Recruiting Recap: Where we stand as of now

Big news coming out yesterday was the commitment of linebacker Kendall Moore, the 12th recruit to commit to the Irish. So we're basically halfway done with this class, which provides a point to look back and evaluate what we have so far. Here's how the talent breaks down according to Scout and Rivals:
Scout- one 5-star commit (Martin), five 4-star commits (Lueders, Jackson, Welch, Smith, Lombard), six 3-star commits.
Rivals- one 5-star commit (Martin), four 4-star commits (Hendrix, Lueders, Moore, Welch), seven 3-star commits.

Rivals doesn't have a ranking out for the 2010 class yet, but the Irish are rated 9th at this point in the Scout rankings, with an average star rating of 3.58 and the second highest ranking of a team with 12 or fewer commits.

Weis had a few big challenges heading into this recruiting season, some of which have already been taken care of, some of which have not. We needed to get a legitimate quarterback in this class, and by all accounts, Andrew Hendrix is that player. We needed a top-notch defensive lineman, and Chris Martin is certainly that player. To further that point, we needed depth on the defensive line, and we got that as well, with the commitments of Martin, Lueders and Utupo. I would expect at least one more DL commit, but we are on a good path as of now.

That doesn't mean there isn't work left to be done. We need more depth at the running back position. Many believe Anthony Barr will be a key contributor to that current weakness, but every day Barr leaves his recruitment open is another day to worry. In all reality, Barr should have been wrapped up long ago, and you have to wonder why he hasn't been. Other than Barr, there really are no heavy ND leans at runningback, which is an issue.

Second, we need more depth at the offensive line position. As of now, we only have one offensive lineman committed in Christian Lombard. Lombard is a talent, but we need more linemen in this class. Seantrel Henderson seems like a longshot at this point, so that leaves us with some combination of James Stone, Matt James, Erik Kohler, Chaz Green, and Brandon Linder as offensive line recruits with offers from the Irish.

As far as the other positions go, we look pretty solid. We're set on wide receivers, only taking another if Kyle Prater wants to jump on board. Welch solidifies us at tight end. We'll need another linebacker or two, but Moore stops the gap for now. I'd like to see another top defensive back, but Wood and Badger provide the depth we need for now.

I'll close with the biggest issue, which at this point is the lack of top-notch prospects. Martin is our only 5-star prospect at this point, and as I look down the prospect list I don't have a lot of confidence in getting another at this point. We're in on Prater, though certainly not the leader. Henderson is presumably gone at this point. Malcolm Jones doesn't have a lot of interest. That leaves us with four 5-star guys (according to Scout): Justin McCay, Jeff Luc, Corey Lemonier, and Sean Parker.

There's been some criticism on the football boards about the number of 3-star guys we've taken. I'm not that worried about it at this point as long as we can add 4-star guys from this point on. Not all 4-star guys, but a good number of them. You can't fill a class with 3-star guys and expect to win a championship, you need difference makers. As of now, we have Martin and Lueders who are difference makers, with Hendrix and Welch as possible game changers (along with Lombard if an offensive lineman can qualify as a game changer).

So Weis has done a solid job so far, but is slowly backing up into a corner with the lack of top-notch players. Like I said, we're only half-way done at this point, so there's still plenty of time to make up the difference. Also, remember that many prospects are waiting to see how we perform in the upcoming season. So if the Irish can get some big wins early on, build some momentum heading into the SC game, and put on an impressive show then we will be fine. If we start slow, well....