Five star prospects are rare in each recruiting class and, as we know, some pan out and some don’t. For the last two weeks, we have been looking at 5-stars still playing in college football and grade how they’ve been doing. Today we continue with the defensive ends.
*****
MORE FIVE-STAR GRADES: QB | RB | WR/TE/ATH | DT
CLASS OF 2021 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | Position | Team | State
CLASS OF 2022 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | Position | Team | State
COVERAGE: Rivals Transfer Tracker | Rivals Camp Series
*****
CLASS OF 2016
ANTONNEOUS CLAYTON - Georgia Tech (transfer from Florida)
Clayton was a late five-star addition in the 2016 class and hasn’t come close to living up to that. He didn’t do much at Florida and hasn’t been a factor at Georgia Tech.
Grade: F
CLASS OF 2017
JOSH KAINDOH - Florida State
Kaindoh started off promising with a few sacks his first couple of years and then injury derailed him. He hasn’t returned to five-star form.
Grade: C-
JAELAN PHILLIPS - Miami (transfer from UCLA)
Phillips looked like he was done for his career with concussions at UCLA but he has re-emerged at Miami as one of the most dominating pass rushers in the country.
Grade: B+
CLASS OF 2018 - Xavier Thomas, Clemson
Thomas looked like the next big star at Clemson his freshman year but has fallen off a bit since and has actually been a bit of a disappointment.
Grade: C
ADAM ANDERSON - Georgia
Anderson has been playing linebacker and a hybrid role as expected and he’s shown some flashes but hasn’t lived up to the hype yet.
Grade: C
K.J. Henry - Clemson
Henry is starting to come into his own as a pass rusher but it’s taken longer than expected and he hasn’t been consistent enough.
Grade: C
BRENTON COX - Florida (transfer from Georgia)
Cox had a solid start at Georgia but is now a terror off the edge for the Gators.
Grade: B+
CLASS OF 2019
ZACCH PICKENS - South Carolina
Pickens is still raw but starting to show some signs of being that elite pocket pusher we loved. It’s early but I like what I see.
Grade: B
DEMARVIN LEAL - Texas A&M
Leal has turned into a monster who needs double-team attention often and he disrupts numerous plays a game.
Grade: A
KAYVON THIBODEAUX - Oregon
Thibodeaux became one of the elite pass rushers in college football as a freshman and hasn’t slowed down. His nine sacks last year was off the charts.
Grade: A+
ZACH HARRISON - Ohio State
Harrison had a very solid freshman season and has been effective at times this year as well.
Grade. B-
CLASS OF 2020
MYLES MURPHY - Clemson
Murphy has been one of the best true freshmen in the nation this season and looks like a future star. Grade: A+
JORDAN BURCH - South Carolina
Burch has been an active tackler and been in the backfield a few times, so the future looks bright.
Grade: B
WILLIAM ANDERSON - Alabama
Anderson has earned a starting job from day one and has been all over the field early for Alabama.
Grade: A
