ANALYSIS: Ranking the top 5 Ohio State recruiting classes in the last 20 years

For those who obsess about the collegiate gridiron game from the outside, recruiting news not only helps pass the time from the middle of January until training camps begin in late July but has grown to fight for headlines (not to mention message board topics, where it is dominant) during the regular season as well.

While many measure the quality of a class coming in, what about the product on the other side?

With another National Signing Day coming up that is not expected to be very busy for the Buckeyes, we thought we would take a look at the top Ohio State recruiting classes since the turn of the century.

There are many ways to measure the quality of a class, but we’re going to concentrate on one.

While postseason awards can be subject to interpretation and wins sometimes at the mercy of the bounce of an oblong ball, one category is firm: NFL Draft picks.

Looking at that produced a clear top five, but another group could crash the party soon:

5. 2011

National ranking: 3

Signings: 24

Draftees: 8

Percent: 33

A group that flew a little under the radar because of an NCAA scandal forming as it was being finished up, the 2011 class produced several key players for the 2014 national championship team: Braxton Miller, Michael Bennett, Doran Grant, Steve Miller, Evan Spencer, Devin Smith, and Jeff Heuerman.

Miller, a quarterback from Wayne High School, headlined the class along with Hermitage, Va., linebacker Curtis Grant.

Bennett, a two-way lineman at Centerville, broke out on the defensive line for the Buckeyes in the playoffs, and Smith made good on his talent as a deep threat in that postseason.

Also part of this class was Ryan Shazier, who turned pro after the 2013 season and starred for the Steelers until suffering a career-ending neck injury.

This was Jim Tressel’s last recruiting class as the focus of the “TatGate” scandal shifted to him a month after signing day when he admitted having failed to disclose knowledge of potential NCAA violations to NCAA investigators.

4. 2005

National rank: 7

Signings: 18

Draftees: 7

Percentage: 38

This group was small but managed to produce multiple big names and form the backbone of a pair of national championship contenders.

Five-stars Alex Boone and Jamario O’Neal, both from the Cleveland area, were the headline players, but the top contributors turned out to be out-of-state three-star defensive prospects James Laurinaitis and Malcolm Jenkins along with in-state receivers Brian Robiskie and Brian Hartline.

Defensive lineman Todd Denlinger of Troy and linebacker Austin Spitler represented the Miami Valley and both became Ohio State starters.

3. 2015

National ranking: 9

Signings: 27

Draftees: 11

Percent: 41

The class that signed right after the Buckeyes won the inaugural College Football Playoff included only one five-star prospect (Cincinnati St. Xavier linebacker Justin Hilliard), but had 14 four-stars.

The latter group included eventual productive players Jerome Baker, Mike Weber, Jashon Cornell, Isaiah Prince, K.J. Hill, Denzel Ward and a quarterback from Southeast Ohio named Joe Burrow.

Additionally, three-star prospects Damon Arnette and DaVon Hamilton had standout careers and were drafted.

Wayne defensive tackle Robert “B.B.” Landers represented the Miami Valley and was a four-year contributor for the Buckeyes.

This group could still add one more draftee if Hilliard hears his name called in April.

2. 2014

National ranking: 5

Signings: 23

Draftees: 10

Percent: 43

Raekwon McMillan, a five-star linebacker from Georgia, came in with the highest expectations and ultimately became a multi-year starter and NFL Draft pick.

Also living up to the hype from this class: four-stars Marshon Lattimore, Curtis Samuel, Jamarco Jones, Jalyn Holmes, Johnnie Dixon, Parris Campbell Jr., Sam Hubbard, Noah Brown and Terry McLaurin,

One three-star prospects turned out to be significantly underrated — All-American safety Malik Hooker of New Castle, Pa., who was a first-round NFL Draft pick.

1. 2002

National ranking: 3

Signings: 25

Draftees: 12

Percent: 48

An oldie but a goodie, one of the first classes of the star era looked great on signing day, draft day and today.

Tressel’s first full year on the recruiting trail as head coach at Ohio State coincided with one of the deepest groups of talent in memory in the Buckeye State, and Tressel cashed in.

Bobby Carpenter, Nate Salley, Mike Kudla, Hamilton’s E.J. Underwood and Piqua’s Quinn Pitcock were all four-star recruits who made it to the NFL (Of that group, only Salley, a Florida native, was not from Ohio).

This group’s three-star prospects were legendary, too, including local products A.J. Hawk of Centerville and boyhood friend Nick Mangold of Alter along with a receiver from Florida named Santonio Holmes.

Ironically some of the biggest names of this class had the littlest impact, including Mike D’Andrea, Derek Morris and Justin Zwick, but one five-star did live up to the hype, at least for one season: Warren Harding tailback Maurice Clarett.

In another twist, the last member to join the class turned out to be the most successful in the college ranks. Troy Smith was a four-star prospect at Cleveland Glenville, but he was overshadowed by Zwick, who had broken numerous state passing records at Massillon Washington. Smith chose Ohio State over West Virginia late in the process, eventually beat out Zwick for the starting job and won the Heisman Trophy as a fifth-year senior in 2006.

Now here is a caveat: This list could soon change.

The 2017 class is set to send several more players to the draft, and that could vault the group to the top of the list if we re-evaluate in a year.

Four players from that group were drafted in the first year they were eligible, and another 4-7 could eventually join them in the next two years.

Six would leave 2017 percentage points behind 2002 while seven would put 2017 over the top at a whopping 52 percent. That would be the most since 1998, a group of only 16 signees that produced an amazing 11 NFL Draft picks (69 percent).

The 2017 class already has the highest percentage of starters at 67, edging 2004 and 2008 (both 65).