B1G first-round NFL picks in last 10 years by recruiting rankings
It might shock some people, but not every first-round pick was a five-star recruit. In fact, it’s actually rare to find that combination in the B1G.
There have actually only been four B1G players in the last five years who can claim both of those titles. And of them, Ohio State’s Donte Whitner was the only one to also reach a Pro Bowl.
There hasn’t been a five-star B1G player drafted in the first round since Michigan’s Brandon Graham in 2010. Vonn Bell or Braxton Miller can break that streak if they are selected in the first round.
The B1G, as you could probably guess, hasn’t churned out a bunch a blue-chip recruits. The conference has had guys like two-star recruits J.J. Watt get drafted in the first round, which is actually more of the norm for the B1G in the first 32 picks.
RELATED: J.J. Watt delivers epic acceptance speech for Defensive Player of the Year honor
The B1G accounted for roughly 13 percent of the first-round picks in the last three years. But of the B1G first-rounders in that stretch, 31 percent of them played in a Pro Bowl.
Of the 43 B1G first-round selections from 2006-15:
- 21 were three-star recruits or less
- 13 made a Pro Bowl
- 9 of 13 Pro Bowl players were three-star recruits or less
- 25.5% were offensive linemen
- No B1G first-round offensive lineman was five-star recruit
- Donte Whitner was only B1G first-round safety
It shouldn’t come as much of a surprise that the majority of the B1G first-round picks weren’t top recruits. But it is a bit of a shock to see that roughly half of them were players who weren’t highly touted coming out of high school.
Here’s the complete list of the B1G first-rounders in the last 10 years, as sorted by their 247sports recruiting rankings:
2006
Unrated
- Chad Greenway, Iowa LB (17th)*
3-star
- A.J. Hawk, Ohio State LB (5th)*
- Laurence Maroney, Minnesota RB (21st)
- Santonio Holmes, Ohio State WR (25th)
- Nick Mangold, Ohio State C (29th)*
4-star
- Bobby Carpenter, Ohio State LB (18th)
- Tamba Hali, Penn State DE (20th)*
5-star
- Donte Witner, Ohio State S (8th)*
2007
3-star
- Anthony Spencer, Purdue LB (26th)*
4-star
- Joe Thomas, Wisconsin OT (3rd)*
- Levi Brown, Penn State OT (5th)
- Leon Hall, Michigan CB (18th)
- Anthony Gonzalez, Ohio State WR (32nd)
5-star
- Ted Ginn, Jr., Ohio State WR (9th)
2008
2-star
- Dustin Keller, Purdue TE (30th)
4-star
- Jake Long, Michigan OT (1st)*
- Vernon Gholston, Ohio State DE (6th)
- Rashard Mendenhall, Illinois RB (23rd)
2009
3-star
- Aaron Maybin, Penn State DE (11th)
- Malcolm Jenkins, Ohio State CB (14th)*
- Vontae Davis, Illinois CB (25th)*
5-star
- Chris “Beanie” Wells, Ohio State RB (31st)
2010
4-star
- Bryan Bulaga, Iowa OT (23rd)
- Jared Odrick, Penn State DT (28th)
5-star
- Brandon Graham, Michigan DE (13th)
2011
2-star
- J.J. Watt, Wisconsin DE (11th)*
3-star
- Ryan Kerrigan, Purdue DE (16th)*
- Gabe Carimi, Wisconsin OT (29th)
4-star
- Corey Liuget, Illinois DT (18th)
- Adrian Clayborn, Iowa DE (20th)
- Cameron Heyward, Ohio State DE (31st)
2012
3-star
- Riley Reiff, Iowa OT (23rd)
- Whitney Mercilus, Illinois DE (26th)
- Kevin Zeitler, Wisconsin OG (27th)
4-star
- A.J. Jenkins, Illinois WR (30th)
2013
3-star
- Travis Frederick, Wisconsin C (31st)*
2014
3-star
- Darqueze Dennard, Michigan State CB (24th)
- Bradley Roby, Ohio State CB (31st)
4-star
- Taylor Lewan, Michigan OT (11th)
- Ryan Shazier, Ohio State LB (15th)
2015
3-star
- Brandon Scherff, Iowa OT (5th)
- Trae Waynes, Michigan State CB (11th)
4-star
- Melvin Gordon, Wisconsin RB (15th)
*Pro Bowl selection