Only a handful of the nation's best high school football players finish the cycle with five-star rankings. As Rivals.com begins to evaluate the top talent in the 2022 class, the national analyst team has selected 10 rising juniors to debut as five-star prospects.
Today's five-star spotlight is on Fort Lauderdale (Fla.) St. Thomas Aquinas offensive tackle Julian Armella.
RIVALS 2022 CLASS RELEASE: The first 20 of the top 100
FIVE-STAR SPOTLIGHT: Denver Harris
*****
SCHOOLS TO WATCH
Armella’s father played at Florida State and most think that makes the Seminoles the team to beat here. The Florida-based tackle insists his recruitment is wide open, but toppling Florida State won’t be an easy task. Armella’s mother lives less than five miles from Miami’s Coral Gables campus and would like to see her son at the local program. LSU, Alabama, Florida and Georgia are also involved but everyone is chasing FSU for the time being.
ANALYST'S TAKE
Armella is still a bit raw but his upside is off the charts. His combination of raw power and quick feet is rare. He also has long run up against elite competition in high school games and at camps, and manages to stand out from the pack on each occasion.
The five-star is not polished by any means but seems to get better by the month. If he continues on his current trajectory, he’ll live up to his lofty billing. For Armella, the year ahead is all about honing raw ability.
ODDS AND ENDS
Armella plays for one of the country’s top high school programs in Fort Lauderdale (Fla.) St. Thomas Aquinas, which pumps out multiple major FBS prospects per season. For that reason it’s conceivable that landing Armella could help a program land his teammates down the road.
The newly minted five-star has been on the recruiting radar since his freshman year, so the attention that comes with his lofty ranking won’t take him off guard.
