College Football Recruiting 2017: Ranking the Top 25 States in America

The 2017 college football recruiting cycle featured dozens of 5-star prospects, hundreds of 4-stars and a massive collection of 3-star talents for programs around the nation.

But where were the highest concentrations of that talent? And which teams prioritized and enjoyed the most success in a given state?

Everyone can point to the high school hotbeds of California, Florida and Texas for elite players, and rightfully so. They consistently showcase elite recruits. Just two other states had multiple 5-star prospects, according to Scout's 2017 rankings, resulting in a congested pack of states fighting for recognition.

To find the top 25 states in the 2017 class, we separated every player with at least a 3-star rating. Then, a point system (three for 3-stars, four for 4-stars, five for 5-stars) formulated the final score.

Junior college prospects and transfers were not included in the list. American Samoa and Washington, D.C., were also calculated, but neither finished in the top 25. 

25. Oregon

Recruiting Points: 49

Iowa also provided 15 prospects, but four 4-stars helped Oregon earn the final spot in the rankings.

Marlon Tuipulotu was the highest-rated player at No. 53, and he signed with USC. Elijah Molden (Washington), Connor Neville (Washington State) and David Morris (Oregon State) headlined the rest of the state's talent, which is largely staying on the West Coast.

With two signees apiece, USC, Oregon, Oregon State and Washington made the biggest splashes.

24. Hawaii

Recruiting Points: 50

Tua Tagovailoa, a top 4-star recruit for Alabama, is the undisputed king of Hawaii. But a couple of his Saint Louis School teammates are also headed to the Football Bowl Subdivision.

Four-star Isaac Slade-Matautia (Oregon) and 3-star Michael Minihan (Georgia Tech) were ranked second and fourth in Hawaii, respectively. Sandwiched between them was Adam Stack, a 3-star who is joining Slade-Matautia in Eugene.

While Nick Saban and the Tide stole the prized prospect, Oregon State and Utah both grabbed three qualifying talents.

23. Nevada

Recruiting Points: 64

Largely thanks to Bishop Gorman and Desert Pines, Nevada boasted an impressive bunch of FBS-bound talents. The high schools combined for 15 of the state's 19 qualifiers.

Ohio State signee Tate Martell—who technically attended both schools this year, oddly enough—highlighted the top 150 players. The Buckeyes also snagged Haskell Garrett but lost Tyjon Lindsey to Nebraska. Bubba Bolden (USC), Greg Rogers (UCLA) and Alex Perry (Arizona State) were all 4-stars.

Arizona secured a state-high four prospects (all 3-stars). Cal, Ohio State, UNLV and USC each added two recruits.

22. Utah

Recruiting Points: 73

The only program not located in the Western United States to sign a 3-star prospect from Utah? Vanderbilt, of course.

However, the six best recruits decided on unsurprising destinations. Jay Tufele—the lone 5-star—and Tayler Katoa picked USC, Chaz Ah You and Langi Tuifua selected BYU, Ty Jones tabbed Washington and Sione Lund chose Stanford.

BYU dominated the state with 10 qualifiers, while Stanford, USC, Utah State and Washington grabbed two apiece.

21. Washington

Recruiting Points: 76

Chris Petersen, who guided Washington to the College Football Playoff in 2016, picked up three of the state's top five players with Hunter Bryant, Salvon Ahmed and Henry Bainivalu.

Foster Sarell and Connor Wedington passed on UW in favor of Stanford, though. Dontae Powell, the final 4-star, is committed to Washington State but has not officially signed.

Washington inked six of the 23 qualifiers, and Washington State nabbed four. No other FBS program added two.

T-19. Oklahoma

Recruiting Points: 84

For the first time in Scout's history, Oklahoma secured a signature from each of the state's five highest-ranked prospects.

Levi Draper, Tre Brown, Justin Broiles, Creed Humphrey and Isaiah Thomas were all 4-stars. The only similarly rated player to not choose the two-time defending Big 12 champions was Evan Fields, a safety headed to Arizona State.

Oklahoma led with six commits from the Sooner State, doubling up Arkansas, Memphis, Oklahoma State and Tulsa.

T-19. South Carolina

Recruiting Points: 84

South Carolina capitalized on Clemson taking a smaller class in 2017. Will Muschamp and Co. signed a total of nine in-state talents, including six of the top eight.

Although the Palmetto State featured just a trio of 4-stars—OrTre Smith and Brad Johnson chose USC, while Logan Rudolph picked Clemson—it boasted 24 3-stars.

Appalachian State followed the Gamecocks' nine additions with three of its own. Duke, Florida State, Kansas State, Purdue and North Carolina also dipped into the state.

18. Maryland

Recruiting Points: 86

Led by Ohio State pledge Chase Young, Maryland is the first state—and one of just 10 overall—on the countdown with 10 prospects who earned a 4-star rating or higher.

Nine of those recruits finished the cycle sporting a top-300 ranking, and most opted to stay at home. D.J. Durkin and Maryland reeled in Anthony McFarland, Marcus Minor, Jordan McNair, Deon Jones and final 4-star Ayinde Eley.

The rebuilding Terrapins plucked a state-best seven players. Duke tallied four signees, safely ahead of two-player schools in Kentucky, Penn State, Syracuse and Virginia Tech.

17. Indiana

Recruiting Points: 87

The state doesn't produce a large number of elite talents, but the Indianapolis and Fort Wayne areas regularly offer a 3-star group for Indiana, Purdue and MAC teams to fight over.

Unless the premier athletes pick Notre Dame, though, they're usually going out of state. Hunter Johnson (Clemson), Russ Yeast (Louisville) and Pete Werner (Ohio State) all chose that route.

Indiana still signed a state-high six qualifying prospects. Miami (Ohio) notched three pickups, while Cincinnati and Western Michigan grabbed two. Purdue only inked one.

16. Pennsylvania

Recruiting Points: 94

Big Ten powers and Notre Dame typically infringe on Penn State's territory. Pitt and West Virginia are always lingering, and an SEC team or two is usually lurking. The 2017 cycle checked off each of those boxes.

Penn State kept 5-star Lamont Wade, as well as 4-stars C.J. Thorpe and Damion Barber. But Michigan snagged Donovan Jeter, Notre Dame picked up David Adams and Josh Lugg, and Georgia signed D'Andre Swift and Mark Webb. Pitt snatched Paris Ford.

James Franklin and Co. added five in-state qualifiers, edging Pitt and West Virginia at four apiece. Notre Dame had three.

15. Arizona

Recruiting Points: 96

Those pesky Trojans.

USC sauntered into Arizona and swiped Austin Jackson and Isaiah Pola-Mao, who were ranked 30th and 140th nationally, respectively. But otherwise, Arizona State owned the area.

The Sun Devils signed the five next-best prospects, most notably top-300 quarterback Ryan Kelley with 4-stars Tyler Johnson and K.J. Jarrell. Brandon Ruiz and Corey Stephens round out the state-high bunch of eight qualifying prospects.

Arizona came away with four players, and UCLA pulled three from the Copper State. But USC inked the two gems.

14. New Jersey

Recruiting Points: 104

Though the state itself is small, New Jersey has become an important recruiting area for Big Ten programs. No wonder Chris Ash worked so hard to protect it.

For the first time since 2012, Rutgers signed any of the state's top-five talents. It grabbed two in Micah Clark and Bo Melton, plus Owen Bowles (No. 6) and Johnathan Lewis (No. 8). Drew Singleton (Michigan), Markquese Bell (Maryland) and Fred Hansard (Penn State) managed to elude the Scarlet Knights.

Ash inked seven qualifying prospects, while Boston College, Penn State and Pitt picked up three recruits.

13. Tennessee

Recruiting Points: 116

Despite being 13th on the list, Tennessee was one of only five states with at least two 5-stars. Additionally, nine players were ranked 200 or higher by the conclusion of the 2017 cycle.

Butch Jones persuaded three of those prospects—Trey Smith, Maleik Gray and Ty Chandler—to become Champions of Life, though LSU stole 5-star JaCoby Stevens and 4-star Jacob Phillips, and Clemson reeled in 4-star Tee Higgins.

Tennessee walked away with eight qualifiers, doubling a respectable four-player haul for Memphis. In addition to Clemson and LSU, Duke, Georgia Tech and North Carolina added two.

12. Virginia

Recruiting Points: 121

Although Virginia doesn't have immense volume, the quality of prospects is terrific. An average 3.46 rating is the highest among states with at least 10 qualifiers.

Devon Hunter (Virginia Tech) is the lone 5-star, but the state has the most 4-stars (14) outside of the top six finishers. Eight different FBS schools tapped into that potential.

Virginia Tech received signatures from seven players, and Maryland wasn't far behind with five. Penn State and Virginia secured three.

11. Mississippi

Recruiting Points: 132

The NCAA investigation into Ole Miss opened the recruiting door for ACC and SEC teams to vulture local talent. And they—along with Mississippi State—capitalized on the chance.

Florida State swiped 5-star Cam Akers, while LSU pulled Saahdiq Charles and Myles Brennan. Louisville took C.J. Avery, too. Willie Gay, Kylin Hill and Aaron Odom all signed with the rival Bulldogs, leaving Ole Miss with D.D. Bowie as the only top-10 in-state player.

Mississippi State and Southern Miss tied with six prospects each, slightly ahead of Ole Miss' four. Memphis and UL-Lafayette picked up three talents from the neighboring state.

10. North Carolina

Recruiting Points: 152

North Carolina was a great place to find depth because it contained 42 3-stars, but there was still some top-end talent.

Larry Fedora and the Tar Heels grabbed three of eight possible 4-stars, while Clemson, Florida, Florida State, Oklahoma and Virginia Tech all left North Carolina with one.

UNC landed touted players, though NC State finished with six qualifiers (all 3-stars) over five for Fedora. East Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia Tech captured three apiece.

9. Michigan

Recruiting Points: 157

Jim Harbaugh believes coaches can cross borders in America for recruiting purposes. He just doesn't want you in his area.

Yes, both Antjuan Simmons (Michigan State) and Derrick Hubbard (Western Michigan) left Harbaugh's semi-literal backyard at Pioneer High School, which is across the street from the Big House. But seven of the Mitten State's top 10 talents chose the Wolverines, including 5-star Donovan Peoples-Jones. The other three picked MSU.

Michigan won the in-state battle with eight pledges, followed by Central and Western with six and Michigan State at five. Former WMU boss P.J. Fleck took three commits to Minnesota.

8. Louisiana

Recruiting Points: 183

LSU typically builds a fence around elite in-state talent, but a coaching change left the gate open in 2017. Alabama says thank you.

Saban snatched Devonta Smith, Chris Allen and Phidarian Mathis, who were ranked first, second and fourth, respectively. Ed Orgeron managed to keep Todd Harris and Tyler Shelvin.

Though it's not an adequate consolation, LSU tallied the most in-state signees with eight. Alabama notched four, one ahead of Arkansas, Louisiana Tech, TCU and Tennessee.

7. Illinois

Recruiting Points: 188

Among states with at least 30 qualifying athletes, Illinois provided the highest concentration of 3-star recruits at 88.3 percent. Similar to North Carolina, it was a rich source of depth with a small yet important seven-man group of coveted talent.

Iowa plucked the only 5-star in A.J. Epenesa, and Miami added high 4-star Jeff Thomas. Illinois and Notre Dame both signed two 4-stars, and Michigan State took the last one.

Lovie Smith and Illinois piled up the largest volume with nine players, more than doubling the four at Iowa and Minnesota. Of the 10 other programs to receive multiple pledges, only Yale—well done, Yale!—snagged three recruits.

6. Alabama

Recruiting Points: 196

Saban will allow you to enter his territory, though only after he's finished deciding which 4-stars should be in Tuscaloosa. Six of Alabama's top seven players signed with the Tide.

But with 13 more 4-stars, jokes aside, the state featured many reasons to challenge Saban as well as Auburn—which collected five of those. Florida, Georgia, Michigan (x2), Minnesota, LSU, Stanford and UAB also won over a 4-star.

Auburn ended with nine qualifiers, clipping eight for Alabama. Michigan and LSU headline an assortment of nine programs that reeled in two recruits from the Heart of Dixie.

5. Ohio

Recruiting Points: 244

A small group of power-conference programs typically steal a few players, but Ohio is Urban Meyer's area to lose.

Of the state's top seven prospects in 2017, Josh Myers, Amir Riep, Jaylen Harris, Brendon White and Thayer Munford all selected the Buckeyes. Lynn Bowden (Kentucky) and Charles Reeves (Pitt) were the only departers and helped make their respective teams the two non-Ohio State teams to grab two 4-stars.

While Meyer secured many of the touted recruits, Toledo did an excellent job finding nine 3-stars. Cincinnati and Michigan State joined Ohio State at seven qualifiers, Kentucky totaled six, Northwestern signed five and Pitt added four.

4. Georgia

Recruiting Points: 559

Georgia sits on a unique tier. It's not quite at the level of California, Florida and Texas, but no previous state was remotely close.

With 133 3-stars, 35 4-stars and four 5-stars, Georgia accumulated the fourth-highest tally in every category. The latter group includes Davis Mills (Stanford), Aubrey Solomon (Michigan), DeAngelo Gibbs (Georgia) and Jake Fromm (Georgia).

Kirby Smart and Co. excelled inside the Peach State, bringing in a stunning 17 4- or 5-stars and 18 total qualifiers. Georgia Tech finished with nine, followed by Louisville at seven, then Auburn, Duke and South Carolina at six. Florida State and UNC had five.

3. California

Recruiting Points: 702

USC pieced together the most impressive class by programs heavily involved in California. After an outstanding finish to the 2016 season, that's no surprise.

Neither is the state as a whole producing 168 3-stars to complement 42 4-stars and six 5-stars. Najee Harris (Alabama), Jaelan Phillips (UCLA), Stephen Carr (USC), Darnay Holmes (UCLA), Wyatt Davis (Ohio State) and Joseph Lewis (USC) all earned the highest rating.

UCLA joined USC with 11 qualifying recruits, edging Arizona, Oregon and San Jose State by one. Cal, Colorado, Fresno State and San Diego State each snagged nine, which was two more than Boise State, Oregon State, Washington and Washington State.

2. Florida

Recruiting Points: 789

Florida had the exact same number of 4-stars (42) and 5-stars (six) as California, but the Sunshine State provided 29 more 3-stars.

Alabama signed half of Florida's top-end talent in Alex Leatherwood, Dylan Moses and VanDarius Cowan. Florida State nabbed a pair of 5-stars while dominating the available 4-stars, though Florida, Miami and Ohio State made a sizable dent in that number, too.

The three in-state powers—Florida (16), Miami (15) and Florida State (11)—unsurprisingly led the way. UCF tallied nine qualifiers ahead of Alabama, Kentucky, NC State and Oregon at seven. FAU, Indiana, Pitt, Tennessee and USF inked six.

1. Texas

Recruiting Points: 830

While Texas is just slightly ahead of Florida in total number of qualifying players, the Lone Star State boasts a formidable edge with 4-stars. The 14-man advantage in that category helped Texas solidify its place as the No. 1 recruiting state of 2017.

It produced six 5-stars, namely Walker Little (Stanford), Marvin Wilson (Florida State), Jeffrey Okudah (Ohio State), Anthony Hines (Texas A&M), Baron Browning (Ohio State) and K'Lavon Chaisson (LSU). Texas A&M, Oklahoma, Texas and Colorado made the biggest splashes among 4-star or higher prospects.

Kevin Sumlin and the Aggies tied with Baylor for 18 signees, and Texas added 13. Each of Houston, TCU and Texas Tech snagged 10, while Oklahoma and Oklahoma State tallied nine.

For good measure, Texas State had eight, Colorado and SMU pulled in seven, and both UTSA and Tulsa plucked six.

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All recruiting information via Scout. Stats from cfbstats.com or B/R research. Quotes obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted. Follow Bleacher Report CFB writer David Kenyon on Twitter @Kenyon19_BR.