There are several positive signs surrounding the Big Ten heading into the 2015 season. With Ohio State coming off a national championship, Jim Harbaugh stirring things up at Michigan, James Franklin’s revival of Penn State and Michigan State’s continued rise, the conference seems to be heading in the right direction.

For validation of that hypothesis, look no further than the recruiting trail, where it's August and the Big Ten already has more ESPN 300 commitments in the 2016 class (39) than it had through signing day of the 2015 (35) and 2014 (37) classes.

What's more, with approximately 27 uncommitted ESPN 300 targets still considering Big Ten teams -- including No. 1-ranked Rashan Gary -- that number could be on the rise soon.

Recruits are typically a good barometer for how a team or conference stacks up against its competitors, and if this barometer is at all accurate, the Big Ten could be seeing sunny skies for the next few seasons.