Who signed the top high school defensive lineman 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
The defensive line might be the most important aspect to any championship caliber football team. Certainly, the quarterback is the most vital single position, but the D-Line might be the most important unit. Just ask Tom Brady what it is like to play against the Giants defensive line. Alabama and LSU boasted the top two DLs in the nation a season ago and it led to a national championship showdown. Whether it's a 3-4 or a 4-3, ends or tackles, pass rush specialists or run stuffers, a great defensive line wins championships.
Here are the best incoming defensive linemen in the nation:
| Name | HT | WT | Hometown | AC100 | College | |
| 1. | Mario Edwards | 6'4" | 290 | Denton, TX | No. 2 | Florida State |
| 2. | Noah Spence | 6'4" | 245 | Harrisburg, PA | No. 4 | Ohio State |
| 3. | Arik Armstead | 6'8" | 280 | Elk Grove, CA | No. 8 | Oregon |
| 4. | Eddie Goldman | 6'4" | 310 | Washington, DC | No. 9 | Florida State |
| 5. | Malcom Brown | 6'4" | 285 | Brenham, TX | No. 10 | Texas |
| 6. | Jonathan Bullard | 6'3" | 263 | Shelby, NC | No. 11 | Florida |
| 7. | Darius Hamilton | 6'4" | 260 | West Paterson, NJ | No. 14 | Rutgers |
| 8. | Ellis McCarthy | 6'5" | 326 | Monrovia, CA | No. 17 | UCLA |
| 9. | Chris Casher | 6'4" | 240 | Mobile, AL | No. 24 | Florida State |
| 10. | Adolphus Washington | 6'5" | 245 | Cincinnati, OH | No. 27 | Ohio State |
| 11. | Channing Ward | 6'4" | 250 | Aberdeen, MS | No. 38 | Ole Miss |
| 12. | Jonathan Taylor | 6'4" | 315 | MIllen, GA | No. 55 | Georgia |
| 13. | Eli Harold | 6'4" | 215 | Virginia Beach, VA | No. 57 | Virginia |
| 14. | Ondre Pipkins | 6'3" | 320 | Kansas City, MO | No. 60 | Michigan |
| 15. | Aziz Shittu | 6'3" | 275 | Atwater, CA | No. 63 | Stanford |
| 16. | Tommy Schutt | 6'3" | 300 | Glen Ellyn, IL | No. 67 | Ohio State |
| 17. | Leonard Williams | 6'5" | 270 | Daytona Beach, FL | No. 68 | USC |
| 18. | Javonte Magee | 6'5" | 265 | San Antonio, TX | No. 69 | Baylor |
| 19. | Toshiro Davis | 6'3" | 220 | Shreveport, LA | No. 77 | Texas |
| 20. | Se'Von Pittman | 6'5" | 245 | Canton, OH | No. 86 | Ohio State |
| 21. | Carlos Watkins | 6'4" | 275 | Forest City, NC | No. 89 | Clemson |
| 22. | Quay Evans | 6'3" | 305 | Morton, MS | No. 93 | Mississippi St |
| 23. | Jarron Jones | 6'6" | 298 | Rochester, NY | No. 101 | Notre Dame |
| 24. | Tyriq McCord | 6'3" | 212 | Tampa, FL | No. 107 | Miami |
| 25. | Issac Gross | 6'3" | 270 | Batesville, MS | No. 109 | Ole Miss |
| 26. | Sheldon Day | 6'2" | 275 | Indianapolis, IN | No. 116 | Notre Dame |
| 27. | Devante Fields | 6'4" | 240 | Arlington, TX | No. 122 | TCU |
| 28. | Dante Phillips | 6'6" | 270 | Venice, FL | No. 129 | Florida |
| 29. | Justin Shanks | 6'3" | 310 | Prattville, AL | No. 137 | Florida State |
| 30. | Michael Starts | 6'4" | 282 | Waco, TX | No. 146 | Texas Tech |
| 31. | Jelani Hamilton | 6'5" | 262 | Fort Lauderdale, FL | No. 154 | Miami |
| 32. | Alex Norman | 6'4" | 275 | Dallas, TX | No. 155 | Texas |
| 33. | Chris Wormley | 6'5" | 250 | Toledo, OH | No. 157 | Michigan |
| 34. | Alex Balducci | 6'4" | 262 | Portland, OR | No. 164 | Oregon |
| 35. | Tom Strobel | 6'6" | 265 | Mentor, OH | No. 196 | Michigan |
| 36. | Korren Kirven | 6'5" | 292 | Lynchburg, VA | No. 198 | Alabama |
| 37. | Tyler Nero | 6'2" | 290 | Atmore, AL | No. 201 | Auburn |
| 38. | Shaq Lawson | 6'3" | 240 | Central, SC | No. 207 | Clemson |
| 39. | Danielle Hunter | 6'5" | 245 | Katy, TX | No. 209 | LSU |
| 40. | Hassan Ridgeway | 6'4" | 255 | Mansfield, TX | No. 217 | Texas |
| 41. | John Atkins | 6'4" | 300 | Thomson, GA | No. 218 | Georgia |
| 42. | DeForest Buckner | 6'7" | 230 | Honolulu, HI | No. 224 | Oregon |
| 43. | Gimel President | 6'4" | 250 | Mt. Pleasant, SC | No. 226 | Auburn |
| 44. | Nick James | 6'4" | 330 | Long Beach, MS | No. 229 | Mississippi St |
| 45. | Ryan Watson | 6'3" | 275 | Olney, MD | No. 233 | Purdue |
| 46. | Quinteze Williams | 6'5" | 255 | Tyrone, GA | No. 247 | Florida |
| 47. | Caleb Azubike | 6'4" | 250 | Nashville, TN | No. 248 | Vanderbilt |
| 48. | Greg McMullen | 6'5" | 255 | Akron, OH | No. 249 | Nebraska |
| 49. | Dalvin Tomlinson | 6'2" | 266 | McDonough, GA | No. 251 | Alabama |
| 50. | Mario Ojenmudia | 6'2" | 220 | Farmington Hills, MI | No. 254 | Michigan |
| 51. | Jaleel Johnson | 6'4" | 300 | Lombard, IL | No. 262 | Iowa |
| 52. | Pio Vatuvei | 6'3" | 272 | Patterson, CA | No. 265 | Washington |
| 53. | Faith Ekakitie | 6'3" | 275 | Brampton, Ontario | No. 266 | Iowa |
| 54. | Mike Moore | 6'4" | 260 | Hyattsville, MD | No. 270 | Virginia |
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
