Five-Star Checkup: Defensive linemen
Every Monday during the college football season we will check in on five five-star prospects to see how they’re performing and if they are living up to the lofty billing that led them to be ranked at the top of the Rivals100. This week we focus on former five-star defensive linemen to see how they fared in Week 5.
MORE CHECKUPS: Five-star RBs | Four-star defenders | Three-stars | Two-stars
As a recruit: Jefferson grew up a little more than an hour away from Florida’s campus but he made Gators fans sweat all the way through National Signing Day, when he announced his commitment but didn’t immediately send in his letter-of-intent. In the end it all worked out for the Gators and they landed his commitment over Alabama, LSU, Arkansas and Ole Miss, all schools he officially visited.
What he did this week: Jefferson has made an impact for the Gators since his freshman year and on Saturday he came up big once again. Florida beat Vanderbilt 38-24 and Jefferson made several key plays, including two tackles, one pass deflection and two quarterback hurries. Jefferson is part of a very talented Gators defensive line group that rotates during games so his stats aren’t as gaudy as some of his peers, but he looks like he will be on the mind of NFL teams down the road.
As a recruit: Green’s recruitment started off with offers from schools from all over the country, but in the end came down to a battle between several Pac-12 programs. After taking official visits to Oregon, Arizona State and Miami, Green decided to continue to the Junipero Serra-to-USC pipeline by committing to the Trojans on National Signing Day.
What he did this week: The end of Green’s high school career was marred by injuries, but he arrived at USC healthy and wasted no time making and impact during his freshman year with the Trojans. As his career has moved along, Green has only gotten better and even though USC lost on Friday night to Washington State, it had nothing to do with the play of Green. He finished the game three tackles, 1.5 sacks and two quarterback hurries and has been a disruptive force all season. Green has had a great career in college and looks to have an NFL future as well.
As a recruit: Brown took his recruitment all the way until Signing Day with Georgia, Auburn, Alabama, Mississippi State and Tennessee all getting official visits. Many projected Brown to Georgia, but in the end the Tigers won out, landing his commitment in a nationally televised announcement.
What he did this week: Brown has been a steady performer since arriving at Auburn but he’s taken his game up a notch in 2017. In Saturday’s lopsided victory over Mississippi State, Brown had three tackles and consistently drew extra attention from the Bulldogs offensive linemen, helping to free up his teammates to make plays. Brown is still coming into his own as a force but is part of a very deep defensive line rotation that has helped make Auburn one of the SEC’s best all-around teams.
As a recruit: Like most players from the state of Mississippi, it took Simmons a while to emerge on the national recruiting scene but once coaches caught wind of him he quickly became a hot commodity in the Southeast. Simmons took his first official visit to Tennessee but his recruitment came down to Mississippi State, Ole Miss and Alabama, with the Bulldogs picking up one of the biggest recruiting wins in program history when he announced for the school on Signing Day.
What he did this week: Off-field issues nearly kept Simmons from making it to Starkville, but after serving a suspension to start his freshman season in 2016 Simmons has turned into quite the on-field performer. He grew from a defensive end into a defensive tackle and has been a force for the Bulldogs this season. Simmons was one of the few bright spots for Mississippi State in the school’s blowout loss to Auburn, finishing with six tackles and one sack.
As a recruit: Young collected offers from all over the country during his time as a recruit but it was clear from the early going that Ohio State was the team to beat in his recruitment. He ended up committing to the Buckeyes in the summer prior to his senior season and never wavered on his pledge.
What he did this week: Just a true freshman on one of the nation’s best teams, Young is still feeling his way out in the college game. But on Saturday he was on the field during the Buckeyes' blowout victory over Rutgers, notching three tackles, including one for loss. As the year moves along it appears Young will have more opportunities to make plays and he looks like he’s well on his way to becoming a major contributor in Columbus.
