Three-Point Stance: Big Ten recruiting, star freshmen, NCAA legislation

Rivals.com National Recruiting Director Mike Farrell’s thought-provoking Three-Point Stance is here with a recruiting snapshot of the Big Ten, some true freshmen that excelled in the spring and a rule the NCAA should pass.

MORE: 2018 Big Ten team recruiting rankings | Recruits predict commitments

Midway through the spring evaluation period, it’s time to look at each Power Five conference and take a quick snapshot of recruiting like we do every year around this time. Today we examine the Big Ten.

Biggest get: DB Brendan Radley-Hiles, Nebraska – Ohio State has higher-ranked commitments, but Nebraska keeping the Calibraska movement going and landing a physical leader like Radley-Hiles is arguably a bigger deal.

Biggest surprise: DB Josh Proctor, Ohio State – This was a bit of a stunner as Ohio State was not expected to pull the top defensive back from Oklahoma out of the state so early. I guess you could say that nothing Urban Meyer accomplishes in recruiting is a surprise, but this was a stunner.

Great start: Penn State – The Nittany Lions have been first or second in the national rankings for a while now, and even after losing five-star Micah Parsons they lead the Big Ten in recruiting. Ten of their 13 commitments are four-stars; a better start couldn’t be asked for coming off a conference title.

Surprising start: Minnesota – P.J. Fleck is a great recruiter, so I guess this isn’t a huge surprise, but every commit in the class is a three-star and he’s starting in the Midwest and working his way out. Northwestern is right up here with the Gophers as well with double-digit three-stars.

Rough start: Illinois – Remember when everyone was excited about the hire of Lovie Smith? Not me, as I felt he would struggle recruiting after so much time away from the college game. With two commitments, neither of them highly coveted, this hasn’t been a great start.

Recruiting battle to watch: Penn State vs. Ohio State and Michigan – We all know all eyes are on Jim Harbaugh and Meyer, but Penn State is in the mix for many prospects both of those programs covet as well and have won its share of battles.

Must keep: OL Jackson Carman – The best offensive lineman prospect from the Midwest in years? Perhaps if he can get back to his playing weight and shed some offseason pounds. A huge must-keep for the Big Ten? No doubt and most feel Ohio State will lock him up.

Do or die: Michigan State – Mark Dantonio isn’t on the hot seat, but after last season’s debacle and some off-field issues, he needs to get some serious recruiting momentum back. With schools like Kentucky hurting them in Ohio and Michigan, Ohio State and Penn State battling the Spartans in the Midwest, this is an important recruiting year, and they need some recruiting upsets.

Last week I mentioned a few players to keep an eye on for next season that have emerged this spring, but only one was a true freshman (Cam Akers, Florida State). So how about a few more true freshmen who are already showing signs of potential stardom for their new teams? Here you go.

DB Lamont Wade, Penn State – Wade, a five-star in the 2017 class, carries himself with confidence and plays bigger than his size. That will be crucial with John Reid down with injury. Wade’s initial strong impression on the Penn State staff and team is no surprise.

WR Jerry Jeudy, Alabama – I could have gone Najee Harris or Tua Tagovailoa here, but Jeudy had a breakout spring game and shows all the signs of being the next great Florida prospect to light it up at Bama.

QB Hendon Hooker, Virginia Tech – This is a bit of a surprise to me as I always saw Hooker as a tall, skinny project and never expected him to compete for the starting job from day one. So far, he’s ahead of schedule.

LB Avery Roberts, Nebraska – The way Roberts threw his body around and was in on numerous plays in the spring game was indicative of how he arrived on campus – fearless and ready. Roberts was highly touted, especially out of a state like Delaware, but he has already stepped up his game as the competition level has stepped up.

DB Elijah Hicks, Cal – Hicks was a huge commitment for the Bears because of his versatility and athleticism and he has fit in well on defense. Like most on this list, he entered college with confidence and the inability to be intimidated, and he should impact very early.

WR Tarik Black, Michigan – Donovan Peoples-Jones was the five-star and got much of the early praise in the spring, but Black was equally impressive and more consistent from start to finish. Both wide receivers will be counted on, and DPJ has the higher ceiling, but Black just keeps getting better and better.

RB J.K. Dobbins, Ohio State – We saw what Dobbins could do in high school, we just last saw it during his junior year after he missed all but one play of his senior season due to injury. He’s already rising on the depth chart and could instantly be that change-of-pace guy to Mike Weber or take on the role of Curtis Samuel.

RB Trey Sermon, Oklahoma – The next Samaje Perine? Could be. He’s a between-the-tackles monster who showed off his power and sneaky quickness in the spring game. OU has depth at running back, but Sermon could be the most powerful option already.

DB Jaylin Dickerson, South Carolina – From mid-level three-star guy to someone Will Muschamp, a defensive back guru, raves about and ensures will play as a true freshman, Dickerson is one of those guys who never slowed down with the transition to greater competition. He showed he can not only thump in college, but his coverage skills are better than expected.

DE Jaelan Phillips, UCLA – Phillips, a five-star in the 2017 class, is still raw as heck, but you can’t argue with the sheer athleticism and freaky length he has. He’ll come off the edge right away and have an instant impact on the UCLA defense. He could eventually be an upgrade athletically over first-rounder Takkarist McKinley, and that’s scary.

The NCAA has a chance to do something right.

Remember when I said a couple of years ago that we’d see some big-time players skipping bowl games after Notre Dame linebacker Jaylon Smith’s horrendous injury against Ohio State in the non-playoff Fiesta Bowl? It cost Smith a surefire first-round selection and millions of dollars.

Last year Leonard Fournette and Christian McCaffrey skipped their bowl games and landed in the top eight of the NFL Draft, sending a clear message from the NFL to college players that skipping bowls is just fine. As a result, the American Football Coaches Association is proposing that players be allowed to play in up to four games in a season and not lose their redshirt status for the year.

Most feel the push behind this proposal is the expectation that more and more highly projected NFL Draft prospects will skip non-playoff bowl games (or heck, maybe even playoff games) or even the end of a disappointing season in the future. Let’s face it, we aren’t far from the first player to skip his entire redshirt sophomore or junior year to prepare for the NFL, as many suggested to Jadeveon Clowney and Fournette.

This would be a great rule to pass and will eventually lead to a full five years of eligibility for all college football players, something that will be a must as the game advances and high-tempo offense become more and more the rage. I’m certainly against top players skipping games because they owe it to their teammates at the very least to play until the end, but clearly the NFL doesn’t hold it against them, so an adjustment of the rules in advance of a potential trend is a smart move here. Let’s hope this becomes a reality.