National Underclassmen Combine: The Gorney Awards
SAN ANTONIO - The National Combine was held Friday at the Alamodome ahead of Saturday’s All-American Bowl and after a long day there is no better time for some Gorney Awards.
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ACCURATE ARM: Jaden O’Neal
The 2026 quarterback has already established himself as one of the better quarterbacks in Southern California after throwing for 27 touchdowns this season but now he should become even more of a national name.
O’Neal is a big-bodied quarterback who gets all his power into his throws and on Friday he showed phenomenal accuracy working with these receivers for the first time.
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BIG COUNTRY: Austin Pay
Pay was one of the best-looking – and biggest – prospects at the entire event. The 2025 three-star prospect from Highland (Utah) Lone Peak is all of 6-foot-7 and 270 pounds, has very little bad weight and is totally comfortable in his frame.
Pay, who is close to double-digit offers including Oregon, Stanford, Arkansas, Missouri, UCLA and others, moves well, likes to be physical and has the length to be special.
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SHOULD BLOW UP: Matthew Parker
We first spotted Parker at combine registration on Thursday and he looked impressive just walking around the hotel so it was a shock that only Tulsa has offered so far. The 2025 offensive lineman from Jackson (Miss.) Jackson Prep is 6-foot-7 and 290 pounds, moves well and should definitely be getting a lot more recruiting attention once coaches see him during junior days and visits this offseason.
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SMOOTH OPERATOR: Jaime Ffrench
The high four-star receiver and Alabama commit was just tossing the ball around on the sidelines during the first session of the combine but then he decided to work out and he thoroughly impressed.
The Jacksonville (Fla.) Mandarin prospect who picked the Crimson Tide over Florida State and Ohio State is so smooth in and out of his routes and he has such reliable hands.
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MR. PRODUCTIVE: Wesley Yarbrough
Yarbrough was first spotted at a Rivals Combine, was then invited to Rivals Camp and shined at that event. It was no surprise to see the 2025 four-star running back from Crosby, Texas, impressing again at the combine as he absolutely dominated linebackers trying to keep up with him during one-on-one drills.
Yarbrough is an excellent running back and really showed off his catching ability at this event. What’s shocking, though, is that Houston, Oklahoma State, TCU and UTSA are still his only major offers.
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STICKY HANDS: Jabari Mack
It was hard to miss Mack since he had his hair dyed green but even more than that the 2026 four-star receiver is filled out and looks great running routes. He was also really productive during the one-on-one portion of the combine. Even when cornerbacks were right in his hip pocket, the Destrehan, La., receiver still made some impressive catches.
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MR. CONCENTRATION: Jaivion Martin
The 2026 tight end from Pflugerville, Texas, really made a name for himself on Friday and could only see his recruitment take off from here. Martin is a big-bodied tight end who made numerous impressive catches where he needed concentration to bring the ball in as the defensive player contested it.
He had great hands, got open and when he was covered up, the Pflugerville standout still made every catch.
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LOOKS THE PART: Grayson Wilson
Wilson put up huge numbers at North Little Rock (Ark.) Central Arkansas Christian this past season and while some of his passes sailed during the combine, it’s clear the 2025 three-star has some special qualities. He’s all of 6-foot-3, the ball comes out so easily and effortlessly.
The Arkansas commit is best when his dual-threat capabilities come into play so while sitting in the pocket and just throwing it isn’t his specialty, it still looked pretty good.
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LOOKS THE PART II: Shadarius Toodle
Listed with the linebackers, Toodle worked more as an edge rusher and dominated at times. The 2026 prospect from Mobile (Ala.) Cottage Hill Christian Academy has the makings of a really special prospect down the line as he plays with aggressiveness and toughness. Plus he has great speed and is almost immediately getting an advantage on the offensive linemen trying to block him.
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MOTOR CITY: Fameitau Siale
Siale didn’t come all the way to Texas not to get his work in. The 2026 defensive end from Seattle (Wash.) O’Dea plays like he was just shot out of a cannon, always fiery and ready to get after it and attack.
That type of intensity and passion is rare but Siale showed it, especially during one-on-ones where he’d win the rep and then sprint back into position to go again and again. It’s like the kid’s batteries are always charged.
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FINAL 2023 TEAM RANKINGS: Comprehensive (overall) ranking | High school/JUCO ranking | Transfer portal ranking
CLASS OF 2024 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | Team | Position | State
CLASS OF 2025 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | Team | Position | State
CLASS OF 2026 RANKINGS: Rivals100
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