Take Two: Should Jaxon Smith-Njigba be the No. 1 WR in 2020?
Take Two returns with a daily offering tackling an issue 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 of team sites or a regional analyst.
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THE STORYLINE
Jaxon Smith-Njigba delivered on the biggest stage this past weekend and it has stoked the conversation of whether the Rockwall, Tex., receiver is a five-star, the best receiver in Texas and if he should be considered among the top receivers nationally.
The Ohio State commit scored six times in a playoff win over powerhouse Allen, Texas, in recent days, and many of his touchdown catches were highlight-reel plays.
It wasn’t a one-game anomaly. So far this season, Smith-Njigba has 86 receptions for 1,721 yards and 29 touchdowns. Currently, Demond Demas and Quentin Johnson are ranked higher than him in the state. But Demas did not play this season because of transfer rules.
If there’s an argument to keep Demas and Johnson ahead of Smith-Njigba it’s that both are physical specimens at the position with tremendous length, catch radius and outstanding athleticism.
But arguably no receiver nationally has had a better season than Smith-Njigba and he proved it in the playoffs this past weekend.
Should the Ohio State pledge move to No. 1 at his position in the state and be in the argument for tops at receiver nationally, which is held by fellow Ohio State pledge Julian Fleming or is he not at that level yet despite putting up huge numbers?x
FIRST TAKE: SAM SPIEGELMAN, TEXAS & LOUISIANA ANALYST
“Smith-Njigba has to be the No. 1 receiver in Texas if not for anything else other than Demas did not play his senior season, so you can’t make the comparison. He set Texas 6A records for receiving yards, he had six touchdowns against Allen, a high-profile opponent, in the playoffs, five touchdowns in one half and single-handedly put the team on his back in a huge game.
“He’s done it every week, he’s unstoppable one-on-one and he does a little bit of everything. A case could be made that he’s the No. 1 receiver in the country. He’s established this fall he’s the No. 1 receiver in the state.”
SECOND TAKE: MIKE FARRELL, NATIONAL RECRUITING DIRECTOR
“He’s a great route runner, great adjusting to the football and he has great hands, but physically he’s not the same as Demas. He could be the better high school football player and he could be going into a better system, but Demas is a guy that scouts will be higher on three or four years from now when we’re talking about the NFL Draft.”