Rivals Rankings Week: Breaking down the 2024 WRs/TEs
With the final 2024 Rivals250 being unveiled Tuesday, it's time to dive into the position rankings. The offensive position rankings are being released today, and the national analyst team – Adam Friedman, John Garcia Jr., Adam Gorney and Greg Smith – is giving their takes on which player is the best fit with the team they signed with. Up next are the wide receivers and tight ends.
FINAL 2024 RANKINGS: Pro-style QB | Dual-threat QB | RB | All-Purpose Back | WR | TE | OT | OG | C
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RIVALS RANKINGS WEEK
Sunday: Who should be No. 1 in the 2024 Rivals250?
Monday: Five-Star Countdown | Meet the new five-stars
Tuesday: Rivals250 released | Biggest movers | Gorney's thoughts
Wednesday: Offensive position rankings released | QB breakdown | RB breakdown | WR/TE breakdown | OL breakdown | Podcast
Thursday: Defensive position rankings released | DL | LB | DB | ATH
Friday: State rankings released
Saturday: Final thoughts on the 2024 Rivals250
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FRIEDMAN: Jeremiah Smith
Terrance Moore at Clemson and Mike Matthews at Tennessee are pretty easy answers here but the obvious one, and my pick for this category, is Smith. He's such a special prospect. Smith has the measurables and skill set to fit right into any college line up.
Ohio State's receiver corps is still very deep, even after the departure of Marvin Harrison Jr. and Julian Fleming, but it will be very hard for the Buckeyes to keep Smith off the field.
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GARCIA: Braylon Burnside
The moment Jeff Lebby got the job at Mississippi State, the thought was he would bring in top pass-catchers in what should be a wide-open and fast-paced offense. A few were already on board, but adding Burnside to the mix perks the ears up even more.
The physical prospect can be the gadget player that Oklahoma and Ole Miss before that always had under Lebby. The type one can hand him the ball or throw it short to as an extension of the run game.
While elite after the catch, Burnside has also come a ways as a route-runner and has shown the ability to win no matter where he lines up. It would be surprising to see State operate without Burnside making plays as early as this fall.
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GORNEY: Cam Coleman
I have no doubt in my mind that Auburn coach Hugh Freeze is a fantastic play-caller and an innovative offensive mind. But I also have no doubt that in his first season at Auburn, Freeze had very few weapons on offense to put into action his game-plan to move the ball down the field and score points.
Four-stars Perry Thompson and Bryce Cain could be game-changers in Auburn's offense but the big fish is five-star Cam Coleman. He has the size and athleticism to stretch the field in Freeze's offense. He can high-point the ball, make the back-shoulder catches and everything else.
Coleman is one of the best receivers in the 2024 class and he's exactly what Auburn needs in its offense.
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SMITH: Mike Matthews
Wide receiver might be the deepest position group of them all in the 2024 cycle. A number of choices would work here including the No. 1 prospect in the country Jeremiah Smith, but I’ll go with Matthews for my choice.
Josh Heupel loves to challenge defenses vertically. Matthews has good speed and has great size to win 50-50 balls while stretching the defense. The five-star receiver makes acrobatic catches look routine and he’ll have plenty of chances to do that for the Vols during his college career.