Take Two: How did Derek Stingley Jr. earn his No. 1 ranking?
MORE TAKE TWO: Who leads for the next great South Carolina defensive end?
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.
RIVALS RANKINGS WEEK
Monday: Top 10 revealed
Tuesday: Rivals100 released
Wednesday: Rivals250 released
Thursday: Position rankings released
THE STORYLINE
Derek Stingley Jr. did not start the 2019 class rankings atop the list but that’s where the Baton Rouge (La.) Dunham ended up and there was not much serious debate of moving him from No. 1 after the all-star events.
Since he already started practicing with LSU, Stingley was not allowed to participate in the All-American Bowl in San Antonio but he had already established himself as the top-ranked prospect in the class and no one at either all-star event did enough to knock him off that top spot.
It is an especially impressive feat since there has never been a cornerback finish at the top of the rankings in the Rivals.com era dating back to 2002.
The closest any other cornerback came in the rankings was Ted Ginn, Jr., in 2004 and Vernon Hargreaves III in 2013 as both finished second in the rankings behind only Adrian Peterson and Robert Nkemdiche, respectively. Eric Berry finished third on the the 2007 list as did Jabrill Peppers (2014) and Iman Marshall in 2015.
Is Stingley that incredibly special or was it a recruiting cycle where a clear front-runner did not emerge and the five-star cornerback could not get knocked off the top?
FIRST TAKE: JERIT ROSER, TIGERDETAILS.COM
“New LSU teammate Kary Vincent Jr. may have best summed up Stingley's start to his college career when he told me: 'Hype is something that isn't real. But with him, I feel like everything is real.' Talking to coach Ed Orgeron, defensive coordinator Dave Aranda, DBs coach Corey Raymond and a slew of upperclassmen, no one has ever seen an incoming freshman start quite as not only exceptionally, but consistently as Stingley, with Raymond comfortably comparing him to Patrick Peterson, Tre'Davious White, Jamal Adams, Donte' Jackson and many other DBU greats.
"Stingley is a guy more people every day are recognizing as the superstar an upcoming decade of younger players will be idolizing for years to come. His combination of size, speed and technique is impressive, and his mentality and work ethic are going to continue to raise him to new heights. Cornerbacks do not typically garner this lofty of rankings, but Stingley is exactly the guy to break that mold."
SECOND TAKE: MIKE FARRELL, RIVALS.COM
“He’s got everything - size, speed, instincts, he can play press coverage, he can play off, he’s ready physically to play right away. Everything you’re looking for in a corner when it comes to footwork and everything else I mentioned is what you want.
“Is he the best ever since Rivals started? I don’t know. Eric Berry was pretty good back in the day. It just so happens this is a year where there’s definitely not a quarterback who is No. 1, there are a lot of wide receivers but nobody who really stood out. Positionally, there have been a lot of defensive linemen at No. 1, Nolan Smith ended up No. 2, but Stingley is too special as a cornerback prospect to be knocked off at the end even though he didn’t get to show it at an all-star game.”
