With the college football season a little beyond the halfway point, it’s time for another installment of the Farrell 50, the top 50 college football players in the country. However, as usual here at Rivals.com, we take a quick look at how each ranked out of high school and if they are exceeding or simply living up to expectations. And with such a crazy season of injuries and disappointing seasons from some of the bigger names, you could be stunned at who’s missing from the list. Today we look at Nos. 21-25, led by two Buckeyes and a couple of big-time quarterbacks.
Mark Pszonak contributed to this report.
MORE Farrell 50: Nos. 26-30 | 31-35 | 36-40 | 41-45 | 46-50
The skinny: Russell, who had a relatively quiet recruiting process, was originally committed to Kansas before flipping to Baylor in late January. Russell redshirted in 2012, before serving as the backup to Bryce Petty in 2013 and 2014. Russell took control of Baylor’s high octane offense in 2015 and passed for 2,104 yards and 29 touchdowns despite a neck injury that cut his season down to only seven games. Now fully healthy, Russell is once again one of the elite quarterbacks in the country with 1,470 yards, 16 touchdowns and only four interceptions for the undefeated Bears.
Farrell’s take: Russell was a big, skinny kid who could run around and sling the rock but wasn’t polished and made some poor decisions with the ball, which led to his three-star ranking. The weapons he had at Baylor certainly helped him last season and he’s improved in every facet of the game from decision-making to accuracy to knowing when to tuck and run and when to throw. Coming off a serious injury and with fewer playmakers, he has still excelled and has been very efficient with the football. His stats are as gaudy as others lower on the list or off it altogether, but he’s been more consistent than most.
The skinny: Hooker committed to Ohio State over Michigan, Pitt, Virginia Tech, West Virginia and Penn State in the summer before his senior year. After limited playing time as a redshirt freshman, Hooker apparently thought of transferring. But a year later, he is now among the country’s leaders in interceptions with four and has 36 tackles with four for a loss. He has also broken up three passes and has a touchdown on a pick six.
Farrell’s take: Hooker was a mid-level three-star prospect who slid under the radar and turned into a steal for Ohio State. He was always athletic, but only played two years of high school football and was therefore a bit raw at his position. Hooker developed into a ball hawk in coverage, and we missed on this one compared to the competition. He was honestly a better basketball player than a football player in high school, that’s how elite he was at both and he’s taken that athleticism and turned himself into star.
The skinny: Jackson took official visits to Florida State, LSU, Tennessee and Oklahoma, and took multiple visits to both USC and UCLA, before committing to the Trojans on National Signing Day. Florida was another big player for Jackson, but at the end he decided to stay closer to home. At USC, Jackson has done a little bit of everything during his two seasons. Seeing time on both sides of the ball, Jackson is mostly considered a cornerback, but he has scored five offensive and six special teams touchdowns thus far. On defense this season, Jackson has made 34 tackles including one for a loss, has two interceptions and four pass break-ups.
Farrell’s take: Jackson was a dynamic athlete in high school who could play either side of the ball and impact special teams. His ability as a punt and kick returner is especially intriguing. He’s one of the most dynamic players in college football and simply fun to watch. We obviously loved him as our No. 1 athlete, a five-star and the No. 6 player overall in 2014, and he’s living up to that and doing a better job of playing physically this season.
The skinny: Knight originally committed to Texas A&M, but then flipped to Oklahoma in July after a weekend visit with his parents. After winning the starting job in Norman before the 2013 season, Knight showed flashes of excellence, but injuries, inconsistent play, and the emergence of Baker Mayfield led to his transfer to Texas A&M. Sliding into the starting job in 2016, Knight has excelled in College Station. Passing for 1,664 yards and rushing for 526 yards, while totaling 20 touchdowns, Knight has played above expectations this fall for the Aggies.
Farrell’s take: Knight had good size and was dangerous running the ball as much as he was throwing it coming out of high school. He jumped into the Rivals250 after a very good senior season and looked like a good fit in a spread offense where quick decisions are needed and he could improvise when needed. However, prior to this season, his only claim to fame was a big game against Alabama in a Sugar Bowl win. Despite the loss to ‘Bama this past weekend, he has emerged as one of the most dangerous quarterbacks in the country with his run-pass ability.
The skinny: McMillan took official visits to Ohio State, Alabama, Auburn, Clemson and Georgia, before committing to the Buckeyes in mid-December. As a spring enrollee, McMillan picked up the defense quickly and contributed on the 2014 national championship team. McMillan continued to improve his game last fall, as he finished with 114 tackles, which led Ohio State, four tackles for a loss, 1.5 sacks and one fumble recovery. Now one of the veterans on the Buckeyes defense, he has 42 tackles this season including 2.5 for a loss and has three pass break-ups.
Farrell’s take: A huge linebacker with excellent sideline-to-sideline speed and quick-twitch ability, McMillan was special out of high school. One of our initial five-stars in the 2014 class, he actually lost that fifth star at one point when he gained too much weight and slowed himself down. But he took that in stride, dedicated himself to getting faster and trimming down and became the No. 1 linebacker in the country. His wide range is why he makes so many tackles. He's huge and can move, but he has been overtaken as the top inside linebacker in the country by someone higher on this list.
