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Published Jan 23, 2022
Rivals Rankings Week: Will there be a new No. 1 OT in the 2022 class?
Adam Gorney and Adam Friedman
Rivals.com

The final rankings update for the 2022 class will be revealed this week and there was a lot of debate over the offensive tackles. The top eight prospect at the position all participated in the all-star games earlier this month, providing an up-close look at their current skill sets and physical attributes. None of them had a real stranglehold on the top spot at the position after the previous rankings update but, after seeing nearly all of the top prospects at the position, is there now a No. 1 offensive tackle in this class? National Recruiting Director Adam Gorney and National Recruiting Analyst/Rankings Director Adam Friedman offered their takes.

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RIVALS RANKINGS WEEK

Sunday: Will there be a new No. 1 OT in the 2022 class?

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

Tuesday: New Rivals250 revealed

Wednesday: Offensive position rankings

Thursday: Defensive position rankings

Friday: State rankings

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GORNEY'S VIEW: YES

This has been one of the strangest years when it comes to offensive tackle rankings because no one has really stepped up and absolutely claimed that five-star ranking - until maybe the all-star events when some players got weeded out and others emerged as the best potential players down the line. In short, four years from now there will be offensive tackles taken in the first round of the NFL Draft and so we must project some of the best players at that position and make them five-star prospects. I like Alabama signee Elijah Pritchett the most after seeing him move and play physically in San Antonio. I can completely understand the argument that there is no clear No. 1 offensive tackle in this group but we have to pick somebody and there will be five-star players emerge at the next level but it hasn't been easy sorting them out.

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FRIEDMAN'S VIEW: NO

Offensive tackle is a premium position and at least three have been selected in the first round of the last four NFL Drafts. There will always be five-stars at this position but this year there isn't an obvious player that should be at the top of the position. Over the last few recruiting classes, we've been pretty confident in the top few offensive tackles but this year it is a much harder position to figure out. Kelvin Banks, Julian Armella and Zach Rice are the only five-star offensive tackles right now but, as it currently stands, prospects like Kiyaunta Goodwin, Elijah Pritchett, Will Campbell, Josh Conerly and Kameron Dewberry are within shouting distance of the coveted ranking. After seeing all of these players perform during the all-star season, none of them separated themselves from the pack. There are a few that I like but none I would call top 20 players in this class.

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