Rivals Rankings Week: Who do you wish you could have seen in-person?

The coronavirus stay-at-home orders disrupted one of the busiest times of the year for evaluations. Spring football, 7-on-7 and just over half of the Rivals Camp Series were all nixed as a result of the pandemic and the necessary precautions taken, leaving our analysts to evaluate largely by film instead of in-person analysis.

We surveyed the Rivals analysts from all across the country to ask about which prospect they were most disappointed about not being able to see in-person this offseason

RIVALS RANKINGS WEEK:

MONDAY: Five-star countdown | Who should be the next five-star WR? | Who is best OG? | Who will finish No. 1? | How was this rankings cycle different?

TUESDAY: New Rivals250 released | New five-stars | Farrell's thoughts | Is Mario Williams the best of the new five-stars? | Who should be the next five-star QB? | Who is the best ILB in 2021?

WEDNESDAY: QB | RB | WR/TE | OL rankings breakdowns

THURSDAY: DL | LB | DB | ATH rankings breakdowns

FRIDAY: New state rankings released

I was really looking forward to seeing Sanders this spring. The South Florida-based standout is a hyper-versatile athlete that plays a number of positions. He’s also the kind of guy that could have impressed college coaches at camps. It will be interesting to see how this affects his recruitment because he’s a guy that brings major upside despite not specializing in one position. He’ll still land at a major program, sure, but the lack of exposure might limit his opportunities.

There is a long list of players I'm bummed we didn't get to see this spring. There were virtually no camps, showcases, or 7-on-7 tournaments in my region before the evaluation period was shut down and he was one prospect I was eager to see. White is one of the more intriguing prospects in the class but getting a good read on him will have to wait until the upcoming season.

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I was lucky enough to be able to attend a bunch of 7-on-7 events and camps including the Rivals Camp Series before the coronavirus shutdown, so I saw a lot of top 2021, 2022 and 2023 prospects in the West Region unlike some others around the country, but I didn't get to see Bowers again.

I did see Bowers last offseason during a 7-on-7 event and I was really impressed with his ability and his size and now he's emerged as one of the top tight end targets nationally. There is a lot of talk that he's the top tight end on Georgia's board and many other programs are also chasing him. I just wish I could have seen him again during the camp setting since he plays in Napa and not against elite competition each week.

If I had been able to, I'd have a better understanding if he should be even higher in the tight end rankings or if he's about right. He's really good and I'm wondering if we might have him ranked just slightly too low.

Okoli is a prospect who really popped on film as a junior. We started him off as a top-10 prospect in the state, but could see him challenging for four-star status once we get a few questions answered from an in-person evaluation. Specifically we want to see his frame and physical growth potential, as well as get a better feel for his overall athleticism and movement skills.

A lot of college staffs were similarly intrigued and waiting for the Spring Evaluation Period to get their questions answered, but when that was eliminated many felt they could not wait any longer. Okoli has seen his offer list shoot past 20 programs this spring, with Georgia, Michigan and USC among his recent additions.

There was really a group of Alabama prospects that I wanted to evaluate further, and get a better in-person look at this spring, but Williams is the one I really feel could have made a big move in the rankings. The more I watch his film, the more I like his game and his upside. Is he an outside linebacker on the next level? Will he be a weakside end who terrorizes the quarterback in college?

There are still some questions, but Williams is a very intriguing prospect that I have yet to see compete live. As soon as things get back to normal, I will be at Ramsay High in Birmingham (Ala.) to get a good look at Williams. As I dove more into his game film over the last couple months, I like him more than his ranking shows, so he is one who could be a riser later this year.

Turner had a breakout season at DeSoto (Texas) High School in 2019 with a new coaching staff installing a new defensive scheme that allowed the four-star defensive end to wreak havoc off the edge. Turner’s junior campaign led to new offers from Alabama, LSU, Georgia and Ohio State, among others, making for an interesting recruiting battle with Texas, Texas A&M and TCU also involved.

I was anxious to see Turner in a camp setting against what’s a very deep crop of offensive tackles in Texas in the 2021 cycle. He has a chance to be a top-100 player, and that could have been reflected in the rankings if not for the pandemic. That’ll put even more eyes on the Dallas-area edge-rusher in the fall.