Published Mar 18, 2020
Rivals Roundtable: Which position is deepest in 2021 class?
Staff
Rivals.com

Even though campus visits and off-campus recruiting have been restricted for the next month in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, there is still a lot of interesting things going on with the 2021 class.

In today’s roundtable, we ask the Rivals analysts which position do they think is the strongest in this recruiting cycle?

MORE ROUNDTABLE: Which school is off to impressive start?

CLASS OF 2020 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | Position | Team | State

CLASS OF 2021 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | Position | Team | State

ROB CASSIDY, FLORIDA RECRUITING ANALYST

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There are a lot of impressive defensive ends in this class. And while few of them are from my region, guys like Korey Foreman, J.T. Tuimoloau and Jack Sawyer look like can’t-miss prospects. The depth at the position is just as impressive as the talent at the top. Four-star prospects Ja’Tavion Sanders and Monkell Goodwine both have massive upside and could find themselves in the five-star conversation before all is said and done.

ADAM FRIEDMAN, EAST COAST RECRUITING ANALYST

This year's group of quarterback prospects is really good and the talent pool is very deep. There are 11 quarterbacks in the Rivals100. That's the same amount as linebackers and defensive backs. A number of these quarterbacks have the skill set to lead a talented program to a National Championship.

ADAM GORNEY, WEST COAST/NATIONAL RECRUITING ANALYST

This is a special defensive end group and there is a good possibility that there could be more five-stars out there. Foreman is really special, Tuimoloau reminds me of Arik Armstead, Tunmise Adeleye could really emerge among this group, Sawyer has the potential to be like the Bosa Bros. at Ohio State and others will emerge as well. This quarterback class is really good, but I like the defensive end potential a little more.

JOSH HELMHOLDT, MIDWEST RECRUITING ANALYST

Quarterback is the answer for me here. There are currently 11 quarterbacks ranked among the top 100 players in the class. That number has been reached only twice before in the Rivals Era, first in the 2004 class and then in the 2018 class that featured Trevor Lawrence and Justin Fields. Those kind of numbers are evidence that this is a rare and elite quarterback class.

CHAD SIMMONS, SOUTHEAST RECRUITING ANALYST

Quarterbacks always stand out at the top, but for me, it is a strong group in the trenches on both sides of the ball this cycle. Offensive tackle is a position I really like. In the Rivals100, there are 16 offensive tackles, and five of those are in the top 27. Amarius Mims is the top tackles, and the Peach State OL is the No. 2 in the country. He headlines a very strong group.

SAM SPIEGELMAN, SOUTH-CENTRAL RECRUITING ANALYST

The entire quarterback and offensive tackle class is really strong this year. Rivals has already had a revolving door of quarterbacks near or at the top of the rankings since this time a year ago and Caleb Williams is an easy choice at No. 1, but the position is group -- from Williams down to Jalen Milroe to Dematrius Davis to Ty Thompson, and on the pro-style side, you can pick your position with Vandagriff and on-the-border five-stars from Sam Huard down through JJ McCarthy. Beyond that, there's a slew of really high-upside three- and four-stars in Garrett Nussmeier through Ty Keyes and Eli Stowers through Kaidon Salter.