Rivals.com Five-Star Club: Hotbeds for five-star prospects

Rivals.com takes a close look at the 10 states that have produced the most five-star prospects from 2002 to the most recent completed recruiting cycle, 2016.

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The Sunshine State is the clear winner, with 76 five-star recruits since 2002. Not surprisingly, there have been a number of top-level success stories along the way, including Devin Hester, Tim Tebow, Patrick Johnson, Sammy Watkins, Hasean Clinton-Dix and Vernon Hargreaves III. With the trend of top recruits heading to IMG Academy in Bradenton, look for their lead over second place to become even wider in the coming years.

California and Texas have long battled for the second spot behind Florida, but it is the Golden State that takes the spot for now. Some of the more successful five-stars produced by California have been Reggie Bush, Mark Sanchez, Rey Maualaga, DeSean Jackson and Vontaze Burfict. Also of note, out of the 59 five-stars, USC has managed to sign an amazing 28 of them.

The third of the big three states is Texas, which began their successful run in 2002 with Vincent Young. Following Young were other prominent five-stars, such as Adrian Peterson, Matthew Stafford and Martellus Bennett. However, despite the high number of five-stars, the level of success has not been comparable with Florida and California over the last 15 recruiting cycles, with only a few achieving prominent success in the NFL.

Georgia’s five-star success has been more prevalent in recent years, with 19 of their 30 coming since the 2011 class. However, it was the 2007 class that put the state on the recruiting map, as both Cameron Newton and Eric Berry became household names. With Deshaun Watson, Raekwon McMillan and Carl Lawson all making their way to the NFL soon, the state’s level of success with five-stars is likely to see a continued rise in the coming years.

Similar to Georgia, a majority of Alabama’s five-star success has come in recent years. 14 of the state’s 23 five-stars have come since the 2010 class, with nine coming between 2014 and 2016. Some of the more successful five-stars to this point have been Julio Jones, who is coming of a 300-yard reception game on Sunday with Atlanta, Andre Smith and Jamies Winston.

Louisiana has become a steady producer of top-level talent, however, to this point that talent has experienced some difficulty maintaining that level of success into college and the NFL. The positives are that Jarvis Landry, Landon Collins and La’El Collins continue to improve in the NFL, while Leonard Fournette, Tre’Davious White and Cameron Robinson have the potential to make an impact at the next level.

There is a tie for seventh between neighboring states. For Virginia, several five-star recruits have enjoyed a great deal of success, including Ahmad Brooks, Percy Harvin and Tyrod Taylor. Jonathan Allen is also on track to join this list in a couple of years, as his play at Alabama has caught the eye of every NFL scout.

Tied with Virginia, Maryland/Washington, D.C. has experienced less top-level success than its neighbor. Jelani Jenkins has been a steady contributor with Miami, while both Stefon Diggs and Eddie Goldman have the potential to do big things in Minnesota and Chicago. Next in line to keep an eye on is Jalen Tabor, who should be a high draft pick next spring.

Ohio slides into eighth place, despite not producing a five-star from 2013 to 2016. Even with this lull, the state has had success stories such as Theodore Ginn, Jr., Kyle Rudolph, Chris Wells, Alex Boone and Fred Davis. The recent solid play of Spencer Ware with Kansas City is another positive for the state, while Maurice Clarett’s success at Ohio State also can’t be overlooked.

North Carolina is another example of a state where the production of five-star talent has not translated to collegiate or NFL success. While players like Brandon Spikes and Kennan Allen have been able to make this transition smoothly, a majority have not. Also of note, the early emergence of Dexter Lawrence at Clemson definitely gives the state someone that has the potential to be star in the coming years.

Finally, it is Pennsylvania which grabs the last spot on this list with 13 five-stars. The biggest success stories have come from Chad Henne, Sharrif Floyd and Terrelle Pryor, who took the long, scenic route to get there in the NFL, but finally seems to have achieved it in Cleveland. Noah Spence hopes to join this list, as he has shown potential as a rookie in Tampa Bay.