Will No. 1 Overall Recruit Rashan Gary Commit to SEC or Big Ten School?

The recruitment of 5-star defensive tackle and No. 1 overall recruit Rashan Gary is coming into focus less than five months before signing day.

While Gary has yet to officially trim his list, he did offer a nugget to Ryan Bartow of 247Sports that puts schools in two conferences squarely in the picture.

“When my (final) list comes out you’ll see the majority of my schools are either SEC or Big Ten,” Gary told Bartow.

Michigan, Ohio State and Rutgers are among the top contenders for Gary from the Big Ten, while SEC powers such as Alabama, Auburn, Georgia and LSU are among his primary suitors located down south.

Which league will Gary ultimately be playing in next fall?

It’s still a little too early to tell, as schools in both leagues have held the momentum with him at various points in his recruitment.

Right now, as Bartow notes, the SEC seems to be trending with the 6’4”, 311-pounder.

A summer swing through the SEC saw schools such as Auburn, Georgia and LSU—which got him on campus twice within one-month period—surge with him.

LSU defensive line coach Ed Orgeron is part of the reason why Gary is intrigued with heading to Baton Rouge.

“Just the people,” Gary told Bartow on what impressed him at LSU. “I had to have my mom see it because my mom is a big part of my decision. To see if she had the same vibe I had from it. (Orgeron) coaches the d-line. That’s what he’s known for. He coached Leonard Williams. That’s who I feel I play like. I have the same body type. Coach (Orgeron) is great and I feel I could maybe be one of his next (great defensive linemen).”

Also, he’s planning an official visit to Auburn for Nov. 28 when they host in-state rival Alabama.

However, Michigan is still the school that holds perhaps the most connections with Gary.

His former head coach at Paramus Catholic High School in New Jersey was Chris Partridge, who is now a recruiting operations assistant with the Wolverines.

That type of familiarity is a big plus for the Wolverines. 

“Coach Partridge is my [former] coach,” Gary said. “He knows the type of defensive scheme I like and do well in. He knows the type of people I like to be around. He would keep my mom updated.”

Additionally, the Wolverines have recruited the Garden State native hard in the 2016 cycle. Head coach Jim Harbaugh has been able to land commitments from three fellow New Jersey standouts already, which can only help them in their quest to lock up Gary.

Counting out a program with the recruiting clout that Ohio State has would also be unwise at this stage.

Heading down the stretch of his recruitment, his visit schedule will likely give an indication of where he is leaning.

While the SEC has more schools in the group of programs vying for his visits, expect all of the schools recruiting Gary—including his Big Ten favorites—to continue to push hard down to the wire in hopes of landing his commitment on signing day.

Sanjay Kirpalani is a National Recruiting Analyst for Bleacher Report. Unless otherwise noted, all quotes obtained firsthand and all recruiting information courtesy of 247Sports.