Published Oct 8, 2016
Rivals.com Five-Star Club: Revisiting the 2016 five-stars
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Adam Friedman  •  Rivals.com
Rankings Director and National Transfer Portal Analyst
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@RivalsFriedman

The 2016 class featured a strong group of 31 five-star prospects. Some are early headliners while others may not be turning heads but are making an impact. There’s also a handful that are still waiting for their time to contribute in a meaningful way. Each group is organized by their ranking in the 2016 Rivals100.

Note: All statistics come from the official NCAA website.

RELATED: Top five-star LB | Top five-star DL | Rivals.com Five-Star Club

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EARLY HEADLINERS

Stats: 17 tackles, 4.5 tackles for a loss, 1 sack

Even though Gary hasn't started a game yet, he has seen significant time and it’s a regular in the defensive line rotation. Five games into his career he's already made fools of some offensive linemen that overlooked him as "just a freshman."

Stats: 28 tackles, 3.5 tackles for a loss, 1 sack, 1 pass breakup

Lawrence has started three games already, including last weekends nationally televised game against Louisville, and is a key piece of the highly ranked Clemson defensive unit. He was clearly ready for the college game from the physical standpoint and will learn to make better decisions to avoid costly penalties.

Stats: 81 completions, 151 pass attempts, 7 pass touchdowns, 4 interceptions, 1 rushing touchdown

Eason has taken over the starting duties in Athens and nearly helped the Bulldogs to a key win over Tennessee. He's been up and down so far but is adjusting quickly. Eason is clearly the quarterback that will lead Georgia into the future.

Stats: 15 catches, 309 receiving yards, 5 receiving touchdowns

Bears quarterback Davis Webb has quickly incorporated Robertson into the offense. The Georgia native is second on the team in receiving touchdowns and will surely see an increase in use as the season progresses.

Stats: 2 rushes, 38 yards rushing, 1 rushing touchdown, 20 catches, 215 receiving yards, 2 receiving touchdowns

Harry has been dominant at times this season, starting every game so far. He is second on the team in receptions and is working on getting the passing game on track with fellow underclassmen quarterbacks Manny Wilkins and Brady White.

Stats: 20 tackles, 5.5 tackles for a loss, 3 sacks, 3 pass breakups

Houston is having a superb season so far and Oliver is a big reason why. He has started every game this year and has drawn rave reviews for his performances thus far.

Stats: 5 starts

Williams has started every game this season at right tackle. It's rare to see an offensive lineman start right away at Alabama especially with the talent recruited at the position each year.

Stats: 12 tackles, 2 tackles for a loss, 1.5 sacks

Davidson has started every game so far this year while former Rivals100 No. 1 prospect Byron Cowart looks up at him on the depth chart. It has been an up and down season for Auburn so far but Davidson's production early in his career is a positive sign for Tigers fans.

MAKING AN IMPACT

Stats: No starts. Played in every game.

Filling in for former five-star Laremy Tunsil is no easy feat but Little is starting to get more and more playing time. At this point he is splitting time at left tackle but he will be a cornerstone for Ole Miss for the next few years.

Stats: 4 tackles

Taylor’s playing time is mostly at the “star” position. He is rotating in with a few other defensive backs but has yet to have a break out performance.

Stats: 4 tackles

Kelly is already running with the second-string. He is seeing increased snaps every week and could turn in some big time performances later this year.

Stats: 9 tackles, 2 tackles for a loss, 1 forced fumble

Simmons had a rough offseason but it doesn’t seem to have carried over to the football field. Look for Simmons to continue to increase his production as the season progresses.

Stats: 8 tackles, 2.5 tackles for a loss, 1 sack

Lamar is a backup inside linebacker for Clemson right now but he comes in mostly in short yardage or goal line situations. He has seen more time on special teams and has racked up a decent amount of tackles.

Stats: 1 tackle

As a back up, Brown has played in every game of the season so far. Auburn could start relying on him more down the road.

Stats: 9 tackles, 2.5 tackles for a loss, 2 sacks

Bosa is playing as a reserve and has played well. Ohio State has pretty good depth on the defensive line and has been rotating them fairly often during the games this season.

Stats: 9 catches, 115 receiving yards, 1 touchdown

Nauta is considered the second string tight end but he's seeing as much action as anyone in the group. He had a big game against Tennessee last week, including an important touchdown.

Stats: 2 tackles, 1 catch, 1 receiving touchdown

Wilson has seen action at linebacker this fall in back-up and mop up duty. He has shined in goal line situations for the Crimson Tide at fullback as well.

Stats: 3 starts

Young earned his fifth star after finishing out his senior year on a strong note. That momentum has carried into his freshman year where the Kentucky coaching staff is gradually working him in with the first-team offense. Right now his second string but has been rotating with the starter.

Stats: 4 tackles, 1 pass breakup

Notre Dame is using Hayes mainly as a situational edge rusher but he has yet to really find his groove in what is turning out to be rocky season in South Bend.

STILL WAITING

Patterson is redshirting this season at Ole Miss.

Davis is likely redshirting this season at Alabama.

Smith is redshirting this season at Clemson.

Juarez is reportedly enrolled at UCLA but not currently participating with the team.

Stats: 1 tackle

Hardman is getting limited playing time on special teams.

Stats: 3 kickoff returns, 31 kickoff return yards, 2 tackles

Jones is seeing time on special teams but is having a hard time getting on the field with Iman Marshall and Adoree' Jackson ahead of him.

Fowler missed all of fall camp while working on getting enrolled and finally got on the field a little bit last weekend.

Stats: 2 tackles

Hall hasn’t seen meaningful playing time this year but has gotten on the field towards the end of some of Alabama’s blow out wins.

Vaughns is likely redshirting this season at USC.

Clayton played a few snaps on defense last week for the first time of the season.

Stats: 2 tackles

Stanford is loaded at linebacker so Robinson has been limited to special teams duty.

Stats: 2 tackles

Jones is seeing some mop up time but there is a lot of depth ahead of him at linebacker.