Entering your college career as a five-star quarterback prospect brings with it pressure that players at other positions do not experience. From 2002-16 there were 39 quarterbacks rated five-stars by Rivals.com. These five handled the pressure the best and lived up to the high billing they received in high school.
Why he’s No. 1: Newton is in the prime of his career, but already he boasts one of the best resumes in the history of the quarterback position. He became the first college football player in the modern era to win a Heisman Trophy, a national championship and be the No. 1 NFL Draft pick. Newton went on to become the NFL’s Rookie of the Year in 2011 and was the league’s Most Valuable Player in 2015. Coming off that award, Newton is considered one of, if not the, best quarterbacks in the game today.
Back when we met him: Newton has the distinction of being the only quarterback in Rivals history to be ranked a five-star twice. He was the No. 28 overall player and No. 2 ranked dual-threat quarterback when he signed with Florida out of Atlanta’s Westlake High School in the 2007 class. After leaving Gainesville and enrolling at Blinn Community College, Newton was again a five-star when he left Blinn as the No. 1 ranked JUCO prospect and signed with Auburn in the 2010 class.
Why he’s No. 2: Like Newton, Winston won a Heisman Trophy, a college football national championship and was the first player selected in the NFL Draft, though not all in the same year. He won the Heisman in his redshirt freshman season, making him the youngest player to win the award. Winston started in his first NFL game for Tampa Bay after the Buccaneers selected him No. 1 the previous spring and would go on to pass for over 4,000 yards and earn a spot in Pro Bowl as a rookie.
Back when we met him: Listed as a dual-threat because of his ability to make plays with his feet, Winston was every bit as good of a passer as the top pro-style quarterbacks in his class. The biggest difference between the Jameis we saw then and the one we see now is that young Jameis was pretty skinny and he has added much-needed weight since. He committed to Florida State the summer before his senior season, but still went through with official visits to Alabama, LSU and Stanford before signing with the Seminoles.
Why he’s No. 3: While Stafford does not boast the flashy bullet points on his resume like Newton or Winston, what he does have is a history of consistent excellence. This past weekend he held the fourth-longest tenure of all the starting quarterbacks in the NFL. After starting all three seasons in Athens, Stafford left Georgia a year early to become the No. 1 pick in the 2009 NFL Draft. Last December he became the fastest quarterback to reach 25,000 passing yards, achieving the feat in just 90 career games.
Back when we met him: The 2006 quarterback class garnered early hype, led by the trio of Stafford, Mitch Mustain and Tim Tebow. Stafford would emerge as the highest-ranked of the trio, and enrolled early at Georgia so he could partake in spring football with the Bulldogs. He ended up in the SEC after a close recruiting battle between Georgia and his home-state Texas Longhorns. Florida State, Michigan and Oklahoma were also in the mix, but Stafford made his choice in May of his junior year and never looked back.
Why he’s No. 4: Young is now out of professional football and his career ended with a whimper, but the No. 3 overall pick in the 2006 NFL Draft did make two Pro Bowls in his NFL career and was the league’s Rookie of the Year. Young’s career, however, is highlighted by his collegiate exploits which was capped by his sensational Rose Bowl performance against USC to win the 2006 BCS National Championship. Two years after he left Austin, the University of Texas retired Young’s No. 10 jersey.
Back when we met him: Young was the No. 1 player in the earliest class Rivals.com’ rankings go back to: 2002. The drastic change in recruiting from 2002 until the present day is highlighted by the fact that Young did not take his first official visit until January of his senior year. That trip went to Texas and Young committed to the Longhorns while in Austin. Other contenders for Young down the stretch included Arkansas, Kansas State, LSU and Miami.
Why he’s No. 5: Although Tebow did launch the first pitch of his professional baseball career over the fence last week, this evaluation will only take into account his exploits on the gridiron. The 2007 Heisman Trophy winner and two-time national champion was a quarterback in a fullback’s body. Tebow’s dual-threat abilities were as much about his power as his speed and throwing ability. Although he had a 9-7 record as a starting NFL quarterback, his unorthodox throwing style scared teams away from giving him any more starts under center after he was traded by Denver following the 2011-12 season.
Back when we met him: Tebow was homeschooled, but played football for Nease High School in Jacksonville. His recruitment took off after a junior season in which he threw for more than 4,000 yards, rushed for over 1,000 yards and accounted for 73 touchdowns. He took his recruitment all the way down to the wire, officially visiting Alabama, Florida, LSU, Michigan and USC before committing to the Gators less than two months before National Signing Day.
