Telep: Recruits will 'help move train forward'

How to celebrate a basketball Christmas in November?

Unwrap a nationally rated recruiting class on the first day of the early signing period.

That's what Bruce Weber & Co. expect to do today, when four high school seniors plan to sign national letters of intent with Illinois.

Now the hard part: temper your expectations.

"It's important to keep everything in perspective," Scout.com senior recruiting analyst Dave Telep said Tuesday.

The foursome of signees – Sterling guard Joseph Bertrand, Lafayette (Mo.) forward Tyler Griffey, Warren guard Brandon Paul and Findlay Prep (Nev.) guard D.J. Richardson – is more like the calm before the storm.

"They're going to help move the train forward. Next year's wave will give it an even bigger push," Telep said. "The expectation should not be that this is a Big Ten championship type of class. The expectations should be that this is the first step in moving everything forward, and then the next class moves it forward one step further."

Add this recruiting class to a star-powered 2010 recruiting class and you have an overhaul worthy of lofty expectations. Scout.com indicated the 2009 class will be rated among the top 15 in the country. The 2010 class of UI commitments Jereme Richmond, Crandall Head and Meyers Leonard projects to be a top-five class.

"This (2009 class) gives them a nice influx of guys that they're going to be able to count on as starters and rotation guys and contributors across the board," Telep said. "Some guys will be more ready, some guys you'll have to wait on. It's a nice, solid class."

Best of the Big Ten: men

The Big Ten’s best early recruiting hauls, courtesy Paul Klee:

1. Minnesota
Dogged as recruiters for years, Tubby Smith and Bruce Weber pieced together nationally regarded classes, headlined by in-state Gophers recruit Royce White.

2. Indiana
That didn’t take long. With a narrow recruiting window, Tom Crean went out of state for three of the six recruits who will jump-start the IU rebuilding process.

3. Illinois
Look for D.J. Richardson in the starting lineup as a freshman. The overlooked aspect of this foursome: Each has been well-coached at the AAU and high school levels.

Best of the Big Ten: women

The Big Ten’s best early recruiting hauls, courtesy Tony Bleill:

1. Illinois
Tuesday’s addition of Destiny Williams makes this the best UI class since 1997 (Allison Curtin, Cindy Dallas, et al).

2. Penn State
Coquese Washington is getting three top-70 players, led by 6-foot-5 Nikki Green from Texas.

3. (tie) Purdue, Ohio State,
Northwestern
Yes, you read correctly. Northwestern, along with the Boilermakers and Buckeyes, will sign two top-100 players, according to Blue Star.

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