Take Two: Has Graham Mertz done enough for a five-star ranking?
MORE TAKE TWO: Who deserves to be the No. 1 WR in the 2020 class?
Take Two returns with another 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 an expert from the Rivals.com network.
THE STORYLINE
The final rankings for the 2019 class are being figured out this week and one question that must be asked after the All-American Bowl is whether Wisconsin quarterback signee Graham Mertz should be moved up to five-star status.
The Overland Park (Kan.) Blue Valley North standout threw for a bowl-record five touchdowns in Saturday’s game and he also had a solid week of practice. Mertz also had a phenomenal senior season where he put up huge numbers. Teams tried to flip him late, but Mertz stuck with the Badgers and he has the type of ability to be an impact player early in Madison.
Only five-star quarterback Bo Nix, an Auburn signee, is rated ahead of him in the pro-style quarterback rankings. The only other five-star quarterback in this class is Oklahoma signee Spencer Rattler, who also had a good week at the All-American Bowl.
Did Mertz do enough in San Antonio and throughout his high school career to warrant a five-star ranking?
FIRST TAKE: JON MCNAMARA, BADGERBLITZ.COM
“Mertz’s MVP performance at the All-American Bowl, where the Wisconsin signee completed 7 of 14 passes for 188 yards and a record-setting five touchdowns, should absolutely put him in the five-star discussion moving forward. On Saturday in San Antonio, the rest of the country saw what Badgers fans and Rivals analysts have known since the summer: Mertz, the 2018 Kansas Gatorade Player of the Year, is in the conversation for the top quarterback in the 2019 class.
“While the All-American Bowl is an exhibition designed to promote scoring, it doesn’t take away from what Mertz was able to accomplish against the best players in the nation. Nix, who participated in the Under Armour All-America Game, and Rattler are currently the only two five-star QBs in the Rivals100, but Mertz outperformed the latter not just on Saturday, but for the entire week of preparation, according to various reports.
"One afternoon doesn’t make you a five-star, but Mertz has risen to the occasion on the camp circuit at the Rivals Five-Star Challenge presented by adidas and with his high school team, where he passed for 3,886 yards and a state-record 51 touchdowns in 2018. When asked if the All-American Bowl puts him in the five-star discussion or should a complete body of work be more seriously considered in his final ranking, Mertz backers shouldn’t worry because he has both boxes checked.”
SECOND TAKE: MIKE FARRELL, RIVALS.COM
“That’s a difficult question. He set records at the All-American Bowl and he had five touchdowns on seven completions. You wonder if that’s a breakdown defensively because those types of numbers are a little ridiculous.
“He’s a talented kid for sure. I’m sure that question will be asked - is he a five-star? I’m not sure he’s a five-star talent, though. It will be an interesting debate.”
