The new Rivals250 for the 2025 class has been released and there are a lot of changes following a summer full of evaluation opportunities. Here are thoughts on each position from Rivals national recruiting director Adam Gorney.

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RIVALS RANKINGS WEEK

Sunday: Who should be No. 1?

Monday: Five-Star Countdown | Meet the new five-stars

Tuesday: New Rivals250 unveiled | Gorney goes position-by-position | Biggest risers

Wednesday: New offensive position rankings released | QB rankings breakdown | RB rankings breakdown | WR/TE rankings breakdown | OL rankings breakdown

Thursday: New defensive position rankings released | DL rankings breakdown | LB rankings breakdown | DB rankings breakdown | ATH rankings breakdown

Friday: New state rankings released | Who is No. 1 in each state?

Saturday: Roundtable on the new Rivals250 rankings

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The debate over ordering the top quarterbacks will continue through this season and into the all-star events. Things are just too close, the elite in this class are too good and every one of them could make a valid argument as to why they should be highest on this list.

Ohio State commit Tavien St. Clair takes over the top spot followed by LSU pledge Bryce Underwood, USC pledge Julian Lewis and new five-star Alabama commit Keelon Russell. But if Underwood was on top there wouldn’t be much of an argument. Russell has surged up this list and reminds us of Jayden Daniels but even more polished at the same stage. Maybe no one is better in games against top competition than Lewis and he’s only supposed to be a junior.

The question now becomes whether there are even more five-star QBs in this class. We don’t want to go overboard but current Notre Dame commit Deuce Knight will get some serious consideration with Florida State commit Tramell Jones and possibly Texas A&M pledge Husan Longstreet as some of the dark horses.

There are numerous reasons why we’ve backed off having so many five-star running backs no matter their abilities in high school. They’re just not being picked at the same clip in the first round of the NFL Draft and injuries this preseason – to Texas’ CJ Baxter and Texas A&M’s Rueben Owens among others – just reinforces to us that the shelf life is not there.

When warranted, we will still have some five-star running backs but the years of always having more than two are pretty much over based on trends in the game that we’re not going to fight against in the rankings process.

Santa Ana (Calif.) Mater Dei’s Jordon Davison, who picked Oregon over Alabama and others this summer, stays a five-star after an impressive performance at the Rivals Five-Star among other stops but he was a little too heavy for our liking this summer. Still, at our big summer event in Jacksonville, Davison was the best in drills and dynamic in 7-on-7 warranting a comparison to Le’Veon Bell by position coach Brandon Jacobs, who won a Super Bowl with the New York Giants.

The other five-star is the total opposite. LSU commit Harlem Berry needs to add weight and mass to take a licking in the SEC but he’s so incredibly fast and dynamic that he remains a five-star. Berry can get open against anybody, is a killer in space and has all the tools to be a pure running back as well but will need to get bigger in Baton Rouge.

As for others who are under consideration, Auburn running back pledge Alvin Henderson puts up insane numbers and actually looks a little like Bijan Robinson. Akylin Dear and Ousmane Kromah are two others we’ll watch through their senior seasons since they had little national work this summer.

It is going to be very difficult – if not impossible – to move Oregon commit Dakorien Moore off the No. 1 line at receiver. He’s so good, so dynamic and projects so well to college and the NFL that he’s a surefire five-star prospect.

Jacksonville (Fla.) Mandarin’s Jaime Ffrench has moved up to five-star status. He was OK at the Rivals-Five Star but not dominant. However, at other events and especially in 7-on-7 play throughout this entire offseason, Ffrench has been excellent and reminds us of Garrett Wilson of the New York Jets.

From there, a lot of discussion will come through their senior season and especially into the all-star events. Alabama commit Caleb Cunningham, Oregon commit Dallas Wilson, Florida pledge Vernell Brown and others are all within five-star consideration but none – yet – have made it clear that they should get bumped up to that level.

Others we’re watching include new Texas commit Kaliq Lockett, LSU commit Derek Meadows and others. Seeing Michael Terry out of San Antonio (Texas) Alamo Heights will be crucial since he didn’t do many national events this offseason and Draper (Utah) Corner Canyon’s Jerome Myles are two that could move even higher among many others.

Only two five-star receivers? That feels a tad low but someone is going to have to snatch that ranking as it won’t just be given.

The last time more than one tight end was drafted in the first round was 2019 so half-a-decade and only twice since 2006 have multiple tight ends been taken in that round. More than one five-star tight end is just difficult to push because history is absolutely not on their side to be picked that early.

Which is especially unfortunate in this recruiting cycle because the tight end group is absolutely loaded and many of them could make an argument for a five-star ranking. We feel Georgia commit Elyiss Williams, Kansas State pledge Linkon Cure and Tennessee commit Da’Saahn Brame have separated themselves from the pack.

But Texas A&M commit Kiotti Armstrong is one of the best-looking tight ends in recent years and there are others down the line such as Iowa’s Thomas Meyer and Notre Dame’s James Flanigan who are going to programs that routinely pump out elite tight ends.

There are four five-star offensive tackles in the 2025 class and we might be a little high there. Only through their senior seasons and into the all-star events will that shake out but I do believe there are better premium positions that are more deserving of those rankings.

David Sanders Jr. leads the way and he has developed really nicely over the last few years both physically, athletically and playing with more confidence. I’d love to see more of Michael Fasusi in person as he’s a fantastic prospect that Texas and Oklahoma are battling for but he needs to see more elite national competition.

Las Vegas (Nev.) Bishop Gorman’s Douglas Utu is insanely consistent and never loses but he might be a right tackle or offensive guard in college so that will be figured out as this season goes on. A big contest against Santa Ana Mater Dei will happen in early September. Ohio State commit Carter Lowe was someone discussed to possibly move down in the rankings but he stuck at the back end of five-star status.

Alabama commit Michael Carroll and Notre Dame pledge Will Black intrigue me the most among the four-stars. I’d still love to see Andrew Bablola attend more national events as he’s had a very quiet offseason. He has all the potential in the world but needs to prove it on the biggest stages.

At offensive guard, Florida State commit Solomon Thomas leads the way but Oregon commit Alai Kalaniuvalu is phenomenal and Michigan pledge Avery Gach was great at the Rivals Five-Star this summer. There is quality and quantity inside. Miami commit and fellow Gorman standout SJ Alofaituli remains the top center nationally and I don’t think there’s much of a battle there.

Florida State commit Javion Hilson is a new five-star and while he didn’t do many national events this summer we’ve seen enough of him compared with others that we were comfortable to give him a boost. This is a position with a lot of potential but we’re not ready to yet pull the trigger on other five-star prospects.

Philadelphia (Pa.) Imhotep Charter’s Zahir Mathis, who is committed to Ohio State but Penn State is trying hard to flip, could be one to watch through the all-star season. He certainly has all the size and tools to be special. Oak Park (Ill.) Fenwick’s Nathaniel Marshall looks phenomenal but doesn’t get out much so we’ll have to revisit during the season and beyond.

Some guys in this group – of which we don’t have a phenomenal feel yet – could move up quickly. That list includes Mariyon Dye, Iose Epenesa, Darren Ikinnagbon, Damien Shanklin and others, but they have to get out and compete on a national level. Beating up on local high school kids won’t cut it.

The top of the defensive tackle spot is elite with five-stars Justus Terry and Elijah Griffin leading the way. I just wish both would do more national events to compete against the best of the best but both Georgia prospects – who could both easily end up in Athens – have high-end abilities on the interior.

Ohio State commit Jarquez Carter was phenomenal at the Rivals Five-Star both on the field and on the bench press where his numbers would have put him toward the top of his position at this year’s NFL Combine. Isaiah Campbell has the size and length to be elite but needs to compete on a national level more. Auburn pledge Malik Autry and new Texas commit Josiah Sharma are two big boys who could possibly move higher since they’re also gap-shooters.

The classic push-and-pull of considering NFL Draft position and relevance with facing elite players at the position makes some calls here very tough. Linebackers are not coming off the board in the first round as much as they used to, but Ohio State commit Riley Pettijohn and Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy’s Nathaniel Owusu-Boateng are two of the best prospects in this class and cannot be ignored, either.

Both moved to five-star status and it was clear at the Rivals Five-Star that both could be special. Pettijohn is one of the best-looking prospects in the class who does everything on the field and Owusu-Boateng is chiseled out of marble and flies around with a physical bent to his game that hasn’t been seen recently. The passion he has for football looks unmatched.

We decided to move Galveston (Texas) Ball’s Jonah Williams from safety to linebacker and keep him a five-star because we think that’s his long-term position. Clemson commit Logan Anderson could be special and once the Fyffe, Ala., standout gets more used to national competition, he has elite qualities.

We’re still trying to figure out inside linebacker. Pettijohn leads the way and then we’re relying on testing numbers a lot to push LSU commit Charles Ross so high. I still think LSU commit Keylan Moses could move higher as he has some of the best junior tape in the country.

Ohio State commits Devin Sanchez and Na’eem Offord are the two five-stars but they are headed in a little bit of different directions. Sanchez has proven his elite abilities time and again including this offseason. Offord needs to have a big season and prove it on the all-star level because he was quiet over the offseason.

Alabama commitment Dijon Lee Jr. is a five-star contender because he’s very similar to both Sanchez and Offord. After those three, there is a group of four-stars who could definitely move higher and lower throughout their senior seasons.

This safety class is absolutely loaded and they proved it this offseason as new five-stars Trey McNutt and Hylton Stubbs lead the way. Oklahoma commit Omarion Robinson is not far behind as he had arguably the best performance at the Rivals Five-Star this summer. It’s just an absolutely loaded group.

Clemson commit Tae Harris has phenomenal speed that could put him in the first round and then well past the top dozen there are still some elite safeties among this group. Auburn pledge Eric Winters could continue to move up the list as well.

As the recruiting class continues on to National Signing Day, we will try to move as many players as possible to their future positions if it’s clear where they’re going to play but there are still some elite two-way playmakers on this list.

Five-star DJ Pickett, the LSU commit, leads the way and while he will likely play defensive back, he’s such a specimen that he could literally be used at receiver, safety, cornerback or elsewhere.

New Auburn commit Derick Smith has phenomenal skills even though the Selma (Ala.) Southside star doesn’t do many events at all, as does Cameron Sparks from Chattanooga (Tenn.) Baylor School who is reworking his favorite programs. New Ohio State commit Bodpegn Miller is a project but he has elite size and length, and could be a great early take for the Buckeyes.