Advertisement
football Edit

Rivals100 Five-Star Challenge: West stock report

ATLANTA – The Rivals100 Five-Star Challenge Presented By Under Armour is in the books and several West prospects opened eyes for good and bad reasons. Here’s a look at five recruits who boosted their stock and two who struggled.

RELATED: Farrell Awards | Media Day | Video interviews | All-Offense | Full Coverage

FIVE UP, TWO DOWN: Mid-Atlantic | Midwest | Southeast

Advertisement

STOCK UP

Redd has had a fantastic offseason and has really established himself as one of the more valuable prospects in the West, especially as a defensive back. The four-star has always been known for his speed and backed it up by winning the illSpeed Finals in Baltimore earlier this spring. He was outstanding at cornerback during the Five-Star Challenge. He has a knack for breaking on the ball and making a play and he has no issue staying with receivers throughout their routes to make every catch difficult. Redd can also comfortably flip over to offense, run the ball and catch passes all over the field. With that type of speed and playmaking ability, the four-star could be really special at the next level.

Carr is already the top-rated all-purpose back in the class so he can’t go any higher in the position rankings, but he proved his value especially in 7-on-7 at the Five-Star Challenge. Sure, he burned linebackers regularly during one-on-one and showed off his reliable hands, but it was in the 7-on-7 evening session where he really shined. The soft USC commit was unstoppable on wheel routes. Linebackers could not keep up and defensive backs misjudged Carr’s speed. He had a fantastic showing in Atlanta, backed up his ranking and really dominated at times.

Maybe no receiver in this class is more dynamic than Lindsey with the ball in his hands. He can make defensive backs look foolish in the open field and he’s so cat-quick and shifty that it’s tough to corral him or even touch him down in 7-on-7 play. Lindsey can take the short pass and make people miss, he can stretch the field and go over the top. He was awesome on multiple occasions catching the ball and then exploding up the field, past defenders who looked like they were running in sand as Lindsey waltzed into the end zone.

Graham is still rated No. 67 nationally but he has slipped some in the cornerback rankings and was out to prove he belongs among the best in the country at the position. He took a giant leap forward with his performance in Atlanta. Not only was Graham physical at the line of scrimmage and aggressive as the wide receiver ran his route but he showed off his great athleticism, which has been a staple of his for years. What Graham really showed at the Five-Star Challenge is his ability to shadow guys through double moves and be as sticky as possible to a receiver as the ball is in the air. The cornerback position is loaded this recruiting cycle and Graham proved he belongs in that top group.

Thompson has an impressive array of talents from length to wiry strength to outstanding hands and he showed it all off at the Five-Star Challenge to prove he’s among the top receivers in the West. The four-star had an excellent showing at the Rivals Camp Series in Los Angeles and proved he could be a national recruit after beating many of the top cornerbacks this past weekend. Thompson is a hard worker and he combines that mentality with great athleticism, long arms and really reliable hands. He answered the call in a big way and he was consistent throughout the event.

STOCK DOWN

Rogers had a dominant showing at the Rivals Camp Series in Los Angeles and he had some good reps at the Five-Star Challenge but, more often than not, the Las Vegas Arbor View standout struggled against powerful interior linemen. When the four-star could shoot the gap and use his speed, Rogers had some wins but too many times offensive guards got their hands on Rogers and utilized their power against him.

Andrus had a tough time during one-on-ones and it showed during the drills he needs to get more physical and have more than one move to beat offensive linemen. When bigger, stronger offensive guards engaged with Andrus, he didn’t have a second move to counter. The four-star needs to be able to overpower players more often, use his hands better to get off blocks and show better balance through his rep.

Advertisement