Ten, coming in at No. 31.
↵Scout.com's rankings for 2011 have Ohio State third in the nation, so the Buckeyes are obviously on top of the Big Ten as well. The rest of the top five for the conference is as follows (national ranking is in parentheses): Nebraska (23rd), Iowa (26th), Michigan (27th) and Michigan State (29th).
↵On ESPN, only Ohio State and Nebraska are ranked in the top 25 for the Big Ten.