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Three-Point Stance: 2021 recruiting, overrated draft picks, coolest helmets

In today's Three-Point Stance, National Recruiting Director Mike Farrell examines some interesting recruiting trends in 2021, names 10 overrated NFL first-rounders and discusses the 10 best helmets in college football.

FACT OR FICTION: Shea Patterson will catch on in the NFL

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

CLASS OF 2022: Top 100

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1. INTERESTING AND PUZZLING 2021 DEVELOPMENTS

Korey Foreman
Korey Foreman (Nick Lucero/Rivals.com)

There are a few things happening in recruiting in 2021 that I find interesting and some of them are downright puzzling...

What's going on with Michigan in the Northeast? I know Don Brown is from the Northeast and helped find a ton of sleeper players from the area at Boston College, but this is Michigan, right? While Ohio State lands four- and five-stars from all around the country, Michigan is going on kids from Massachusetts and New Jersey and a few of them are reaches. Louis Hansen is a talent on offense but Casey Phinney, TJ Guy and Dominick Giudice? These are prospects I could see at Boston College, Rutgers and Syracuse, not Michigan.

Penn State thriving in Michigan. I know Penn State landed twins from Michigan, so that’s a two-fer but in addition to Kalen and Kobe King, they also landed Jaylen Reed. And all of these prospects come from big-time talent-producing high schools in the state of Michigan. That’s good news for James Franklin.

Ohio State’s national reach is ridiculous. This isn’t really a surprise as Urban Meyer was recruiting on a national level before Ryan Day arrived, but this year is ridiculous so far. Ohio State has landed prospects from the following states: Kentucky, Florida, Virginia, Tennessee, North Carolina, Ohio, Missouri, Texas, Colorado and Pennsylvania. That’s beyond impressive.

Clemson hit with a decommitment. OK, it’s only one decommitment and the first in many cycles, but it is still big news and could happen more in this odd recruiting environment we are in. Losing Korey Foreman is a big blow and this will be a record year for decommitments due to the shutdown of spring recruiting. Will Clemson fall victim more than once?

Nebraska picks up three massive linemen. Scott Frost likes his offensive linemen big, apparently. So far the Huskers have three offensive linemen committed and they check in at 6-foot-9 and 282 pounds, 6-foot-6 and 310 pounds and 6-foot-8 and 330 pounds. Minnesota did this and it worked, so why not, right?

2. TEN OVERRATED FIRST-ROUNDERS

Tua Tagovailoa
Tua Tagovailoa (AP Images)

The reality of sports is that most of the first-round picks from last week's NFL Draft will not turn out to be good NFL players. It happens. So, at the risk of looking like a fool down the line, are the 10 first-rounders that I feel are the most overrated:

QB Tua Tagovaioloa — Tagovailoa is injury prone and lefties rarely work anyhow in the NFL. That’s two strikes.

DE K’Lavon Chaisson — Hybrid guys have been hit or miss over the last several drafts, and Chaisson is talented but will struggle.

QB Jordan Love — Maybe he’s Patrick Mahomes or has similar arm talent, but I don’t see it.

CB Noah Igbinoghene — The converted wide receiver has ball skills, but I don’t see the refinement of technique needed to be consistent enough.

CB AJ Terrell — He’s mostly up but when he’s down, he gets beaten easily.

CB Damon Arnette — This was a reach for sure. Arnette is a tough kid, but I doubt he lives up to first-round standards.

OT Austin Jackson — He’s more finesse than aggression and I never like that.

WR Brandon Aiyuk — Everyone raves about him but I don’t see it. Second-rounder? Yes.

OT Isaiah Wilson — He’s massive, but he’s going to struggle with speedy edge rushers.

LB Patrick Queen — Queen is an athletic kid, but I worry about guys who had mostly one big year of success that led to a first-round grade.

3. THE 10 BEST HELMETS IN COLLEGE FOOTBALL

Michigan football helmet
Michigan football helmet (AP Images)

Finally, just for fun, here are the 10 best helmets in college football. This isn’t about specialty helmets or chrome this and that. It’s about the tradition helmet and why I love them.

Michigan — This is a no-brainer as the Michigan helmet is iconic and awesome in every way. Never change, Michigan. Never change.

Notre Dame — The newest version of the gold helmets is awe inspiring and makes you want to wear one every time you watch a game.

Oregon — I threw the Ducks in here because they have so many cool ones but their traditional yellow with the O is amazing.

Florida State — I love the Seminoles' helmet with the spear and the tomahawk stickers.

LSU — They just look so cool with the LSU lettering over the yellow helmet. Maybe I have a thing for yellow?

Miami — As a young college football fan, the Miami helmet meant excellence and dominance. The simple U is awesome.

Arizona State — The Sun Devils may not be college football royalty like some others on this list, but those helmets have always been awesome.

Texas — I like the simplicity of it all and the burnt orange pops.

USC — Take a long look at these helmets sometime. They are vastly underrated by many and are gorgeous.

Georgia — I love the iconic red and the G just pops. Sometimes simple just works.

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