Take Two: Can Stingley hold on to No. 1 through Five-Star Challenge?
ATLANTA -- Take Two returns with a daily offering tackling a handful of issues in the college football landscape. Rivals.com National Recruiting Analyst Adam Gorney lays out the situation and then receives takes from Rivals.com National Recruiting Director Mike Farrell and a local expert from the Rivals.com network of team sites.
MORE FIVE-STAR CHALLENGE: Top matchups | MVP predictions | Offensive roster | Defensive roster | Farrell's storylines | Best Five-Star Challenge performance ever? | Which QB will shine brightest? | Who will raise stock? | Full Rivals Camp Series coverage
THE STORYLINE
Derek Stingley Jr. is the new No. 1 prospect in the 2019 class, but unlike years past, this group is wide open and there’s a good possibility that another player could move to the top spot if performance demands it.
There’s no better opportunity for these top players to prove themselves than this week at the Rivals100 Five-Star Challenge presented by adidas. Stingley will be in Atlanta. So will five-star receivers Theo Wease and Jadon Haselwood among many others.
Stingley is a fantastic cornerback, long and athletic, physical and super talented. If he dominates at the Five-Star Challenge, then that will go a long way to locking up his top billing.
But Wease and Haselwood among many others could push toward that No. 1 spot and this weekend could be huge.
Will Stingley retain his No. 1 ranking or will one of the top receivers - or possibly another premium position - take that top spot away?
FIRST TAKE: JAKE REUSE, UGASPORTS.COM
“Can Derek Stingley get overtaken as No. 1 in the Rivals250 of 2019? I hesitate to say yes, as I’ve never seen him compete in person, but what I do know is that the top player in the class is going to get more than tested during his stop in Mercedes-Benz.
“It’s also going to be by guys who are looking to make the push themselves. Stingley will inevitably be forced to line up against Theo Wease and Jadon Haselwood, a pair of wideouts who find themselves in the top 10 nationally and have made waves in each and every competitive setting they have faced since arriving on the recruiting scene.
"Assuming Stingley is able contain both Wease and Haselwood, it’s probably time to stop wringing hands and crown him as the most dominant player in his class. If he’s not able to deal with the size, speed, elevation and body control, however, there will be plenty to debate. I’m leaning toward the latter. It’s a tall task for Stingley, both literally and figuratively, and before all is said and done we’ll be asking which wideout deserves the top spot.”
SECOND TAKE: MIKE FARRELL, RIVALS.COM
“It’s tough. Derek Stingley is No. 1 in a year where we don’t really know who’s going to finish No. 1. It wouldn’t surprise me to see one of the receivers make a push up there especially if Theo Wease or Jadon Haselwood dominates and really gets the best of Stingley.
“I have a feeling if Stingley isn’t No. 1, then it’s going to be someone from the back of the pack of five-stars, somebody like a Zach Harrison, someone who is still developing, someone who is a bit raw right now but who continues to progress. I know Harrison isn’t in the Five-Star Challenge, but I would say if you’re going to look at someone to take away that No. 1 spot now it could be a wide receiver, too, because there are so many talented ones at the event.”
