Published Dec 8, 2021
Rivals Rankings Week: Updates on uncommitted offensive prospects
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Adam Gorney  •  Rivals.com
National Recruiting Director
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@adamgorney

The new Rivals250 for the 2022 class has been released and there is still plenty of recruiting news out there heading into the Early Signing Period next week. Here is a recruiting breakdown of each uncommitted player on offense in the new Rivals250.

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RIVALS RANKINGS WEEK

Saturday: Who should be awarded fifth star?

Sunday: Who should be No. 1?

Monday: Five-Star Countdown | Meet the new five-stars

Tuesday: New Rivals250 revealed | Gorney's thoughts | Who will we regret dropping? | 10 biggest movers

Wednesday: Offensive position rankings

Thursday: Defensive position rankings

Friday: State rankings

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The five-star offensive tackle from Houston (Texas) Summer Creek decommitted from Oregon following the news coach Mario Cristobal was leaving for Miami. Texas, LSU and Alabama are now considered the major players in his recruitment, and Texas A&M is definitely staying involved as well.

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Texas feels like the team to beat for the five-star offensive lineman from Arlington (Texas) Bowie but Alabama, LSU and USC are also highly involved in his recruitment. The additions of Lincoln Riley for the Trojans and Brian Kelly in Baton Rouge will be interesting to watch leading up to decision day.

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Florida State holds the edge in Armella’s recruitment but Florida, LSU and Alabama round out his current top four. There could still be a lot of movement in his recruitment, though, since the five-star visited Auburn this past weekend and the hiring of Cristobal at Miami could be a game-changer for the Fort Lauderdale (Fla.) St. Thomas Aquinas standout.

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Alabama and Georgia are at the top for the high four-star offensive lineman from Bellflower (Calif.) St. John Bosco. He recently visited Alabama again and then was at the SEC Championship Game. Georgia offensive line coach Matt Luke and Alabama coach Nick Saban and assistant Holmon Wiggins recently did in-home visits. Texas and Ohio State are also involved, but this looks like an SEC battle.

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LSU is believed to be in a strong spot for the four-star receiver from St. James, La., but the coaching change to Brian Kelly does make things a little more interesting - and there’s one team that is looking to capitalize on it. Alabama is making a major play for Preston, and the four-star receiver has been very receptive, including during an in-home with assistant Pete Golding recently.

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Conerly could take his recruitment to the late signing day in February, but his visit to Michigan this season was so memorable and noteworthy the Wolverines are going to play a big factor moving forward. With coaching changes at Oregon, Washington and USC, it will give Conerly time to get a better feel for those coaches and systems in the coming months as all three remain contenders. Alabama, Oklahoma, Texas and others are in the hunt, too.

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After decommitting from LSU recently, Citizen said his recruitment was basically starting over. Florida has jumped into the picture and the Gators are a real contender. Auburn is another school to watch and Michigan State, Washington and others have offered. It is expected that LSU will re-enter the picture for Citizen after Brian Kelly’s hiring of assistant Frank Wilson.

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Florida State is a major contender for Coleman and the Seminoles could have reinforced their position following Mario Cristobal’s move from Oregon to Miami because the Ducks were also high on his list. It will be interesting to see if the Canes get involved, but right now FSU is in a strong position.

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Texas, Texas A&M and Oklahoma look like the frontrunners, but over the last few days the Aggies could have taken a decent lead in his recruitment. At this point, some believe it would be a surprise if he ended up elsewhere as Texas A&M continues to build an outstanding recruiting class. Texas would still be the biggest competitor in his recruitment.

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The four-star interior offensive lineman remains torn between Wisconsin and Ohio State. He might announce at any time or could wait until the Early Signing Period, but the Hammond (Wisc.) St. Croix Central recruit is still weighing both Big Ten powers.

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After Cristobal’s departure to Miami, it looks like Oregon could be sliding significantly for the four-star receiver from Portland Westview. Auburn has an edge in his recruitment as the Tigers have for a while been a big player for his commitment. Clemons does plan to visit Michigan this weekend. He’s originally from East Lansing and is a childhood friend of Michigan receiver Andrel Anthony.


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Florida and Clemson are the two schools right now to watch for Etienne as the new staff in Gainesville is making him a priority, and then he has plenty of connections to Clemson because that staff has recruited him for a long time and his brother, Travis, starred there. It will be intriguing to see how involved LSU gets with Brian Kelly and Frank Wilson there now, and how they juggle their priorities in terms of backfield candidates.

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USC is definitely a school to watch for Barnes and the four-star running back was one of the first prospects - if not the first - that new coach Lincoln Riley saw during his swing through Las Vegas last week. The Trojans are definitely up there along with Oklahoma still because of Barnes’ relationship with running backs coach DeMarco Murray. Florida State is also a school to closely watch and Miami has been up there. With Cristobal there now it could pick up even more.

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Notre Dame is believed to be the frontrunner by a wide margin for Schrauth, but that has also been the belief for months and he still has not committed and there’s now a coaching change underway. Still, Notre Dame has to like its position, with Wisconsin and Ohio State lingering.

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Auburn and Tennessee are the finalists for the former West Virginia commitment. The four-star running back from Dallas (Ga.) East Paulding visited Auburn last weekend and the Tigers will remain contenders as long as running backs coach Cadillac Williams is on staff. Tennessee might have the slight edge, and he’s headed to Knoxville one final time this weekend.

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Things on the recruiting front have been kept quiet by Umeozulu, but Texas is definitely a major contender, especially because of its location and his relationship with position coach Kyle Flood. Alabama and USC are definitely two other contenders in his recruitment, and a commitment could come at any time.

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Michigan State looks like it has emerged as the favorite for Winfield following his de-commitment from Texas, although the Longhorns still would like him in their class. He was committed to Texas since January and backed off his pledge in November, so he was committed for a significant amount of time.

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Texas, Miami, Oklahoma and Auburn are the four finalists for the massive offensive lineman from Federal Way (Wash.) Todd Beamer and his decision will come on signing day next week. The Longhorns could have the edge heading into his decision, but it will be interesting if a Pacific Northwest kid is intrigued by Cristobal at Miami now.

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An in-state battle between South Carolina and Clemson could be brewing, but don’t count out Ole Miss and Auburn just yet, because the four-star receiver from Irmo (S.C.) Dutch Fork has shown interest in those schools as well. The Gamecocks could have a slight edge here, but where everything stands right now is not completely clear.

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The four-star quarterback from Gordo, Ala., had been committed to Oregon since March, but Bailey backed off his pledge to the Ducks shortly after Cristobal announced he would take the Miami job. His father went to Auburn, but the Tigers already have Holden Geriner committed so things are changing quickly for Bailey down the stretch.


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The four-star running back had been committed to Cal, but he backed off that pledge after about two months. He now has Wisconsin high on his list, but watch out for Oregon State here as well. The Beavers ran the ball exceptionally well this season and Ott took a recent visit to Corvallis. That could be in the works.

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Golden had been committed to TCU since June, but he backed off his pledge when Gary Patterson was let go and he’s been open since early November. But the Horned Frogs remain a serious contender for him, especially with coach Sonny Dykes in place and after a visit to Fort Worth last weekend. Baylor recently offered as well, and others will be in the mix.