ESPN College Football

Posted by ESPN.com's Adam Rittenberg

Expect the links to have more of a recruiting flavor as we inch closer to National Signing Day. 

• In addition to courting Penn State D-line coach Larry Johnson, Illinois head coach Ron Zook also hopes to lure Florida State O-line coach Rick Trickett, Loren Tate writes in The (Champaign) News-Gazette.  
• Ohio State safety Kurt Coleman continues to weigh his options with the NFL draft, Doug Lesmerises writes in The Cleveland Plain Dealer. 
• Bad weather in Ann Arbor didn't bother Michigan recruits from the Sun Belt region, Josh Helmholdt writes in the Detroit Free Press. 

"The biggest news emerging from the weekend is the moves Michigan made with the two highest ranked visitors from the weekend -- [Marcus] Hall and Greenwood, S.C., defensive end Sam Montgomery."

• Purdue now has a dozen commitments from the state of Florida, Mike Carmin writes in The Journal and Courier. 
  
• Despite its on-field struggles, the Big Ten continues resonate with NFL scouts, Dan Pompei writes in the Chicago Tribune. 
  

"In the last five drafts, 166 Big Ten players were chosen, third highest among conferences. The SEC led the way with 192 players, followed by the ACC with 176. The Pac-10 had 157 while the Big 12 had 143.

If you break it down to first-rounders, the Big Ten also fared pretty well. The conference has had 28 such players in the last five drafts, including one chosen first overall -- Jake Long of Michigan by Miami last year. Only the ACC (39) and the SEC (37) have had more first-rounders. The Big 12 and Pac-10 each had 17."

• Minnesota head coach Tim Brewster could hire an offensive coordinator today, and it won't be Oklahoma's Josh Heupel, Kent Youngblood writes in the Star Tribune.