Rivals Rankings Week: Who should be the next five-star QB?
The 2021 recruiting class features one of the most talented and deepest groups of quarterbacks in recent memory. There are now three five-stars among them and plenty of other candidates. Midwest Analyst Josh Helmholdt, National Recruiting Analyst Adam Gorney, and East Coast Analyst Adam Friedman highlight three other quarterbacks that could end up joining the other five-stars.
MONDAY: Five-star countdown | The next 5-star WR | Top guard in 2021
TUESDAY: New Rivals250 released
WEDNESDAY: Offensive position rankings released
THURSDAY: Defensive position rankings released
FRIDAY: New state rankings released
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CLASS OF 2022: Top 100
ADAM FRIEDMAN: Kyle McCord
Ohio State has been churning out talented quarterbacks for a long time and McCord is the next one to enter that pipeline. He has all the skills college coaches are looking for in an elite quarterback prospect and it's a pretty good bet that he'll end up as a five-star by the end of this rankings cycle. Look for McCord to add more muscle mass and continue to improve his athleticism before he earns that fifth star.
ADAM GORNEY: Jake Garcia
We were lucky enough to have the Rivals Camp Series stop in Los Angeles before the coronavirus travel ban and many of the region's top quarterbacks attended that event, including Garcia, who was the best player at that position. He has a smooth delivery, great pace on his throws, he makes everything look easy and he has tremendous accuracy.
The USC commit has bounced around high schools a little bit and so I'd like to see him put up big numbers at La Habra and then to re-evaluate him at the all-star events to see him against elite national competition, but there's no doubt he's under serious consideration for a five-star ranking and if he continues to deliver in his senior season, then that discussion will only ramp up heading toward signing day.
JOSH HELMHOLDT: J.J. McCarthy
Right now there is not much support outside of myself on the analyst team for McCarthy as a potential five-star down the road, but I have also seen him more than the others. One point I want to clarify off the top is McCarthy has one of the strongest arms I have ever covered. He can absolutely sling the rock. The other elite attribute that needs to be highlighted is McCarthy's will to win. It's fitting he's from Chicago, because McCarthy has a Michael Jordan-like desire to win at everything he sets out to do. Physically, McCarthy is filling out his frame, but the next thing we need to see from him before considering a fifth star is limiting mistakes.