Ranking the States: No. 9 Virginia

Over the next two weeks, Rivals national recruiting director Adam Gorney will look at the 10 best states when it comes to star power in the 2022 and 2023 classes, break down the recruitment of many top players from that state and give his thoughts on some timely topics from the area.

Coming in at No. 9 is Virginia.

*****

RANKING THE STATES: No. 10 Pennsylvania

CLASS OF 2022 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | Position | Team | State

CLASS OF 2023 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | Position | Team | State

RIVALS TRANSFER TRACKER: Stories/coverage | Message board

RIVALS CAMP SERIES: Info/coverage on 2021 camp series

*****

The state of Virginia has multiple five-stars in a single class for the first time since the 2014 class when there were three in DE Da’Shawn Hand, S Quin Blanding and DT Andrew Brown. Lynchburg Liberty Christian Academy’s Zach Rice and Alabama linebacker commit Shawn Murphy out of Manassas (Va.) Unity Reed lead the way.

There are a lot of other talented prospects and one receiver in Andre Greene Jr. from Richmond St. Christopher’s who could move higher in the rankings before signing day as well.

Virginia, Ohio State, North Carolina, Alabama and Notre Dame are the front-runners for the five-star Rice and as of today he doesn’t plan to take any visits during the season. “Only watching on TV,” Rice said and that could be important as the five-star offensive tackle tries to figure out his recruitment. There is a feeling North Carolina and Virginia could have the edge for him but no one is counted out yet.

Greene has two important visits coming up that could help in his decision-making process. Clemson is definitely a top team along with North Carolina and others and he’s also heading north in September to take in another top team. The four-star receiver will be attending the Clemson-Georgia game in Charlotte in a couple weeks and then he will be at Penn State’s whiteout game against Auburn on Sept. 18.

Four-star safety Sherrod Covil committed to Clemson at the Rivals Five-Star Challenge in Atlanta this summer and it sounds like the Chesapeake (Va.) Oscar Smith standout is more locked in than ever. He will also be attending the Clemson/Georgia game coming up in Charlotte. Any other visits? “Then Clemson some more and Clemson some more,” Covil said.

Former Ohio State commitment Benji Gosnell, a three-star who could play defensive end or tight end, is planning two trips to Virginia Tech - one on Sept. 11 for the Middle Tennessee State game and one on Oct. 9 for the Notre Dame matchup. He will also head to North Carolina as well and is working on a Clemson trip.

Former Penn State tight end pledge Mathias Barnwell is planning to return to Happy Valley this season along with stops at Notre Dame, Virginia Tech, Virginia and Kentucky. … Chester Life Christian Academy 2023 OL Joshua Miller and 2023 DT Joel Starlings from Richmond Benedictine School both plan to be at Penn State for the Auburn matchup in mid-September, too.

Leon Haughton is planning to visit Vanderbilt and Maryland. … Tony Rojas is hoping to go to Maryland, Ole Miss, Virginia Tech, Penn State, Duke, Virginia and Boston College. … 2023 DB Antonio Cotman, Jr., who has seen his recruitment get much busier since the Rivals Underclassmen Challenge this summer, has been invited to games at North Carolina, Clemson, Florida State, Penn State, Maryland, Notre Dame and West Virginia. 2023 ATH Tory Johnson will visit Maryland, West Virginia, Virginia and Virginia Tech and hopes to see Penn State, Michigan, Pitt, North Carolina and Georgia.

... Zach Rice is the state’s top-ranked player and the fourth-best offensive tackle in the class and that might be too low. If Rice has a big senior season and dominates at the all-star events then there is a chance he could move even higher for a couple reasons. I love Rice’s film but Kam Dewberry might end up being an offensive guard which isn’t a criticism, it’s just that Rice would at least move up one spot. Julian Armella and Kelvin Banks are ranked ahead of Rice as well at the position but nothing has been locked in and performance will mean everything.

... There were questions heading into the summer whether Shawn Murphy should stay as a five-star linebacker and after seeing him this summer it’s a resounding ‘yes’ from me at this point. The Manassas (Va.) Unity Reed standout can move in space, he can cover, he’s physical at the line of scrimmage and Alabama has talked to him about moving around to different positions so that versatility is a huge plus.

... The more I watch Andre Greene Jr. on film, the more I see the next Demond Demas-level athlete and playmaker on the outside. Demas was a freak-show athlete receiver who finished as the second-best receiver in the 2020 class and could be the next star receiver at Texas A&M. Greene’s sophomore film is excellent, he makes one-handed catches, he jumps over defensive backs and he has speed down the sideline. He might be one notch below Demas in terms of athletic ability but, wow, Greene has the chance to move up from fifth at wide receiver nationally to five-star status if he performs in the coming months.