Rivals Rankings Week: New 2020 Athlete rankings
Rivals.com rolls finishes its position-by-position look at the latest rankings update. Below, we examine how things are shaking out at athlete, where a pair of prospects from flyover territory are, or are about to, make the rest of the country stand up and take notice.
UPDATED 2020 RANKINGS: Athlete
RIVALS RANKINGS WEEK:
Monday: Top 10 revealed | Looking at top of WR class
Tuesday: Rivals100 revealed | MInd of Mike | New five-stars
Wednesday: Rivals250 revealed | Rivals roundtable
Thursday/Friday: Position rankings revealed
Saturday: Team rankings breakdown
Sunday: State rankings revealed
TEAM TO WATCH: Texas A&M
Texas A&M already has Kenneth Phillips III committed for athlete, but the Aggies have a chance to really bolster their numbers at the position this fall. Two of the top 15 ranked players at the position attended Texas A&M’s BBQ/pool party at the end of July, and both remain uncommitted.
The No. 2 ranked player at this position is Dallas four-star EJ Smith, who has been a long-time A&M target, while the Aggie Pool Party was one of only a few off-season visits for speedy offensive weapon Devon Achane. A&M may have to get creative with how they want to use Smith, who is projected to the running back position by many schools, but the Aggies are one of the few teams who are legitimate candidates for multiple uncommitted prospects ranked in the top 15 of the athlete position.
PLAYER ON THE RISE: Mookie Cooper
There was considerable movement in the athlete position rankings following the summer. Nine of the top 20 from the previous ranking have moved out to other positions, including the previous No. 1 Cartavious “Tank” Bigsby. Bigsby’s departure paves the way for a new No. 1, and that distinction goes to Ohio State commit Mookie Cooper, who was also the only four-star athlete prospect to see his Rivals Rating rise in this update.
Cooper was one of the top performers at the Rivals100 Five-Star Challenge in Atlanta earlier this summer, and is likely to play a hybrid running back/slot receiver role for the Buckeyes. It is interesting to note that an athlete position that featured 22 four-stars in the post-spring update, now has just 12 players rated four-stars after all the departures.
PLAYER TO WATCH: Terry Lockett
The last year has been a strange one as it relates to football for four-star Terry Lockett, but it could set the stage for a big senior season. Lockett was one of three four-star prospects at Minnehaha Academy in Minneapolis going into his junior season when he abruptly transferred to Spire Academy in Ohio. Spire, however, does not have a football team, so Lockett played part of last season with the nearby Ashtabula St. John program, before playing basketball with Spire during the winter.
Earlier this week, however, it was announced that Lockett was back at Minnehaha for his senior year, where he will be able to catch passes from four-star quarterback Jalen Suggs and team up on defense with four-star linebacker Kaden Johnson. The No. 6 ranked prospect at the athlete position, Lockett remains open and has all five official visits remaining. He is aiming to take his first official visit in September to Michigan State, likely for their home game weekend against Arizona State.