Breaking Down the Top 10 College Football Recruits of the Final ESPN 150

With just a few weeks left until National Signing Day, ESPN released its final Top 150 prospects list for the 2012 recruiting class today. 

Unlike last year, when DE Jadeveon Clowney was the universal clear-cut top overall ranked prospect by every major recruiting service, this time around, there's a little bit more room for debate concerning who truly is this year's top overall prospect.

Here's a breakdown of the Top 10 players that the recruiting analysts at ESPN feel are the cream of the crop in the 2012 class.

1. DE Mario Edwards: Billy Ryan HS, Texas

For the fourth time in the last five years, a defensive end sits atop ESPN's final Top 150.

This year, it's pass-rushing terror Mario Edwards out of Billy Ryan High School in Texas.

Edwards is universally considered the top defensive end in the country by every major recruiting service, and if you've watched some of his high school highlights, it's easy to see why.

The 6'4'', 285-pound blue-chip prospect has a radar for quarterbacks that's unlike any other defensive lineman in the nation, and he's spent plenty of time in the opposition's backfield the past few years.

Edwards has the strength to stuff offensive tackles in the running game and the speed to blow by them off the outside as a pass-rusher, and he's the type of player who is physically mature enough to handle himself against top-notch collegiate competition as just a true freshman.

The Florida State commit will have to sit behind Bjoern Werner and Brandon Jenkins in 2012, but the Seminoles coaching staff will definitely figure out a way to get him onto the field in key pass-rushing situations.

2. RB Johnathan Gray: Aledo HS, Texas

It takes a special type of player to set the national high school record with 205 total career touchdowns, and running back Johnathan Gray is certainly that.

Gray burned plenty of defenses during his career at Texas' Aledo high school, and he'll be looking to do the same thing to Big 12 defenses when he makes the move to Austin to play for the Texas Longhorns.

The 5'10'', 205-pound high school senior isn't the biggest back on the block, but his production speaks for itself, and if you've seen the highlights of him blowing by defenses when he was at Aledo, you know that he's a tremendous playmaker.

Gray's got the speed and shiftiness to make would-be tacklers miss on a regular basis, and he's the type of dangerous and explosive runner that can be deadly if he finds his way into the open field.

The 5-star recruit should be a great complement to the bigger, more powerful Malcolm Brown for the next few years at Texas.

3. WR Dorial Green-Beckham: Hillcrest HS, Missouri

Rarely do you see high school athletes who are as big and athletic as WR Dorial Green-Beckham is, which is why the 6'6'', 220-pound physical specimen has been one of the most coveted recruits in the 2012 class for the past year.

Green-Beckham has been blessed with the type of size and natural gifts that you only see in a receiver prospect once every few years. He's the most physically gifted receiver to emerge from the high school ranks since Julio Jones, and the scary part is, he's got the chance to be an even better college player than Jones was.

For as popular as D.G.B has become, though, he's also been equally as mysterious these past few months, as he's been one of the biggest enigmas of the 2012 class.

Green-Beckham has been unusually tight-lipped about where he plans to play his college ball, only letting people know that he's considered schools such as Alabama, Arkansas, Missouri, Oklahoma and Texas during the process.

In the end, the Marques Colston-Andre Johnson hybrid's choice will likely come down to his home-state school, Missouri, and Arkansas, but no matter where he ends up, he's got the chance to make an immediate impact for an offense and become a huge difference-maker as a true freshman.

4. DE Noah Spence: Bishop McDevitt HS, Pennsylvania

Ohio State is already starting to feel the Urban Meyer effect. Meyer has only been in Columbus for a little over a month, yet he's already managed to assemble a recruiting class that's shaping up to be one of the most decorated in the country this year.

Meyer's been reeling in commitments from some of the top players in the Midwest, but the face of the Buckeyes' 2012 class is undoubtedly pass-rushing phenom Noah Spence from Pennsylvania's Bishop McDevitt High School.

Spence is one of the fastest and most athletic defensive linemen in the country, and if the 6'4'', 245-pound high school senior can put a little more bulk onto his frame without losing a step, he's got the chance to develop into an edge-rushing terror in Ohio State's 4-3 scheme.

Spence has the type of first step quickness and burst off the ball that most of the offensive tackles he faced in high school just couldn't handle, and if he can add some more muscle to his frame, and add some more moves to his arsenal, he could develop into one of the best pass-rushers in not just the Big Ten, but the entire country.

5. RB Keith Marshall, Millbrook HS, Georgia

This past season, the Georgia backfield was one of the thinnest in the SEC after the sudden preseason departures of Caleb King and Washaun Ealey, but this year, the Bulldogs should have one of the strongest rushing attacks in the country with Isaiah Crowell and Keith Marshall leading the way.

Both Crowell and Marshall know what it's like to be heralded 5-star recruits, and if Crowell accepts a little friendly competition for carries and helps mentor the younger Marshall, the two should become one of the best 1-2 punches in the country.

Marshall's one of the fastest backs in the country, and he's got the type of speed to be a true home-run threat for the Bulldogs' offense.

At just 5'11'', 190 pounds, he's not going to be the best inside-the-tackles runner you're going to find, but Marshall's got the type of speed to get to the edge and make plays happen in space, and he should be a valuable playmaker for the Georgia offense for years to come.

6. S Landon Collins: Dutchtown HS, Louisiana

Unfortunately for Landon Collins, he became a viral celebrity for all the wrong reasons when he announced his commitment to Alabama live on national television at the Under Armour All-American game, a decision that his mother didn't exactly agree with.

Collins' mom may want him to be an LSU Tiger, but the stud safety is obviously a smart kid who sees the type of big-time defensive backs that Nick Saban is producing at Alabama, and he wants to be the next great Tide safety in the mold of guys like Mark Barron and Robert Lester.

The 6'0'', 210-pound Louisiana native has all the skills to be the next great one, and he's got the range, instincts, athleticism and physicality to develop into a versatile safety in Tuscaloosa.

Collins loves to hit, and he's got the type of speed to run from sideline to sideline.

If Saban and the rest of the defensive coaching staff can teach him all the nuances of the position, we're going to be hearing a lot more about Landon Collins in the near future.

7. OT D.J. Humphries: Mallard Creek HS, North Carolina

Florida's offensive line was a "work in progress" last year, as there were certainly a good deal of instances when the Gators' front five showed their inexperience, but with ultra-talented tackle D.J. Humphries now set to join the mix, it should be interesting to see where he fits into the equation in 2012.

Humphries is the type of tackle who is far ahead of the learning curve at this point in his development, and with his type of footwork, strength, athleticism and tenacity, he's going to be a very valuable force to have in the trenches down there in Gainesville.

The 6'6'', 275-pound North Carolina native is considered one of the elite offensive line prospects by every major recruiting service, and with his type of frame and skill-set, it shouldn't take long for Humphries to break into the lineup, whether it's teaming with Chaz Green at tackle or moving inside to guard.

8. ATH Davonte Neal: Chapparal HS, Arizona

Davonte Neal is one of those special types of athletes who has the diverse skill-set to play a variety of different positions at the college level, and it's that kind of versatility that makes him one of the most valuable recruits in the country this year.

Neal has been blessed with game-changing, lightning-quick speed, and there are very few players at the college level who will be able to beat the 5'10'', 175-pound speedster in a foot race.

The Arizona native would be an effective playmaker on either side of the ball at either wide receiver or cornerback, and he also adds value as a dangerous return man.

With schools like Arkansas, North Carolina, Notre Dame and Ohio State all chasing him, it should be interesting to see which school Neal ultimately chooses.

If he ends up with the Buckeyes, it wouldn't be surprising to see him fill a Percy Harvin-type of role in Urban Meyer's spread offense.

9. OT Andrus Peat: Corona Del Sol HS, Arizona

Elite offensive tackle prospects tend to stick out like a sore thumb on their high school teams, as they usually tower over their teammates in the huddle,.

Let's just say it definitely wasn't very difficult to pick out OT Andrus Peat when Corona Del Sol took the field.

Measuring in at 6'7", 305 lbs., Peat is a monstrous young man who certainly passes the eyeball test.

He's the type of tackle that made you feel sorry for the kids he lined up against, as he routinely destroyed any unfortunate defensive player who crossed his path.

Peat isn't just your average big road-grader, though. He's got remarkable body control and agility for his size, which is why many consider him to be a future franchise type of tackle.

With Florida State, Nebraska, Stanford and USC all still in the running to land him, it should be very interesting to see which school Peat ends up choosing by the time National Signing Day rolls around.

10. DT Eddie Goldman: Collegiate Academy, Washington D.C.

Intimidating, scary, terrifying—there are a lot of different frightening-sounding adjectives that you could use to describe enormous 5-star defensive tackle recruit Eddie Goldman, but in the end, all it takes is one good look at him to really get the picture.

Goldman is the type of big, powerful interior defensive force that can send shivers down the spines of even the most hardened offensive linemen, and he's the kind of defensive lineman that can alter how an offense has to game-plan.

The 6'4'', 310-pound middle-man is one of the rare defensive tackles who is big enough to control the line of scrimmage and eat up double teams, and quick enough to penetrate and make plays in the backfield.

It's easy to see why schools like Alabama, Auburn, California, Florida State and Miami have all lined up to try to sign Goldman.