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Nebraska got the best Nebraskans. Colorado has the best from Colorado. And Oklahoma has the best -- you guessed it -- Oklahomans. That kind of news was especially encouraging for the latter two schools, each with second-year coaches trying to strengthen their programs by fending off trespassers.

Not surprisingly, those are the four happiest Big 12 schools this recruiting season.

Texas, with the nation's No. 1 class for the second consecutive season, put some distance between itself and chief rival Texas A&M by putting the hammer down in battles over Lone Star recruits.

Foremost, the Longhorns got B.J. Johnson from Grand Prairie, Texas, rated the No. 1 wide receiver nationally, and the No. 1 overall recruit in the state by SportsLine's regional player rankings.

Texas didn't get everyone, but almost everyone it wanted. Defensive back Lawrence Richardson headed off to Arkansas and defensive back Darren Stephens escaped to Oklahoma.

Mack Brown wrapped up the No. 4 player in the state (tight end Brock Edwards) and Nos. 5, 6, 7, 8 and 9. Meanwhile, the Aggies, who had a very solid Top 25-type class, were shut out all the way down to the 15th-best player in the state -- cornerback Adam Black.

Nebraska was Nebraska, which means the Cornhuskers "gobbled up any in-state players they wanted before anybody got close to them," according to PrepStar managing editor Rick Kimbrel.

The best of the in-staters is tight end Chris Septak, the only player in the class who makes SportsLine's national Top 100. But that's not unusual for the Cornhuskers, who identify their kind of players (regardless of who else likes them) and then coach 'em up real good.

An intriguing prospect: running back DeWayne Long Jr. from West Des Moines, Iowa. He is coming off a knee injury, but in drills at Nebraska's summer camp before the injury, he graded out the best of any player there … ever.

Nebraska was hoping for some immediate impact from safety Adrian Mayes from Houston, a 6-foot-2 hitter with blazing speed. But, in a signing day shocker, he signed with LSU … the second piece of bad news for the Cornhuskers, who lost out to Notre Dame on Wednesday for top-10 quarterback Carlyle Holiday of San Antonio.

Colorado has a deep, solid class, including coveted QB Craig Ochs from Boulder … but the guy at the top of the list is Denver's Marcus Houston, the best of the best among the nation's running backs.

"It was a good year for Colorado high school players," Kimbrel said, "and Gary Barnett took advantage of the bumper crop."

The Buffaloes also extended their reach to lure Iowa's best -- tight end Quinn Sypniewski.

Oklahoma landed three players off the Top 100 -- Stephens, Wes Sims (the No. 2 offensive lineman in the country) and 6-6, 310-pound defensive tackle Jammal Brown.

"Oklahoma hasn't had a year like this in some time," Kimbrel said. "If you're a Sooner fan, you're happy as heck."

Best of the JCs

Looking for some lightning at running back, Nebraska recruited Thunder Collins, a junior-college running back who was supposed to come in at the semester break and shake up the I-back depth chart in spring ball. If Collins is to make an impact, it won't be until the fall, however, because he lacked the credit hours to enroll in January. Collins, from West Los Angeles College, redshirted last season in order to have three years of eligibility left at a Division I-A school.

Former Miami of Ohio quarterback Bobby Pesavento, by way of Fort Scott (Kan.) Community College, has enrolled at Colorado. Former UCLA signee David Wilford, an offensive lineman, will also be a Buff after a junior-college stint.

Oklahoma is looking for immediate impacts from defensive end Marcus Chretien and offensive lineman Howard Duncan, both of whom are enrolled, as well as Terrance Simms, arguably the best cover cornerback in junior college.

In terms of depth of players, Kansas might have had the best junior college class in the nation. One to watch is receiver Roger Ross, a PrepStar Dream Team player in high school. The Jayhawks hope to hit paydirt with at least a couple of their quintet of JC defensive linemen.

Kansas State, as usual, went deep into the junior colleges, notably for SportsLine All-American defensive lineman Ervin Holloman and running back Josh Scobey.

Baylor will look for an offensive boost from Greg Cicero, a quarterback who signed with Texas out of high school.

And Texas A&M welcomes back SportsLine All-American Robert Ferguson, a one-time Aggies signee who was among the top 20 recruits in Texas when he was a high school senior.

The battle of Iowa

Having beaten Iowa on the field in two consecutive seasons, Iowa State made a dent in the Hawkeyes' recruiting and should end up rated higher overall.

Linebacker Tyson Smith from West Des Moines is typically the kind of player who would go to Iowa -- or accept an offer from Nebraska -- but he did neither, picking the Cyclones after a season in which he had 136 tackles, 16 sacks and two interceptions. He also turned down Michigan and Wisconsin.

Iowa State also managed to creep into Omaha and leave with a player Nebraska wanted. How? The Cyclones were offering Ja'Maine Billups a shot at running back; the 'Huskers liked him as a cornerback.

Tidbits

Kansas State is rarely deemed a big winner on signing day, partly because recruiting evaluators aren't as enamored of junior college players as they are of high school kids, but that doesn't seem to bother the Wildcats on the field. That's not to say there aren't a couple of schoolboy stars in K-State's group this season. There are -- offensive lineman Chris Boggas of Irving, Texas, and tight end Jon Doty of West Des Moines, Iowa. …

Quarterback Will Martin, who might not qualify academically, was going to sign with Nebraska, but instead will put his signature on a Kansas State letter-of-intent. So, K-State coaches will be able to place him in a junior-college of their choice (if need be) greatly increasing the odds of landing him a couple of years from now. …

Missouri made a nice showing with seven recruits from Florida, including receiver Joseph Bruce, the brother of one of the St. Louis Rams' Super Bowl heroes -- receiver Isaac Bruce. The younger Bruce doesn't share his brother's size. Joseph, from St. Thomas Aquinas in Fort Lauderdale, is 5-8, 165 pounds.