Friedman's Takeaways: Top Northeast prospects compete in New Jersey

HACKENSACK, N.J. – The New Jersey Under Armour Camp on Sunday attracted some of the best prospects in the Northeast and there were plenty of impressive performances despite cold, windy, and rainy conditions. Rivals.com national recruiting analyst Adam Friedman shares four quick takeaways from the event.

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Five-star LSU quarterback commit Bryce Underwood is one of a tightly bunched group of players involved in the race for No. 1 in the Rivals250. He has just recently begun hitting the offseason camp circuit in a major way and has, unsurprisingly, impressed at each event. Two weeks ago at OT7 in Orlando and then this past weekend at the New Jersey Under Armour Camp, Underwood showed off the unique physical abilities that help him shine on the field. As a passer, he’s able to put the ball anywhere on the field with touch and timing. Though he may be slightly less developed when it comes to his footwork and mechanics, it’s not an exaggeration to say he has the highest ceiling of any quarterback in this class. There will be more opportunities to see Underwood perform against elite competition this offseason and tracking his development throughout the rest of the process should tell us a lot about how the race between him and current Rivals250 No. 1 and USC quarterback commit Julian Lewis will play out.

Missouri quarterback commit Matt Zollers has been trending upward throughout the offseason and it’s fair to say he’ll find himself in the Rivals250 when the rankings are updated at the end of the spring camp season. The four-star out of Pennsylvania has gotten better and better with each event he participates in and this weekend effort was his best yet. His well-rounded skill set and outstanding arm strength, coupled with his ability to consistently deliver an accurate and catchable pass on short and immediate routes make him a high floor prospect. Missouri fans should be really excited about where Zollers is in his development process and how well his skill set fits in with Eliah Drinkwitz’s offensive scheme.

The camp on Sunday was the first major offseason camp that Tyler Merrill participated in and it could not have gone much better. The top-ranked guard in the 2026 class has an excellent build for an offensive lineman and has plenty of quickness and strength to hold up against the best defensive linemen in the nation. The 6-foot-5 Pennsylvania native played almost exclusively left tackle during one-on-ones on Sunday and dominated the competition. Merrill was quick at the snap, patient in his pass set, had a powerful punch, and strong hands, which he used to redirect defensive linemen. Only once was he beaten by an outside pass rusher but the rest of the time, Merrill was as solid as he could have hoped.

Even though the weather on Sunday was not ideal for quarterbacks, there were still a number of underclassmen at the position who stood out. Semaj Beals and Qur’an McNeill are two quarterbacks in the 2026 class who have already landed some impressive offers at this stage of their careers. Both rated as three-star prospects, Beals and McNeill each have the traits and skill set that are obviously attractive to college coaches. We could see more big offers come their way as they show off more consistent accuracy against tight coverage from defensive backs.

Christopher Vargas in the 2028 class and 2027 prospects Peter Bourque and Kahden Davis are all very intriguing prospects. As an incoming freshman, Vargas is a towering quarterback with a quick release and solid throwing mechanics for this point in his career. Bourque and Davis are a bit more polished as 2027 quarterbacks. Bourque’s passes could really pierce through the wind on Sunday. Davis arrived early and threw to the running backs during their one-on-one session against the linebackers in addition to competing in the later session with the receivers and defensive backs. The wind and rain along with the varying speed of his intended targets made it tough for him to throw with consistent timing but the raw tools he possesses will make him one of the more interesting quarterback prospects in the East region.

The weather conditions on Sunday were really unfortunate for the players, regardless of their position, but the receivers, defensive backs, and quarterbacks really felt the brunt of the cold, wind, and rain. At no point in the day was it raining harder than during the one-on-one session between the receivers and defensive backs. It was hard for receivers to consistently catch the ball but prospects like Lex Cyrus, Notre Dame commit Elijah Burress, Messiah Hampton, and Penn State commit Lyrick Samuel were able to stand out. Syracuse commit Terrell Wilfong, Qeanu Johnson, Carter Bonner, Syracuse commit Darien Williams, Jourdin Houston and Ohio State commit De'zie Jones also flashed at various points during position drills and one-on-ones.

While some receivers had a difficult time catching passes in the rain, there were a lot of defensive backs who lost their footing thanks to the slick turf. Despite the less-than-ideal conditions, Rutgers commit Renick Dorilas, Larry Moon and DeMari Clemons were able to win a lot of reps. Four-star Jordan Thomas, Ohio State commit DeShawn Stewart, Terron Johnson and Charles Bell also had their fair share of wins and showed off impressive technical skills during the position drills prior to one-on-ones.