Latest news with #Rivals250
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Rivals Five-Star: Five SEC programs in the spotlight
The Rivals Five-Star, the marquee football event of the offseason, is less than a week away. We continue a conference-by-conference look at which programs should be paying the closest attention to the results from Indianapolis next week. Next up is the SEC. Advertisement RIVALS FIVE-STAR EVENT: Roster | Big Ten programs in the spotlight | Key QB storylines | Key RB storylines | Key WR storylines | Rivals Five-Star heading back to Indy BEST OF RIVALS CAMP SERIES: The five best QBs of the 2025 Rivals Camp Series regionals | Five best RBs | Five best WRs/TEs | Five best OL | Five best DL | Five best LBs | Five best DBs CLASS OF 2026 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | Team | Position | State CLASS OF 2027 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | Team | Position | State TEXAS A&M FLEXING ITS MUSCLE Texas A&M leads all SEC programs with five verbal commitments competing in the Rivals Five-Star. Clemson is tied with the Aggies for most involved in the event. Advertisement Future Texas A&M QB Helaman Casuga, WR Aaron Gregory, CB Victor Singleton and DL Jordan Carter and Samu Moala will all be in Indianapolis. The Aggies hold a top-10 class in the Rivals Team Recruiting Rankings for 2026 and have several more targets competing in the event such as four-star safety Tamarion Watkins, four-star EDGE KJ Ford and both WR Tristen Keys and Jase Mathews. SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS WITH TEXAS A&M FANS AT TIGERS FLAUNTING FUTURE BIG THREE LSU is notorious for producing elite receiver talent and all three of the Tigers' blue-chip wideout commitments are set to compete in the Rivals Five-Star. Advertisement Five-star Tristen Keys, the No. 1 receiver in the Rivals250 out of Hattiesburg (Miss.), is one of the overall headlining talents competing in Indy. He will be joined by top-100 receiver Jabari Mack and Rivals250 receiver Kenny Darby, both out of The Boot. SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS WITH LSU FANS AT NEWEST GATORS ON DISPLAY Nick Lucero/ Billy Napier and the Gators are catching steam on the recruiting trail as the summer heats up and several of Florida's newest verbal commits will be on hand competing in Indianapolis. Rivals250 prospects JaReylan McCoy, Kaiden Hall and Carsyn Baker will all be working out at the Rivals Five-Star. Advertisement Hall pledged in-state to the Gators after his official visit at the start of June. McCoy, who was also a visitor that same weekend, followed suit after a second visit to The Swamp in a three-week stretch. Baker committed last week after logging another visit to Gainesville. SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS WITH FLORIDA FANS AT 1ST AND TEN FLORIDA SEVERAL DAWGS TO WATCH ON OFFENSE Georgia produced 13 NFL Draft picks this spring and some of the next wave of elite Dawgs will be on hand in Indy for the Rivals Five-Star. Georgia will be well-represented on offense in particular with electric receiver commitment Vance Spafford and blue-chip tight end Lincoln Keyes set to compete. Advertisement Four-star athlete Ryan Mosley is also set to work out in Indianapolis, primarily as a wide receiver though the Dawgs love his skill-set at safety as well. Jordan Smith, one of the nation's best safeties who committed to Georgia at the top of the month, will also be represented in the annual event. SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS WITH GEORGIA FANS AT
Yahoo
10-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Southeast Spotlight: Five committed prospects on flip watch
Rivals national recruiting analyst Sam Spiegelman takes a look at five Southeast commitments that could be at risk to flip their pledges before the end of the year. MORE: Three new FutureCasts in for Billy Napier and the Florida Gators CLASS OF 2026 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | Team | Position | State CLASS OF 2027 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | Team | Position | State TRANSFER PORTAL: Full coverage | Player ranking | Team ranking | Transfer search | Transfer Tracker RIVALS CAMP SERIES: Rivals Five-Star heading back to Indy | Rivals Five-Star roster | Schedule/info Carter has logged official visits to Georgia and Florida State to open the summer. The touted Rivals250 receiver from the Peach State is a Seminoles legacy and has been back to Tallahassee on a few instances since giving Auburn his commitment. Advertisement North Carolina and Auburn are on deck for Carter. SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS WITH AUBURN FANS AT Gibson was one of the first commitments for Kalen DeBoer and the Crimson Tide – committing on Christmas Eve after his junior season and returning to Tuscaloosa on several visits since his declaration. The speedy blue-chip corner is an Ole Miss legacy and returned to Oxford over the weekend for an official. Auburn and Tennessee both are swinging away at Gibson in this one, too. SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS WITH ALABAMA FANS AT Harris gave Auburn a commitment last summer during a colossal Big Cat Weekend. Nearly a year later, the Tigers are working to hold onto the in-state Rivals250 edge defender, who has made a string of visits to Tennessee and more recently Florida. Advertisement Alabama is also working hard to keep Harris inside the Yellowhammer State. SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS WITH AUBURN FANS AT Keys has logged official visits to Miami and Texas A&M over the past two weekends – with trips back to Alabama, Auburn, Ole Miss and LSU all on the horizon. The No. 1 WR in the Rivals250 out of Hattiesburg (Miss.) High gave Brian Kelly and the LSU Tigers an early commitment this spring. He will make his final official visit to Baton Rouge on June 20 before finalizing his college plans. Miami remains in pursuit of Keys, along with Alabama, Auburn and Ole Miss. SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS WITH LSU FANS AT Tennessee landed a commitment from Sneed nearly a year ago, and the Vols have been working to hold onto the Rivals250 pass-catcher since. Sneed has made visits around the country this offseason with Ole Miss and Florida making it a tight race with Tennessee at the top of this recruitment. Advertisement Ole Miss made a big move during its official visit on May 30 weekend and Florida gets Sneed back to The Swamp on June 13. The Vols have the last crack at Sneed before he finalizes his plans. SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS WITH TENNESSEE FANS AT
Yahoo
04-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Three Predictions: Brayden Parks, Ohio State, Alabama
Rivals national recruiting analyst Greg Smith has predictions on a Rivals250 defensive tackle earning his fifth star, Ohio State landing a top offensive target and Alabama zeroing in on a Midwest quarterback. MORE MIDWEST: Rumor Mill | Wisconsin making a push with four-star EDGE McHale Blade NEW RIVALS250 RELEASED: Ranking | Top storylines | Ten prospects who could rise with a big June CLASS OF 2026 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | Team | Position | State CLASS OF 2027 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | Team | Position | State TRANSFER PORTAL: Full coverage | Player ranking | Team ranking | Transfer search | Transfer Tracker RIVALS CAMP SERIES: Rivals Five-Star heading back to Indy | Rivals Five-Star roster | Schedule/info BRAYDEN PARKS BECOMES A FIVE-STAR Even though Parks is already a top-150 prospect in the 2027 Rivals250 he is still on the rise. He just wrapped up a visit to Oregon where he camped and has the Ducks coaches impressed with him. He'll visit Notre Dame and Ohio State next. Advertisement His teammate, wide receiver Quentin Burrell, is also generating five-star buzz. It's tough for an interior defensive lineman to reach that status but if someone can do it, it'll be the 6-foot-3, 305-pounder out of Chicago. His blend of size, speed and power makes him a major force along the line. His recruitment is just heating up and will be hotly contested. FAVOUR AKIH JOINS THE BUCKEYES' CLASS AFTER HIS VISIT The long-awaited official visit to Ohio State is happening this weekend for the four-star running back from Ohio. Akih's recruitment has gotten quieter after a huge winter but he's one of the best backs in the country this cycle. Once Ohio State turned up the heat it became very difficult for Miami and others to continue pushing for his pledge. Advertisement After his visit back to Columbus this weekend, I'm predicting that he'll officially join the Buckeyes' 2026 class, which is in the hunt for the No. 1 ranking once again. SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS WITH OHIO STATE FANS AT ALABAMA SIGNS A QUARTERBACK FROM THE MIDWEST One of the more underrated storylines of this recruiting cycle has been Alabama quarterback recruiting. Previously under coach Nick Saban there was never a question if they'd get a top prospect. Coach Kalen DeBoer kept that rolling by landing last cycle's No. 1 player, Keelon Russell. It's incredibly hard to follow that up with another top prospect so the Tide staff has taken its time with a deep evaluation. Advertisement Now it looks like Alabama is strongly in the mix for a pair of signal-callers from the Midwest. Ohio's Matt Ponatoski and Nebraska's Jett Thomalla are both atop the board for Alabama's staff. Thomalla took an unofficial visit the weekend of May 30 and Ponatoski will take an official visit the weekend of June 6. I believe the Tide will either flip Thomalla from Iowa State or nab the dual-sport athlete Ponatoski, who also stars on the baseball diamond. Both players have enormous potential with some coaching by a noted QB guru in DeBoer. SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS WITH ALABAMA FANS AT
Yahoo
02-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
NEW RELEASE: Biggest developments in updated Rivals250
The latest Rivals250 for the 2026 class has been released and there were some big changes near the top of the rankings. Rivals national rankings director Adam Friedman looks at the biggest developments that came out of the most recent rankings meeting. Advertisement NEW 2026 RIVALS250: Ranking | Ten prospects who could rise with a big June CLASS OF 2026 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | Team | Position | State CLASS OF 2027 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | Team | Position | State TRANSFER PORTAL: Full coverage | Player ranking | Team ranking | Transfer search | Transfer Tracker RIVALS CAMP SERIES: Rivals Five-Star heading back to Indy | Rivals Five-Star roster | Schedule/info THREE NEW FIVE-STARS With this update to the Rivals250, the total number of five-stars now sits at 25 after Lamar Brown, Mark Bowman and Zion Elee join the ranks. If you've been following the rankings debates over the last few months, these moves should not come as a surprise. Advertisement Brown, now No. 13 overall, is a special prospect in the trenches who could play on either side of the line of scrimmage, which is why he has moved from the interior offensive lineman position ranking to the athlete position ranking. His quickness, strength, technique and physical traits give him one of the highest ceilings of any prospect in this class. We've known for a while that the 2026 tight end class is a special group but now there is a new No. 1 at the position. Bowman, who was No. 30 overall in the previous Rivals250, now finds himself among the five-stars at No. 17. Even though he doesn't exactly fill up the stat sheet during the season, Bowman is a well-rounded tight end with high-end blocking abilities and has proven to be an elite receiving tight end throughout the offseason. Elee, a longtime Maryland commit, is one of the most physically gifted prospects in this class, which is the main reason he now has five stars next to his name. Nearly 6-foot-5, 225 pounds with arms that are 35 inches long, the edge defender posted a sub-4.4 second 40-yard dash and a broad jump over 11 feet on Thursday at the St. Frances Academy pro day. It is very rare to find a player with those physical dimensions and that type of speed and explosiveness. On top of those eye-popping numbers, Elee has also shown progress developing his hand techniques and has improved his playing strength since the end of last season, which helped propel him up to a five-star and No. 1 in the edge defender position ranking. CHANGE AT THE TOP OF THE TIGHT END RANKING A month ago, we indicated that the tight end ranking would be under the microscope and that changes were likely. Today, those changes were made public with Bowman moving up to No. 1 followed by Kaiden Prothro (No. 36 in the Rivals250) and Kendre' Harrison (No. 38 in the Rivals250). Each of these players are outstanding prospects with the potential to be selected early in the NFL Draft if they continue to develop. Advertisement The shuffling within the top three at the position has more to do with NFL Draft and NFL performance trends than anything else. Harrison is a special blend of size and athleticism and boasts a strong basketball background. Bowman and Prothro both check more boxes when it comes to key movement indicators than Harrison at this point and now they're both ranked ahead of him. NEW NO. 1 SAFETY Five-star Jireh Edwards has jumped ahead of fellow five-star Blaine Bradford to claim the No. 1 safety crown. The standout from Baltimore (Md.) St. Frances plays like a heat-seeking missile in the secondary. Edwards has developed a reputation for jarring the ball loose when he makes tackles and can consistently get his hands on the ball. Advertisement He has the speed (posted multiple 4.4-second 40-yard dashes on Thursday) and size (nearly 6-foot-2 with 33-inch arms) that favorably projects to the NFL Draft and in-season production that verifies his high-end abilities. OSENDA ASCENDING Oftentimes there are highly regarded prospects who don't take full advantage of the offseason to work on their craft and physically improve. That description is the opposite of how Gabriel Osenda has attacked these last few months. Osenda participated in the Navy All-American Bowl in San Antonio earlier this year and his performance left a lot to be desired. The 6-foot-8 offensive tackle was carrying a lot of unneeded weight and it significantly impacted his effectiveness on the field. Advertisement Fast forward a couple months and the Tennessee commit now looks like one of the best prospects in this class. Osenda arrived at the Rivals Camp Series in Atlanta in May at 330 pounds, much leaner than four months ago. He was able to bend better, moved his feet quicker and had the technical skills to consistently keep defensive linemen out of the backfield. If Osenda keeps improving at this rate, he could keep rising up the Rivals250.
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Five prospects poised to climb in the next rankings update
May was full of top camps and some of the best prospects in the nation were out and about, showing off their skills. Plenty of players who may not be highly ranked showed they deserve more recognition. Check out five prospects who are going to see their stock rise when the rankings are updated again. Advertisement MORE: Multiple five-stars, blue-chippers hitting Miami for official visit weekend CLASS OF 2026 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | Team | Position | State CLASS OF 2027 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | Team | Position | State TRANSFER PORTAL: Full coverage | Player ranking | Team ranking | Transfer search | Transfer Tracker RIVALS CAMP SERIES: Rivals Five-Star heading back to Indy | Rivals Five-Star roster | Schedule/info The 2027 class of quarterbacks in Georgia looks pretty special and Jarrad is one of the best. Arm strength, accuracy, timing and touch – Jarrad showed all of the tools in his toolbox at the Rivals Camp Series event earlier this month in Atlanta. Advertisement With a big frame and a strong skill set, Jarrad is expected to see a big jump in the 2027 rankings. Johnson is already a top-30 prospect in the 2027 Rivals250 but his MVP performance at the Rivals Camp Series in Atlanta was awfully impressive. The potential the Georgia native displayed should push him even higher in the rankings. The 6-foot-4 Johnson can throw with touch, timing, power and consistently hit his receivers in stride. Expect him to challenge for a fifth star in the next rankings update. Putting the cornerback vs. safety debate aside, a three-star rating for Odem is clearly too low. The strong, athletic and explosive defensive back has the football instincts and anticipatory skills to be an outstanding playmaker at the next level. Advertisement Odem has the long arms NFL evaluators want along with the tools and techniques to be effective in coverage. He is a well-rounded defender as well, showing the physicality to be an asset in run defense. At the All-American Bowl earlier this year, Osenda left a lot to be desired but it seems like things have started to click for the Tennessee commit. At the Rivals Camp Series event in Atlanta this month, the towering offensive tackle weighed in at 330 pounds, much lighter than he was earlier this year, and he was much more effective on the field. Osenda's technical abilities, quickness and raw strength helped him earn the MVP award at the camp and now his stock is rising. Advertisement SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS WITH TENNESSEE FANS AT Scruggs has been one of the most active offseason participants in the last month. He was one of the best players at the Rivals Camp Series in Dallas and then won the MVP award at the New Jersey Under Armour camp this past weekend. Likely an interior offensive lineman at the next level, Scruggs has a frame that can carry plenty of additional muscle mass but he is already very strong at this stage of his development. He plays with an aggressive streak and uses solid hand placement to keep defensive linemen in front of him. Scruggs has the foot speed and technique to keep rising up the rankings as he continues to challenge himself this offseason.
