Rivals Recap: SEC pledges shine in OL vs. DL Challenge

The Rivals100 Five-Star Challenge Presented by Under Armour wrapped on up Saturday night in the Georgia Dome, with the nation’s top stars going head-to-head in the annual Big Man Challenge. Teams of five offensive linemen and five defensive linemen competed in a tournament style event, which featured one-on-ones, speed and agility events and various other drills.

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Hulking Alabama commitment Alex Leatherwood plays with an edge and helped his team reach the one-on-one finals, as he took on the other team’s top lineman every time and won more than his fair share. He was the consensus choice of the event’s coaches when it came to MVP honors, and his showing in the Big Man Challenge was a big reason why.

2018 star Cade Mays was the No. 1 seed for eventual winner Team Spotlight and spent the night tossing opposing defensive linemen. Mays is a baby-faced assassin, and when the light comes on it doesn’t matter who his opponent is or where they’re ranked, he brings the pain. Mays also tested well in agility drills and looks like one of the class of 2018’s top overall linemen.

Another camp, another solid performance for the nation’s No. 1 overall player, Marvin Wilson. He wasn’t totally dominant like other past No. 1’s have been at the Five-Star Challenge, but he was an emotional leader for his team and after a pair of his teammates dropped with injuries he stepped in to take extra reps, most of which he won.

There has been some debate about which lineman is better, Wilson or Tyler Shelvin, and the big man from the Bayou made a pretty good case to close the gap with his showing. Despite carrying some bad weight, Shelvin was quick off the ball and tough for offensive linemen to block.

Four-star defensive end Jake Lawler not only more than held his own when it came to one-on-ones, but he was far and away the fastest and most athletic lineman in attendance. He set the pace in every agility event, and looks like a versatile playmaker that will do serious damage as a weakside defensive end in the future.

Another excellent performer in one-on-ones, Navaughn Donaldson was a stonewall for most of the night. Despite being soft spoken, he knows how to flip the switch and showed great technique while handling smaller edge rushers as well as the big-bodied defensive tackles.

There was a clear line of demarcation when it came to the elite defensive lineman and the next group, which isn’t quite on that top level. Martin Andrus was a member of the second group. He struggled during one-on-ones and seemed to avoid contact, and he also struggled in agility drills. He’s a little undersized as well, and it was a night to forget for him when it came to his overall performance.

It’s not that newly minted five-star Jaelan Phillips had a bad overall night, but he struggled mightily during one-on-ones. Mays gave him problems on several occasions, tossing him to the ground on back-to-back matchups during the scoring competition. He made up for it during agility drills as he showed the athleticism that makes him a special prospect, but he will need to continue to improve his technique in order to keep his status.