College Football Recruiting 2013: The Top Recruiting Target Each Top 25 Team

Just for fun and to give you a quick look at how some of pre-season polls may appear later on this summer, I'm going to run down the top 25 teams for 2012 and give you their top recruiting target for 2013.

The poll that I will be using is this ESPN Poll, so don't chop my head off about the rankings as I'm following the poll ESPN debuted a few months ago. But this is a recruiting story so we're going to be working that angle.

Let's start this up!

25. Louisville

The Cardinals check in at No. 25 on this poll, and I think they have a bright future. With Teddy Bridgewater getting his feet wet at QB last year, the Miami native is the QB of future and pretty much the now for Charlie Strong.

I say let's get Bridgewater some help on the flanks. That's why I feel Louisville's top target right now is Kentucky native and top-tier WR prospect James Quick.

24. N.C. State

The Wolfpack haven't exactly lit it up under Tom O'Brien, but this year could be the spark to get them moving up. They have flashed good play at times, and the program is capable of winning big.

I have WR Marquez North down as N.C. State's top recruiting target this year. He's a 6'3", 205-pounder with great size and speed. North seems to like the Wolfpack right now, but it's early.

23. Notre Dame

Ah yes, the Irish.

Notre Dame might not have the preseason hype and buzz of last year at this time, but South Bend will be rockin' in 2012. Brian Kelly has shown to be formidable recruiter, and the Irish have an arrow pointing up.

The top target this year is OLB Jaylon Smith, an Indiana native. Smith is a 6'3", 225-pounder with great athleticism, quickness, vision to ball-carriers and could play a SAM role. 

22. Clemson

The Tigers are still licking their wounds from that Orange Bowl loss to WVU, but Dabo Swinney will have this team ready to go in 2012. He's put together two consecutive Top 10 classes and is on the rise.

Swinney's top target is the nation's No. 1 overall prospect, DL Robert Nkemdiche. Nkemdiche has visited Clemson twice in March and has them among his top suitors.

Kendall Fuller also is a huge priority for the Tigers.

21. Texas

Texas hasn't been Texas the past couple seasons, but with the recruiting classes Mack Brown has put together over the years, they'll be back soon. Maybe even this year, depending on if David Ash develops.

If Ash doesn't, that will open the door for current Texas commit and top target QB Tyrone Swoopes to play right away. Swoopes is a 6'5", 220-pound dual-threat QB who has some Vince Young magic in him. 

20. Boise State

The Broncos will face the daunting task of replacing perhaps the greatest player in school history, QB Kellen Moore. Yet I think Chris Petersen will be up to the challenge, and BSU will be in the mix again.

On the recruiting front, the Broncos don't get 5-star prospects and not many 4-star recruits, either. I'm going with current Bronco commit LB Joey Martarano as the Broncos' biggest target. 

19. Wisconsin

Wisconsin will be in the Big Ten race yet again this season. Bret Bielema is becoming a top-tier coach and has done a great job at Camp Randall.

The Badgers aren't a sexy recruiting powerhouse, but they've pulled in some great prospects over the years. This year the top target is 6'5", 265-pound DL Joey Bosa of Florida.

Bosa has the Badgers as one of his leaders.

18. Virginia Tech

Logan Thomas returns to Blacksburg as the QB of the Hokies, and of course Frank Beamer is there. The Hokies are a prime example of consistency in college football, as they win a lot of games and go to bowls every year.

Five-star DB/WR Kendall Fuller of Maryland is the top target in Virginia Tech's 2013 recruiting efforts. Fuller is back from a visit to Blacksburg that seemed to go well, based on reports. 

17. Stanford

David Shaw faces life without Andrew Luck and will have to decide between Josh Nunes and Brett Nottingham as the Cardinal QB going forward.

Fresh off a top-tier class in 2012, Stanford will be looking to do it again in 2013. The Cardinal's top target has actually committed to Stanford; 6'5", 220-pound QB Ryan Burns of Virginia pledged to Shaw last month. 

16. Oklahoma State

The Pokes come back sans QB Brandon Weeden and WR Justin Blackmon. Will the offense still put up points? We'll see.

On the trail, I think the player to go after hard for OSU is RB Dontre Wilson. He's a 5'10", 180-pound speedster from Texas with scat back ability. 

15. TCU

Most of the top skill position players return for Gary Patterson, including QB Casey Pachall. It's go-time in Fort Worth as the Horned Frogs make the jump up to the Big 12, the conference they've been wanting entrance to for quite some time.

Recruiting-wise, the top target is 6'5", 220-pound QB Cody Thomas of Texas. Thomas is also a solid baseball player.

14. Arkansas

I said around this time last year that Tyler Wilson was the best QB in the SEC and he's back in Fayetteville this year for Bobby Petrino.

However, the Hogs have to replace several stars such as Jake Bequette, Joe Adams and Greg Childs.

6'3", 220 pound linebacker Chans Cox out of Arizona is the top target right on the trail. 

13. Nebraska

Taylor Martinez and Rex Burkehead return to Lincoln, but Lavonte David, Al Dennard and Jared Crick are gone. Carl Pelini has also left to get to FAU to be their head coach so Be Pelini will have to circle the wagons.

However, 5-star DB/OLB Su'a Cravens has plans to visit Nebraska at some point and he has to be Big Red's top target. 6'1", 200 pounds, Cravens could play SS, FS, OLB, RB or WR in college. 

12. Kansas State

Finishing 10-2 last year, K-State was one of the biggest surprises of the 2011 season. Bill Snyder has uber-productive QB Collin Klein back in Manhattan, and the Wildcats will contend in the Big 12.

Yet Snyder pulled in one of the worst classes in the country in 2012, so 2013 has to be better. Elite DB prospect Kamerion Miles, a 6'2", 200-pounder, is the top target for KSU now. 

11. Michigan

Brady Hoke hauled in a Top 10 class and won the Sugar Bowl, all in his initial season as lead Wolverine. Ann Arbor is full of big expectations, and Denard Robinson is back to see them through.

On the recruiting front, the Wolverines already have a hot class for 2013, with 5-star QB Shane Morris leading the way. Their top target now is 6'3", 220-pound RB Ty Isaac of Joilet, Ill.

10. South Carolina

The Gamecocks will have to replace WR Alshon Jeffrey, CB Stephon Gilmore and DE Melvin Ingram, but if Marcus Lattimore is healthy and Jadeveon Clowney can continue developing, they'll compete in the SEC East.

Steve Spurrier has done a solid job on the trail the past few years, so there's young talent in Columbia. The top target for Spurrier—6'6", 305-pound OT D.J. Park of Dillon, S.C.—has already committed.

9. Michigan State

Mark Dantonio is quietly establishing himself as one of the better head coaches in the country. The Spartans have to replace Kirk Cousins at QB and Jerel Worthy at DT, but four starters are back on the OL, and eight starters return on defense.

The top target is 6'4", 285-pound DL Eddie Vandergoes out of California, who seems to be very interested in Michigan State. Vandergoes has great play strength and shedding skills. 

8. Florida State

The Seminoles have put together some recruiting classes the past three years that wold compare to some of Bobby Bowden's great ones—on paper, that is. Jimbo Fisher has proven to be a great recruiter, and in all likelihood, it will continue in 2013.

The top target this year is between 5-star OT Laremy Tunsil and 5-star CB Vernon Hargreaves. Both players are the best at their positions for 2013.

7. West Virginia

How good will this offense be in 2012?

Geno Smith is back at QB, as are WRs Tavon Austin and Stedman Bailey. The defense will have to do their part, because the offense surely will be doing theirs.

Matthew Thomas, a 6'2", 200-pound 5-star LB prospect out of Florida, is the Mountaineers' top target. However, Dana Holgorsen will have to outwork Miami, Florida and perhaps Alabama to land him.

6. Georgia

The Bulldogs return franchise QB Aaron Murray along with RB Isaiah Crowell and WR Malcolm Mitchell. I expect Keith Marshall to make an impact and UGA to compete for an SEC title in 2012. 

On the recruiting side of things, the top target is Robert Nkemdiche, but I think Nkemdiche will head elsewhere. Reuben Foster is headed to Alabama, so that leaves OT Laremy Tunsil as the top realistic target. 

5. Oklahoma

The Sooners opened the season as the premier squad in the country, but fell on hard times.

However, it's a new year in Norman, and Bob Stoops is one of the best coaches in the country. QB Landry Jones is back, and we finally get to see WR Trey Metoyer on the field.

The top target in the Sooners' 2013 recruiting is 5-star QB Max Browne, the nation's No. 1 QB in the country. Oklahoma looks good for Browne, as does USC.

4. Oregon

The Ducks won the Pac-12 last year and capped it off with a win over Wisconsin in the Rose Bowl. Even though Darron Thomas and LaMichael James are gone, the Ducks will feature speed demon De'Anthony Thomas.

On the recruiting front, Chip Kelly has already landed his biggest target in RB Thomas Tyner of Beaverton, Ore. Tyner is a 6'0", 200-pounder who is the fastest player in the 2013 class.

That's just what other Pac-12 schools wanted the Ducks to get—more speed. 

3. Alabama

The Tide are a rock-solid program and a recruiting juggernaut. A.J. McCarron showed some growth in the national title game, and Dee Hart, Eddie Lacy and T.J. Yeldon can all help replace Trent Richardson.

The defense will need some replacements, but the Tide's roster is stocked with immense talent, so that shouldn't be a problem at all.

Obviously, Robert Nkemdiche is the top target, as Reuben Foster has already committed to Alabama. 

2. USC

The Trojans are back to the way they were under Pete Carroll, and Lane Kiffin will try to win a Rose Bowl and perhaps more with Matt Barkley back under center. USC may have the two best WRs in the country in Robert Woods and Marqise Lee.

But it's the defense that has shown the most improvement, as Monte Kiffin will look to take his unit to another level in 2012.

On the trail, Max Browne is an elite target for the Trojans. He's the nation's No. 1 QB prospect and would also help attract 5-star DB/OLB Su'a Cravens. Five-star DL Kenny Bigelow is already pledged to USC. 

1. LSU

No disrespect to Jordan Jefferson, but he just wasn't good. Period. I think he held the LSU offense back with his poor decision-making, bad fundamentals and lack of passing skills.

Anywho, Zach Mettenberger should be a better passer as QB of the Tigers, who have a roster stocked with talent.

Their top target is also Robert Nkemdiche.