Michigan Football Recruiting: Does Brady Hoke Rule Big Ten Country?

Dating back to the 2006 recruiting class, Michigan has finished with the best class in the Big Ten only once, in 2007.  The main reason their 2007 class finished first in the Big Ten that year was because they signed two five-star players, Ryan Mallett and Donovan Warren.  Since then, Michigan has signed only one five-star player, Will Campbell.

In comparison, the team that has ruled the Big Ten lately, Ohio State, has signed seven five-star players since 2007.  Players want to play on winning teams, and Ohio State has certainly been winning a lot of football games in recent years.  Since the 2005 season, Ohio State has won at least ten games every year, and has made two appearances in the national championship.

However, it couldn't be any more clear that their reign of dominance in the Big Ten, and on the recruiting trail, is coming to an end.

It all started with the controversy that began surrounding Ohio State this past November, eventually causing both Jim Tressel and Terrelle Pryor to leave the program.  The following January, Brady Hoke was hired at Michigan and immediately pulled in some quality four-star players to finish out the 2011 recruiting class that Rich Rodriguez had started.

As Hoke began his first recruiting class this past spring, it was somewhat surprising at how fast players were committing.  Commitments from quality four-star players were coming in almost weekly.

Once spring ended and summer began, it was clear that Brady Hoke and Michigan were dominating the midwest.  With all the problems surrounding Ohio State, recruits from the state of Ohio were looking to play elsewhere.  In fact, of the top 25 players from Ohio, Michigan currently has eight of them committed, while Ohio State only has five.

Perhaps the biggest story this offseason has been the recruitment of Kyle Kalis.  Kalis, who is the No. 1 player from Ohio and the No. 18 player nationally, had long been a Buckeye commit but began having second thoughts earlier this year.

He eventually decommitted from Ohio State and took a visit to Michigan, and eventually committed to the Wolverines, stating that the border to Ohio was now open.  This caused an uprising in Columbus, causing fans to say what they now truly think about Kalis, and as a result, showing the nation the true character of some folks in Columbus.

Michigan is not only dominating the state of Ohio, but their own state as well.  Of the top ten players in the state, Michigan has six of them committed, while Michigan State only has two.  Michigan's number could soon grow to seven if Danny O'Brien, the fifth-best player in the state, commits to the Wolverines, as many strongly expect him to do.

Clearly, Michigan is dominating their own state, and is also having tremendous success in Ohio.  No Big Ten team is recruiting the midwest, or any other part of the country, as well as Michigan is.  Not only are the Wolverines cleaning up the midwest, but they have also grabbed the sixth-best player from the state of California as well, Erik Magnuson.

Ohio State's problems have been a part of Michigan's success, but Brady Hoke and Greg Mattison are obviously the main reason.  Michigan is doing what Ohio State has been doing the last few years, and now that it looks like the Bucks are slowing down, the midwest belongs to Michigan again.

With star quarterback Shane Morris already committed to their 2013 class, Michigan's success on the recruiting trail doesn't look like it will stop any time soon as long as Brady Hoke and Greg Mattison are in Ann Arbor.