Mark my words , by the time the dead period ends, our staff will have locked down at least two of those 2027 five-stars from that ESPN breakdown. We are sitting on a position of need that nobody wants to talk about because everybody is obsessed with Oregon's five 5-stars and Texas stacking elite TEs. The defensive line room is thin and I mean paper thin. We lost too much production to the draft and the portal this year and the 2026 class only brought in one blue-chip interior guy SO far.
The 2027 year is where we close the gap. That ESPN article laid out 21 five-stars and I already know which ones fit our scheme. The staff has been quietly building relationships with at least three of those defensive linemen during this dead period. Silent commits are happening right now while everybody is staring at the 247 composite rankings. By the time the early signing period rolls around we will have flipped the narrative on this entire clas.
The Big Ten move was supposed to unlock California recruiting for us and if we cannot close on these 2027 five-stars from our own backyard then what are we even doing here. The crystal ball chatter on one particular 5-star DT from the West Coast is getting louder by the day. Sources close to the program say the OV schedule is already set. Calling it now , this position group goes from a weakness to a strength by August.