Class of 2018 Position Rankings: Risers and sliders

The second-to-last update of the 2018’s class position rankings saw extensive movement in most positions after nearly all prospects in the class got fresh evaluations coming out of their senior seasons. Here are the notable storylines and big movers in this update.

MORE: Position rankings | Updated Rivals100 | New Rivals250

RELATED: Risers and sliders in Rivals100 | Biggest movers in Rivals250

2018 PRO-STYLE QB RANKINGS

NOTABLE RISER: Tyler Shough, Chandler (Ariz.) Hamilton (Up 3 spots)

NOTABLE DROPPER: Artur Sitkowski, Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy (Down 10 spots)

COMMENTS: The nation’s No. 1 overall prospect remains atop this list. Clemson commit Trevor Lawrence has gone the distance so far, leading the pro-style quarterback rankings. There was a little shuffling going on behind Lawrence in this update, with California native Tanner McKee taking over the No. 2 spot in the ranking and Shough, an Oregon commit, cracking the top five after his bump.

2018 DUAL-THREAT QB RANKINGS

NOTABLE RISER: Jarren Williams, Lawrenceville (Ga.) Central Gwinnet (Up 6 spots)

NOTABLE DROPPER: Joe Milton, Orlando (Fla.) Olympia (Down 5 spots)

COMMENTS: While pro-style quarterback has the No. 1 overall player in the class, dual-threat quarterback has the No. 2 overall player in Georgia commit Justin Fields. He remains atop this list, but there has been some shuffling behind him, as well. Ohio State commit Emory Jones remains No. 2, but TCU commit Justin Rogers dropped two spots to No. 5, elevating UCLA commit Dorian Thompson-Robinson and Notre Dame commit Phil Jurkovec one spot each in that top five.

2018 ALL-PURPOSE BACK RANKINGS

NOTABLE RISER: Anthony Williams, Boutte (La.) Hahnville (Up 12 spots)

NOTABLE DROPPER: Stanley Hackett, Pasadena (Tex.) Sam Rayburn (Down 4 spots)

COMMENTS: The most interesting note regarding this position ranking is the number of prospects moving out to other positions, causing the ranking to be pared down by five spots. The top five remains the same, except for Hackett’s drop to No. 9. Williams, a Kansas commit, nearly cracks the top 10 after his big bump, but remains just on the outside at No. 11. Georgia Tech commit Dontae Smith is the only prospect to debut in this ranking, and he checks in at No. 20.

2018 RUNNING BACK RANKINGS

NOTABLE RISER: Master Teague, Murfreesboro (Tenn.) Blackman (Up 23 spots)

NOTABLE DROPPER: Brian Snead, Seffner (Fla.) Armwood (Down 2 spots)

COMMENTS: The five-star count remains at three, led by Georgia commit Zamir White. After Snead’s drop, Auburn commit Asa Martin moves up to take over the No. 4 spot in the ranking behind the five-stars. There are four new four-stars in this ranking – Teague, Oklahoma commit Tavion Thomas, UCLA commit Kazmeir Allen and Tennessee native Jeremy Banks – and each finds spots in the top 16.

2018 WIDE RECEIVER RANKINGS

NOTABLE RISER: Derion Kendrick, Rock Hill (S.C.) South Pointe (Up 22 spots)

NOTABLE DROPPER: Sean Shaw, Jones, Okla. (Down 32 spots)

COMMENTS: The biggest news here is that the position loses two of its five-stars with Kansas commit Devonta Jason and Los Angeles’ Jalen Hall dropping. That still leaves four five-stars at the position, however, led by No. 1 Amon-Ra St. Brown. The position welcomes four new four-stars, who take up places in the range of spots 42-65, featuring Minnesota commit Rashod Bateman.

2018 OFFENSIVE TACKLE RANKINGS

NOTABLE RISER: Nick Petit-Frere, Tampa (Fla.) Berkeley Prep (Up 6 spots)

NOTABLE DROPPER: Jaelyn Duncan, Baltimore (Md.) St. Frances (Down 8 spots)

COMMENTS: It was a quiet update at the top of this list, with the first six names staying put. Petit-Frere is the first change at No. 7, and Florida commit Richard Gouraige getting a little bump to keep him in the top 10, as well. There were no new four-stars at this position, but Michigan commit Jalen Mayfield, Notre Dame commit John Dirksen, Georgia commit Owen Condon and LSU commit Cameron Wire each moved up to a 5.7 three-star status and claimed spots in the top 45.

2018 OFFENSIVE GUARD RANKINGS

NOTABLE RISER: Dmitri Douglas, Saline, Mich. (Debuts at No. 27)

NOTABLE DROPPER: Christian Meadows, Montezuma (Ga.) Macon County (Down 5 spots)

COMMENTS: While these other positions on offense are seeing significant change, the offensive guard position is remarkable in this update for its stagnance. Meadows' drop from No. 25 is the first movement on the list, followed shortly thereafter by Douglas, a Michigan State commit, jumping from a 5.5 Rivals rating to a 5.7 and making his debut in this ranking.

2018 CENTER RANKINGS

NOTABLE RISER: None

NOTABLE DROPPER: None

COMMENTS: While a couple new three-stars were added in this update, this ranking remains at five and keeps the same order as it entered the season. USC commit Justin Dedich remains at the top, followed by former Florida State commit Verdis Brown at No. 2, Vanderbilt commit Daniel Dawkins at No. 3, Syracuse commit Tyrone Sampson at No. 4 and Stanford commit Trey Stratford rounding out the top five as the only three-star.

2018 WEAKSIDE DEFENSIVE END RANKINGS

NOTABLE RISER: Joseph Ossai, Conroe (Tex.) Oak Ridge (Up 5 spots)

NOTABLE DROPPER: Dorian Hardy, Elizabeth, N.J. (Down 14 spots)

COMMENTS: Two of the four new five-stars in the Rivals100 come from the weakside defensive end position. Georgia commit Adam Anderson and Baltimore’s Eyabi Anoma were both in the top five of this ranking prior to the season, but they each move higher with Anderson now at No. 2 and Anoma jumping a spot to No. 4. This position also boasts three new four-stars, including Ossai and Nebraska commit Tate Wildeman.

2018 STRONGSIDE DEFENSIVE END RANKINGS

NOTABLE RISER: Adam Plant, Las Vegas (Nev.) Bishop Gorman (Up 7 spots)

NOTABLE DROPPER: Ron Tatum, Oklahoma City (Okla.) Putnam City (Down 4 spots)

COMMENTS: There were some minor moves in the top 10 of this ranking, but nothing of significant note. The position does not see a lot of change from where it was over the summer, but prospects like Plant and Wisconsin commit Boyd Dietzen do make jumps into the top 30. This is now a 17-point jump since spring for Plant, an Arizona commit, as he moves up for the second straight update.

2018 DEFENSIVE TACKLE RANKINGS

NOTABLE RISER: Alim McNeil, Raleigh (N.C.) Sanderson (Up 10 spots)

NOTABLE DROPPER: Austin Fontaine, Hyattsville (Md.) DeMatha (Down 4 spots)

COMMENTS: Although Ohio State commit Taron Vincent lost his fifth star in this update, he remains No. 1 overall in this ranking. There is some shuffling toward the back-end of the top 10 that moves West Virginia commit Dante Stills up a few spots to No. 6 and Idaho native Tommy Togiai up to No. 10. McNeil, a N.C. State commit, checks in at No. 16 after his big senior season earns him a fourth star.

2018 INSIDE LINEBACKER RANKINGS

NOTABLE RISER: Jackson Sirmon, Nashville (Tenn.) Brentwood Academy (Up 10 spots)

NOTABLE DROPPER: Rocky Shelton, Ft. Lauderdale (Fla.) St. Thomas Aquinas (Down 6 spots)

COMMENTS: Five-star Ohio State commit Teradja Mitchell maintains a stranglehold on the top spot in this ranking. The same names that ranked in the top 15 at the position coming out of summer do not change, but there is quite a bit of changeover the next ten spots, highlighted by Sirmon, Florida State commit Rosendo Louis, Mississippi State commit Jett Johnson and Georgia Tech commit JaQuez Jackson, who all move up to a 5.7 Rivals rating.

2018 OUTSIDE LINEBACKER RANKINGS

NOTABLE RISER: Quay Walker, Cordele (Ga.) Crisp County (Up 9 spots)

NOTABLE DROPPER: Zakoby McClain, Valdosta, Ga. (Down 6 spots)

COMMENTS: Michigan commit Otis Reese’s big bump earns him the No. 2 spot in this ranking, right behind five-star Palaie Gaoteote. BYU commit Brandon Kaho also gets himself a nice bump that leads to a spot in the top five. Walker, an Alabama commit, and Kentucky commit Xavier Peters claim spots in the top 10 after their big jumps. Peters is joined by Texas A&M pledge DaShaun White as the new four-stars at the position.

2018 CORNERBACK RANKINGS

NOTABLE RISER: Olaijah Griffin, Mission Viejo, Ca. (Up 7 spots)

NOTABLE DROPPER: Kenny White, Gibsonia (Pa.) Pine Richland (Down 28 spots)

COMMENTS: This is one of the positions that emerges from the fall with a net positive on five-stars after IMG Academy's Brendan Radley-Hines adds his fifth star. He stays at the No. 4 spot in this ranking, and Griffin moves into No. 5 behind him after his jump. Kansas City’s Mario Goodrich comes over from the athlete position and takes over the No. 12 spot in this ranking after a sizable bump. Stanford commit Kendall Williamson is the only new four-star at the position, and he lands at No. 32 after this update.

2018 SAFETY RANKINGS

NOTABLE RISER: Dallas Craddieth, Florissant (Mo.) Hazelwood Central (Up 8 spots)

NOTABLE DROPPER: Israel Mukuamu, Bossier City (La.) Parkway (Down 15 spots)

COMMENTS: New Ohio State commit Tyreke Johnson makes it four future Buckeyes at the top of their respective position groups, and No. 2 on this list is also an Ohio State commit: new five-star Jaiden Woodbey. At No. 3 is IMG Academy’s Houston Griffith, who moves up three spots in this update. Californian Julius Irvin makes the only debut in the top 10 after making a big 18-point jump after a strong senior season.

2018 ATHLETE RANKINGS

NOTABLE RISER: Matthew Hill, Snellville (Ga.) Brookwood (Up 13 spots)

NOTABLE DROPPER: Harold Joiner, Mountain Brook, Ala. (Down 8 spots)

COMMENTS: The athlete position usually sees a lot of migration out to other positions in the latter updates for a class, but this ranking actually remained at 50 total prospects and includes several who moved in from other positions, like former Tennessee commit Alontae Taylor, who takes over the No. 5 spot in this ranking. Hill, an Auburn commit, also debuts in the top 10 after his big jump.

2018 KICKER RANKINGS

NOTABLE RISER: None

NOTABLE DROPPER: None

COMMENTS: The second iteration of the class of 2018 kicker rankings does not see any changes from the summer. Mississippi State commit Evan McPherson leads the list, followed by Clemson commit BT Potter, Georgia commit Jake Camarda, Nebraska commit Barrett Pickering and Indiana commit Charles Campbell.