How does the ’16 SEC recruiting class compare to other conferences?

Almost midway through the ’16 recruiting cycle, we’re seeing parity across college football.

More specifically, the ACC and Pac-12 have a handful of strong recruiting programs, and the Big Ten is gaining on the SEC.

Surprise, surprise, right?

In spite of that parity, the SEC continues to be the dominant force when it comes to recruiting rankings. Let’s see how the conference stacks up in a few categories of interest as of late Wednesday night.

FIVE-STAR COMMITMENTS

*The American Athletic Conference also has one.

LSU, Georgia and Florida State are the only schools in the country with multiple five-star commitments. The SEC and ACC, consequently, combine for 10 of the 14 five-star recruits who have pledged allegiance, according to the 247Sports composite rankings.

Thanks to homegrown defensive tackle Ed Oliver, Houston has as many five-star commitments as the Big 12 and Big Ten combined.

Overall, 14 of the 28 recruits labeled as five-star players remain uncommitted.

FOUR-STAR COMMITMENTS

Five-star players may draw the biggest headlines, but the SEC’s recruiting depth shows up here every year. Already the SEC has secured more four-star players than the ACC and Big 12 combined.

This is where it gets interesting, though: since the end of May, the Big Ten has received commitments from 18 different four-star players, compared to just nine for the SEC. The two conferences now are eerily similar in recruiting, and for the first time in years, there’s a legitimate conference battle.

LSU, Alabama and Georgia combine to boast of 23 four-star players. Ohio State, Michigan and Penn State? Try 30. Those three Big Ten programs, by themselves, hold commitments from as many four-star players as any other entire conference, with the exception of the SEC.

Perhaps those satellite camps are paying off.

The Pac-12 is balanced with UCLA, USC, Oregon and Stanford collecting a combined 26 four-star players to this point.

QUARTERBACKS

All quarterbacks are not created equal.

Aside from the fact that quarterback is a very difficult position to predict, there’s a wide range of star ratings represented here. It’s about quality, and the SEC has it in abundance already.

The Elite 11, probably the premier high school quarterback competition in the country, is taking place this week, and five of the 11 players are committed to SEC schools.

The SEC has claimed five of the top nine dual-threat quarterbacks in the ’16 class, including No. 1 Feleipe Franks (LSU) and No. 2 Jarrett Guarantano (Tennessee). No. 4 Jawon Pass is expected to choose between Alabama, Auburn and Louisville next week.

The SEC also holds commitments from the top two pro-style quarterbacks in the class in No. 1 Jacob Eason (Georgia) and No. 2 Shea Patterson (Ole Miss).

RUNNING BACKS

… and then there was one. As in a single five-star running back.

Ohio State commitment Kareem Walker has been downgraded to a four-star player, so Clemson commitment and all-purpose back Tavien Feaster is the only ball-carrier with that distinction in the entire ’16 class.

The pickings are slimmer than usual.

Ohio State has landed the No. 1 and No. 2 running backs in the country. Penn State has a commitment from the No. 3 guy. Once a Georgia commitment, No. 4-rated B.J. Emmons could eventually sign with Tennessee.

Ole Miss holds commitments from No. 10 running back Justin Connor and No. 18 running back Denzel Mitchell. No. 14 all-purpose back Tyrek Tisdale committed to Florida.

RECEIVERS

The number of uncommitted receivers is shriveling faster than … well, you get my point.

Since the end of May, the Big Ten has added 14 commitments at receiver and the Big 12 has added nine.

There remains 54 receivers in the ’16 class, so there’s no excuse for any good power-conference program with a need for pass-catchers to come up empty. Many teams already have secured commitments from four different wideouts.

Just five of the 15 highest-rated receivers have committed, so there’s some elite talent available. Of those five, DeKaylin Metcalf (Ole Miss), Eli Stove (Auburn), Dee Anderson (LSU) and Stephen Sullivan (LSU) all are headed to the SEC.

Christopher Smith

An itinerant journalist, Christopher has moved between states 11 times in seven years. Formally an injury-prone Division I 800-meter specialist, he now wanders the Rockies in search of high peaks.