Conference Recruiting Roundup: Big 12

Next in our breakdown of each conferences recruiting classes, the Big 12 -  winners, losers, and programs in long-term trouble. All rankings are from the 247Sports composite, with 4-year national ranks weighted more heavily on most recent classes.

Big Two Turning Into Big Four?

The biggest storyline entering last season was about the massive power shift away from the traditional powers in Austin and Norman towards upstarts in Waco and Fort Worth. Oklahoma stemmed that tide a bit with a conference title and playoff appearance that bolstered the outlook for the "old money" schools, and Baylor and TCU both fell off after losing their star quarterbacks. But with the Longhorns in a rough stretch, both the Bears and Horned Frogs have turned better records and more national attention into improved recruiting efforts both in Texas and outside the state.

Both programs shot 19 spots up the recruiting rankings from 2015-2016, and while they will likely never be able to out-recruit Texas, they've made gigantic strides towards reducing the talent gap that had been in place (and even that advantage was less apparently recently, since both schools have developed talent and coached it better than the Longhorns have lately).

Winners:

Baylor: Under Art Briles the Bears are forming an identify of "Oregon South", and it's coincided with not-quite Phil Knight but substantial levels of investment from the university to really build a strong contender. Skill position players on offense have to be drooling watching the numbers Baylor puts up, and it feels like they can still continue to improve in the recruiting ranks - under Chip Kelly the Ducks were able to sign top 10-15 classes, and that was without the benefit of being in Texas. Briles is crazy like a fox - did you see the bowl-game demolition of UNC running the wing-T? - and if I was a big-time back or receiver I'd definitely want to give Baylor a look. The real challenge for the Bears is to take their defense to the next level, and this class is a small step in that direction, highlighted by DE Brandon Bowen (#146/#12 WDE) and CB Parrish Cobb (#304/30).

Parity: Compared to the other power five conferences, the talent from top to middle feels much more evenly dispersed in the Big 12. Over the past four years Oklahoma and Texas have led but been well short of dominant, with just one top-10 class between them. The middle tier has Baylor and TCU clawing their way towards the top of the conference and consistent top-40 classes for programs #5-7, even if they may be trending the wrong direction for West Virginia and Oklahoma State. It's really only at the bottom that there's a huge drop-off in the last three programs, but Iowa State inking the #53 class in the midst of a coaching change is decent, and you can't ever sleep on a Bill Synder team.

Neutral:

Texas: Charlie Strong pulled off a string of enormous signing day victories, shooting up from a class ranked nationally in the 30's to just outside the top 10. Still, I think this is a class that rates higher in the recruiting algorithms than it does translating into success - of the 13 blue chip signees for Texas, 9 will play on the defensive side of the ball. That's not where Strong's teams historically have had issues, whether in Austin or elsewhere, and gets to the issue of balance - this class has five defensive tackles! While depth on the defensive line is always valuable, that doesn't seem to be hitting the most glaring needs of this team or like its sustainable long-term. While there's plenty of in-state talent to go around, the Longhorns also pulled in only 3 of the top 17 recruits in Texas - the same number as Baylor, with eight going to a potpourri of SEC teams (only two to Texas A&M).

Losers:

Oklahoma State and West Virginia: The Cowboys have a four-year recruiting trend heading the wrong direction, even with a successful 2015 campaign that saw them briefly in the playoff hunt. The last two years have seen Oklahoma State fall from a leader in the next tier of talent behind Oklahoma and Texas to now trailing two more schools, and in a battle with Texas Tech and West Virginia to stay in the top half of the conference.

Dana Holgorsen has a similar issue in Morgantown - a downward trend that's coincided with disappointing seasons. It's hard to know what to make of the Mountaineers from 2015, who lost to a lot of very good teams and beat a lot of very average opponents, but apparently recruits weren't sold. A few JUCOs may provide a spark, but for a coach whose reputation involves a schematic advantage on offense there don't seem to be many answers coming in this class.

The State of Kansas: At least the Wildcats have the magic of Bill Synder to lean back on - for the Jayhawks, it's just more of the same and hoping to find some diamonds in the rough. David Beaty has a reputation as a recruiting ace, but it's hard to sell 0-12.