Rivals Rankings Week: Six earn fifth star in latest update
The latest Rivals250 for the class of 2021 has been released and with it comes six new five-stars and changes up and down the ranking. Here’s a breakdown of the big moves.
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RIVALS RANKINGS WEEK SCHEDULE:
Monday: Five-Star Countdown
Tuesday: New Rivals250 | Mind of Mike: Farrell's thoughts
Wednesday: Offensive position rankings released
Thursday: Defensive position rankings released
Friday: State rankings released
CLASS OF 2021 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | Team
CLASS OF 2022 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | Position | Team | State
COVERAGE: Rivals Transfer Tracker | Rivals Camp Series
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There is a new No. 1 in the 2021 class. It wasn’t an easy decision but DT Maason Smith from Louisiana leapfrogs California DE Korey Foreman to become the top prospect in the country. Smith has trimmed down – and he wasn’t carrying bad weight before – and is even more athletic than before. Foreman is still a monster defensive end but a year of development lost, while not his fault, is not ideal.
IMG Academy OT JC Latham jumped to No. 2 overall ahead of Foreman with a great season in Florida and we feel strongly about this trio at the top. Latham is headed to Alabama while Foreman is down to Clemson, Georgia, LSU, USC and Arizona State. Smith is harder to read as many feel he will end up at LSU but Alabama, Georgia and others are high on his list as well.
Rounding out the top five is OT Amarius Mims and QB Caleb Williams, who are headed to Georgia and Oklahoma respectively.
There wasn’t a ton of shifting in the second half of the top 10 although Oregon QB commitment Ty Thompson moved up eight spots to No. 9 overall.
The biggest moves were by the new five-stars. We are now at 26 five-stars during the most difficult evaluation year on record.
Here’s a breakdown of the new five-stars from our regional analysts:
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OT JC Latham
“Latham is a very athletic offensive tackle. He started as a defensive end, made the move to offensive line two years ago, and has quickly risen to become one of the best in the country. His feet, agility and flexibility stand out right away. Then you see his punch in the run block and the improvement he's made in pass protection, and the Alabama commit was an easy five-star call this update.” — Rivals.com Southeast Recruiting Analyst Chad Simmons
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OLB Dallas Turner
“Turner is one of the best pass rushers in the country. He is a nightmare off the edge and more of a hybrid that can play standing up or with his hand in the dirt. The Alabama commit is very athletic with long arms and speed. He is very explosive off the edge, he knows how to turn that corner, he plays with a high motor, and he is only going to get bigger and stronger in Tuscaloosa.” — Rivals.com Southeast Recruiting Analyst Chad Simmons
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S Sage Ryan
“Ryan has steadily ranked among the best defensive backs in the country since the initial Rivals250 for this 2021 class. Rivals created a profile for the Lafayette Christian star after a sophomore season that ended with multiple touchdowns on offense, defense and special teams in the Division IV state title game.
"Since then, Ryan has emerged as an elite safety that isn't shy about being physical and has come up with timely, clutch plays in big situations. Ryan can cover effortlessly and can man multiple spots in the secondary. He picked LSU over Alabama on Halloween.” — Rivals.com South Central Recruiting Analyst Sam Spiegelman
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ILB Barrett Carter
“Carter checks the key boxes when evaluating the linebackers today. He is very athletic, and that stands out immediately. When he is not making tackles on defense, he is making plays at running back on offense. On defense, he is one who can stay on the field and be very effective against the run and pass. The Clemson commit can play strong in the box, drop into coverage or rush the quarterback at a high level. He is locked in with the Tigers and is expected to see the field next fall.” — Rivals.com Southeast Recruiting Analyst Chad Simmons
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OT Kingsley Suamataia
"The first thing that stands out about Suamataia is his athletic ability. He's all of 6-foot-6 and 305 pounds but the Oregon commit moves so well, runs down the field looking to block people and that athleticism should translate very well to the Pac-12 and beyond. But Suamataia is also a phenomenal run and pass blocker with a physical nature who can put opponents on the ground at will and then head to the second level looking for someone else to knock over.
"It would be easy to compare him to Penei Sewell since the two work out together but there are also differences. Sewell was bigger in high school but probably not as athletic. Suamataia is his own player, he's very, very talented and he's going to a program at Oregon that has had lots of success developing offensive linemen in recent years.” — Rivals.com National Recruiting Analyst Adam Gorney
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OT Nolan Rucci
“Rucci improved in all the areas that concerned us heading into his senior season. He played with more aggression and is much stronger than last year. It's not easy for an offensive lineman to play as a freshman but, from a physical standpoint, the Wisconsin commit is much closer to being field-ready than he was a year ago.
"Rucci looked every bit athletic as he did when he was lighter and that gives us confidence that he'll be able to continue to add solid mass without getting slower. Watching his senior film, Rucci tosses around the competition when run blocking and has all the skills to be an excellent pass blocker at the college level.” — Rivals.com East Coast Recruiting Analyst Adam Friedman