Ask Farrell: UNC's class is a stunner; who else has surprised?
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There are more than seven months until the Early Signing Period. But there has been a lot of recruiting action taking place this offseason, and a lot of storylines have emerged.
Clemson has jumped to No. 1 overall in the team recruiting rankings after back-to-back-to-back-to-back five-star commitments. The national champ might not be done this month, as five-star defensive end Myles Murphy is planning to announce his commitment with Clemson, Georgia and Auburn as his top three.
LSU is off to a fantastic start and sits in second place with three five-star commitments, and they are all from outside the region: Santa Ana (Calif.) Mater Dei’s Elias Ricks, Washington (D.C.) St. John’s Rakim Jarrett and Woodbridge, Va., standout Antoine Sampah.
Alabama is sitting in third place with one five-star pledge in Baltimore (Md.) St. Frances’ Chris Braswell, and the Crimson Tide just flipped four-star athlete Drew Sanders from Oklahoma.
In fourth place is Miami followed by Florida State and Florida, respectively, as the battle to win the Sunshine State continues to stay hot and heavy this offseason.
Penn State is edging out Ohio State - even though the Buckeyes have a five-star pledge and the Nittany Lions don’t - to sit atop the Big Ten rankings and then the top 10 is rounded out by Notre Dame, Ohio State and North Carolina.
There is no question the Tar Heels are the biggest surprise to have a top 10 class, especially after going 2-9 last season and getting rid of Larry Fedora. New coach Mack Brown has done a phenomenal job so far in Chapel Hill by landing four four-stars already.
FARRELL'S TAKE
Other than North Carolina, we ask Rivals.com National Recruiting Director Mike Farrell which team among the top 10 has been the most surprising, whether it’s Clemson’s five-star run, LSU’s ability to stay ahead of Alabama or someone else completely?
“It’s LSU, by far. The way the Tigers are recruiting nationally is very impressive and unlike anything I’ve seen from them in all my years covering recruiting. To land a five-star from D.C., a four-star from Maryland, a five-star from California, a four-star from Georgia and so on is very impressive.
"If they continue to recruit this way for a couple of years, they will break through in the SEC if the coaching holds up. I’m impressed by Clemson, but the Tigers are no surprise, and the others - aside from UNC - are regulars in our recruiting rankings. LSU is as well, but not recruiting nationally like this.”