Recruiting 2017: Best of the Midwest

Last week Eric previewed the early five-star talent from around the country - today we take a closer look at the blue chip prospects in the Midwest and who may have mutual interest in Notre Dame. Stars and rankings are from the 247 Composite as well as current Crystal Ball favorites, with the caveat that these early rankings are often heavily influenced by major offers and some crystal balls only have a couple of picks in right now.

Illinois

Epenesa and Thomas were covered in Eric's look at 5-star talent across the nation last week - the Irish were considered a contender for Epenesa's signature until he committed to Iowa last month. Epenesa is a Hawkeyes legacy and doesn't seem like he'll be looking around much, but if he wants to continue conversations with the Notre Dame staff you never know how things will look a year from now.

There's a little bit of a gap from Kmet, who verballed in October of 2015, to Smalling, Robertson, and Jarvis, who are in earlier states of their recruitment. Smalling has offers from Wisconsin and Illinois and will likely gain more from power five conferences over the spring and summer. Robertson has 14 offers, and recently was in South Bend for junior day. The 6'3 receiver is friends with Julian Love and Tom Loy has predicted him to eventually land a Notre Dame offer and commit.  Jarvis is a 6'5, 330 pound tackle with early offers from Illinois, Rutgers, Arkansas, Tennessee, and Syracuse.

Indiana

There are just three current blue chip recruits in the Hoosier State at this point, and all names that Notre Dame has been or will be in play for. Johnson seemed close to committing to the Irish last summer before deciding on Tennessee, only to switch to Clemson a few months later. Such are the joys of recruiting, and the Irish staff has moved on to new targets for 2017. Werner is a rangy WILL linebacker prospect out of Cathedral High School in Indianapolis with 14 offers, highlighted by Northwestern and Wisconsin. He hasn't earned an Irish offer yet, but early buzz sounds like they'd immediately jump into his favorites if or when that takes place.

Notre Dame was Potts' first offer, and the other big (in size at least) in-state programs in Purdue and Indiana have followed suit. The Irish have been the early favorite but other schools may be gaining traction and close to offering, including LSU and Michigan.

Michigan

Peoples-Jones is the early top receiver in the country, and was a beast as a junior at least year's Opening. He was a recent visitor along with Kelly-Powell and Thomas at Notre Dame's junior day, and it looks to be a long battle for the Irish to get into the top group with Ohio State, Michigan, Michigan State, and Florida. A similar group will battle for Thomas, one of the best corners in the Midwest and a player talented enough to potentially play on either side of the ball.

Malone-Hatcher has been a top Notre Dame target and visited campus several times, but Jim Harbaugh badly wants him to stay home and he also has an Alabama offer. Hall was an early Wolverine commit, and Kelly-Powell has Irish interest but Ohio State and Michigan are likely the early leaders. Lots of names to keep an eye on here, with a ton of intense competition - the top prospects are getting visits from Kelly, Harbaugh, Meyer, and Dantonio.

Ohio

A whopping 17 blue chip recruits in the class of 2017 reside in Ohio, but good luck prying them from Urban Meyer's grasp. The Buckeyes already have verbal commitments from five of the top seven players in the state, and lead for several more. Things may slow down a bit with some of the lower-ranked prospects here, as Ohio State already has ten commitments and the early lead for the top class in 2017 and may start being more selective at some position groups. It must be fun being the only major in-state program in such a talent-rich state.

So who should you keep an eye on? Aijan is a terrific athlete who visited campus last summer for Irish Invasion - he has the raw skills to play offense or defense but the staff reportedly likes him best at cornerback for now. Jerron Cage is the younger brother of sophomore Daniel Cage, and while he committed to the Buckeyes last summer he's received an ND offer and visited for games since then, so this one may not be over. Bockhorst is a highly-regarded linemen that was receiving interest and close evaluation from Harry Hiestand and company but committed to Dabo Swinney. Clark is a quarterback who has been committed to the Buckeyes since being offered his freshman year - will that early commitment stick for both parties?