Who signed the top high school 'athletes' in the nation in the 2012 class?
- by Braden Gall (@BradenGall on twitter)
The next batch of in-coming college football All-Americans have inked their respective letters of intent. Recruiting is the life blood of the greatest sport on the planet, and, while coaching stills plays the biggest role in winning a championship, having better players can go a long way to earning a trip to the BCS.
Recruiting is an inexact science by definition. It is virtually impossible to accurately peg the mental make-up of any 17-year old child -- much less high-profile, over-coddled 17-year-old athletes. But team recruiting rankings offer the best indication of which team has the best ingredients each coach has to work with each season.
Related: Athlon's Top 25 Recruiting Classes of 2012
Offensive Positional Rankings: QB | RB | WR/TE | OL
Defensive Positional Rankings: DL | LB | DB | ATH
There are many prospects who come to campus without a position. Many times, the most gifted athlete on a high school team is asked to play quarterback or both sides of the ball full-time. Once these 'athletes' get to campus, the coaches have the exciting but sometimes difficult decision to make on where to play a give prospect. Is this kid a tight end, outside linebacker or defensive end? What about this do-everything slot man who is also great in coverage? These types of players can offer versatility to a head coach who needs to fill voids on his depth chart. It just may take a year or two to figure out exactly where he helps the team the most.
Here are the best incoming 'athletes' in the nation (tight ends below):
| Name | HT | WT | Hometown | AC100 | College | |
| 1. | Stefon Diggs | 6' | 185 | Olney, MD | No. 5 | Maryland |
| 2. | Cyrus Jones | 5'10" | 192 | Baltimore, MD | No. 48 | Alabama |
| 3. | Davonte Neal | 5'9" | 175 | Scottsdale, AZ | No. 56 | Notre Dame |
| 4. | Angelo Jean-Louis | 6' | 182 | Wellington, FL | No. 85 | Miami |
| 5. | Bralon Addison | 5'10" | 185 | Missouri City, TX | No. 111 | Oregon |
| 6. | Marvin Bracy | 5'9" | 170 | Orlando, FL | No. 126 | Florida State |
| 7. | Sheldon Dawson | 5'11" | 180 | Memphis, TN | N0. 188 | Georgia |
| 8. | Dominic Ramacher | 6'3" | 230 | Denton, TX | No. 231 | Oklahoma State |
| 9. | Daje Johnson | 5'10" | 175 | Pflugerville, TX | No. 255 | Texas |
2012 Athlon Sports Positional Recruiting Rankings:
College Football 2012 Positional Recruiting Rankings: Running Backs
College Football 2012 Positional Recruiting Rankings: Linebackers
College Football 2012 Positional Recruiting Rankings: Defensive Linemen
College Football 2012 Positional Recruiting Rankings: Wide Receivers/Tight Ends
College Football 2012 Positional Recruiting Rankings: Defensive Backs
College Football 2012 Positional Recruiting Rankings: Offensive Linemen
College Football 2012 Positional Recruiting Rankings: Quarterbacks
College Football 2012 Positional Recruiting Rankings: Athletes
