Notre Dame received a commitment from one of the nation's leading running backs on Friday and coach Brian Kelly will land another top prospect on Saturday, giving the Irish a major boost in recruiting and assuring their class a spot among the top 10 going into the 2010 season.

On Friday, Notre Dame got 5-10, 180-pound running back Justice Hayes of Grand Blanc, Mich., a top 100 player who is the No. 2 player in Michigan. He is a perfect fit for Notre Dame's new spread offense. He chose Notre Dame over Michigan, Michigan State and Tennessee.

Hayes is the first outstanding skill position player that Kelly has landed. He is explosive, exactly what Notre Dame's offense needs. The Irish haven't had a running back who can take the ball the distance since Julius Jones.

(While I am on hiatus for the rest of the month, I am leaving behind six articles--(July 1) an analysis of Illinois' 2007 recruiting class, (July 2) Illinois' recruiting for 2011, (July 3) Notre Dame's recruiting for 2011, (July 4) Iowa's recruiting for 2011, (July 5) Wisconsin's recruiting for 2011 and (July 6) Northwestern's recruiting for 2011. Please archive past articles. And enjoy the summer)

Northwestern coach Pat Fitzgerald offered the fewest scholarships of any Big 10 school, primarily because of the school's academic standards. But the Wildcats are in on all of the smartest kids nationally. They are going head-to-head against Notre Dame and Stanford more than any other school. Fitzgerald and his staff have the confidence to become a national recruiter.

(While I am on hiatus for the next month, I am leaving behind six articles--(July 1) an analysis of Illinois' 2007 recruiting class, (July 2) Illinois' recruiting for 2011, (July 3) Notre Dame's recruiting for 2011, (July 4) Iowa's recruiting for 2011, (July 5) Wisconsin's recruiting for 2011 and (July 6) Northwestern's recruiting for 2011. Please archive past articles. And enjoy the summer)

Wisconsin has recruited well in-state, as it always has done. Coach Brett Bielema has done as well as his predecessor, Barry Alvarez. The Badgers have landed the top five prospects in the state. They got the players they wanted. Nationally, they still are in the running for a lot of big-name players. I like the way they are going about their recruiting and I think it will pay off for them.

(While I am on hiatus for the next month, I am leaving behind six articles--(July 1) an analysis of Illinois' 2007 recruiting class, (July 2) Illinois' recruiting class for 2011, (July 3) Notre Dame's recruiting class for 2011, (July 4) Iowa's recruiting class for 2011, (July 5) Wisconsin's recruiting class for 2011 and (July 6) Northwestern's recruiting class for 2011. Please archive past articles. And enjoy the summer)

To give you an indication how lean the crop of talent is throughout the Midwest this season, Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz only offered three scholarships to in-state players. And the Hawkeyes didn't spend as much time in Illinois as they usually do. But Iowa's staff is one of the most thorough in the country. They have become a national recruiter, especially east of the Mississippi River.

(While I am on hiatus for the next month, I am leaving behind six articles--(July 1) an analysis of Illinois' 2007 recruiting class, (July 2) Illinois' recruiting for 2011, (July 3) Notre Dame's recruiting for 2011, (July 4) Iowa's recruiting for 2011, (July 5) Wisconsin's recruiting for 2011 and (July 6) Northwestern's recruiting for 2011. Please archive past articles. And enjoy the summer)

For the first time ever at this time of the year, Notre Dame has offered more than 100 scholarships. And new coach Brian Kelly is off to a good start with 10 commitments from big-time prospects. The class deserves to be ranked between No. 10 to 15 nationally at the moment. But to finish that high or higher, the Irish must sign difference-makers at the skill positions, particularly on defense.

(While I am on hiatus for the next month, I am leaving behind six articles--(July 1) an analysis of Illinois' recruiting class of 2007, (July 2) Illinois' recruiting for 2011, (July 3) Notre Dame's recruiting for 2011, (July 4) Iowa's recruiting for 2011, (July 5) Wisconsin's recruiting for 2011 and (July 6) Northwestern's recruiting for 2011. Please archive past articles. And enjoy the summer)

Because of lack of success on the field, Illinois coach Ron Zook has stepped up his national recruiting but also has opted to stay around his home state more than anyone else. The Illini have offered more scholarships, more than 200, than any other school in the Big 10. They aren't sitting on their hands. They are going after a lot of big-time prospects nationally. But they must address a big need at quarterback and they don't seem to be in on anybody at the moment.

(While I am on hiatus for the next month, I am leaving behind six articles--(July 1) an analysis of Illinois' 2007 recruiting class, (July 2) Illinois' recruiting class for 2011, (July 3) Notre Dame's recruiting class for 2011, (July 4) Iowa's recruiting class for 2011, (July 5) Wisconsin's recruiting class for 2011 and (July 6) Northwestern's recruiting class for 2011. Please archive past articles. And enjoy the summer)

The fickle "we used to love "em, now we don't" folks on Illiniboard.com are engaging in an interesting analysis of Illinois' 2007 recruiting class.

It says a lot about the evaluating process that fans need to understand before they leap to silly conclusions.