In his weekly series, Rivals National Recruiting Director Adam Gorney offers his thoughts on recruiting topics and storylines that impact the national landscape.
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RANKING THE STATES: No. 10 Pennsylvania
CLASS OF 2022 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | Position | Team | State
CLASS OF 2023 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | Position | Team | State
RIVALS TRANSFER TRACKER: Stories/coverage | Message board
RIVALS CAMP SERIES: Info/coverage on 2021 camp series
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OKLAHOMA’S 2023 CLASS
It’s so early that it might not even be worth giving much attention but Oklahoma leads the 2023 team rankings and the Sooners added another huge piece over the weekend when five-star receiver Brandon Inniss from Plantation (Fla.) American Heritage committed.
Oklahoma now has commitments from Inniss and five-star quarterback Malachi Nelson and I could make the argument that they’re two of the best players at their positions regardless of class so this is just huge for the Sooners. The jumpstart in the 2023 class for Oklahoma is insanely good and any playmaker in the country would want to play with Nelson, who’s a seamless fit for what the Sooners do on offense.
The start for the Sooners is so good in 2023 that they have more five-star pledges than any of the top-four teams (Notre Dame, Penn State, Florida State and Oregon) in the 2022 rankings and more five-stars than Alabama, LSU, Texas A&M, Clemson and many other powerhouses.
It’s so good that Oklahoma has one more five-star commit in 2023 than it does in its 2022 class and the Sooners are No. 12 nationally with that group. Just a tremendous start that should not slow down anytime soon.
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MORE ON KAYTRON ALLEN
In the last rankings release, Penn State commit Kaytron Allen actually moved down about 30 spots as other running backs moved ahead but also because Allen didn’t look as dynamic as others at some offseason events.
When he’s on the field, though, Allen is awesome. The Bradenton (Fla.) IMG running back who led that team in rushing as a junior was back at it this weekend running for 227 yards and three scores in a win over Plantation (Fla.) American Heritage, a team loaded with Division I prospects.
Did Allen look great this summer? Not as good as others. But when the lights come on, he’s a gamer and he’s heading to Penn State with fellow four-star Nicholas Singleton to create a dynamic running attack. After this weekend’s performance, moving up in the rankings should be heavily considered.
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MAUIGOA IS ONLY GOING TO GET BETTER
Francis Mauigoa flirted with playing defensive line early in his career and then flipped back and forth between offense and defense and now heading into his junior season, the Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy standout by way of San Bernardino (Calif.) Aquinas by way of American Samoa is at offensive tackle full-time and he is only going to get better. Mauigoa is already physically dominant and already ranked as the second-best player at that position behind lone five-star Kadyn Proctor but Mauigoa could push for that top spot over the next two years. He’s so big and so physical and as he gets more seasoned at the tackle position, watch out.
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WATCHING MCCLAIN AT CORNERBACK
Cormani McClain picked off another pass this past weekend - he had three interceptions in total - and the 2023 four-star cornerback from Lakeland (Fla.) Lake Gibson returned this one for a touchdown. As McClain entered the end zone, someone on the sidelines was taping and Utah RB commit and teammate Jaylon Glover said, “He is like that. No. 1 player in the country.” That might be a little overdone but after McClain had a big sophomore season, to start it with three picks in his junior year is incredible. He’s currently ranked as the fifth-best corner in the 2023 class and that might be too low.
McClain doesn’t say much and he doesn’t work out at a ton of places. That might be holding him back a little bit. But Florida State, Florida, Miami, Alabama and Ohio State have certainly taken notice and I love that McClain lets his game do the talking on the field.
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TRAVIS SHAW TO NORTH CAROLINA
For Mack Brown and North Carolina to beat out Clemson and others for five-star defensive tackle Travis Shaw over the weekend was incredible to see as he rebuilds that program into a serious ACC - if not national - contender loading up with talented prospects with the Tar Heels not being done yet.
One wonders if only Brown could do this in Chapel Hill, have that magic something to get elite players to come play for him over surefire national title contenders. Shaw is a game-changer, college-ready type who could see the field from Day 1. His motivation and focus on being great is exceptional and this is the type of commitment when everybody is asking whether Florida State or Miami is back in the ACC, don’t forget what the Tar Heels are doing in recruiting because it will translate to the field.
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COULD FLORIDA STATE REALLY USE HUNTER BOTH WAYS?
I write so much about Travis Hunter I’m almost tired of it because how much more can you say - and then the Florida State commit puts up 13 catches for 232 yards and two touchdowns, he throws a TD pass and has an interception at the Corky Kell Classic this past weekend. Two people I talked to there said he was “amazing” and “incredible” and I’m not surprised at all because Hunter is absolutely awesome on the football field.
Which brings me to this question. So many others - Adoree’ Jackson and De’Anthony Thomas come to mind - have flirted with the possibility of playing both ways in college and in the end, they usually stay on one side of the field. That could be a durability thing or injury mitigation or many other considerations but Hunter is just different in so many ways. Florida State could use him in so many ways, he brings value in so many facets and he’s unstoppable everywhere. The maxim is to put your best athletes on defense but Hunter is such a dominant receiver it feels like a pity if he’s not going to be used there in Tallahassee.
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MIAMI COULD HAVE BEST SECONDARY
Miami’s class is nothing to write home about yet as the Hurricanes are ranked eighth in the ACC between Duke and NC State and No. 43 nationally between Illinois and Maryland but they are loading up at defensive back and it could get even better if a five-star decides to join the class.
Miami already has commitments from four-stars Khamauri Rogers (who Ole Miss really wanted), Trequon Fegans (who piqued Alabama’s interest this summer) and Chris Graves, an in-state four-star who has nearly 30 offers along with high three-star safety Markeith Williams out of Orlando (Fla.) Evans.
The big fish is still Jacksonville (Fla.) Robert E. Lee’s Jaheim Singletary, who is serious about the Hurricanes along with Florida, Georgia and others. He was off the market because of an Ohio State commitment but Singletary has backed off that pledge and Miami has a real shot at landing him to further bolster an outstanding DB class.
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I LIKE BISSAINTHE A WHOLE LOT
Wesley Bissainthe has been moved out of the Rivals250 because there have been some concerns over his size but I saw him this past weekend in Miami Central’s loss to Bellflower (Calif.) St. John Bosco and he needs to move up very quickly.
Yes, Bissainthe is lean but the four-star linebacker covers so much ground, he gets everybody on the ground and he was involved in almost every Miami Central defensive play all night long. He was clearly one of the best players on the field, his speed was unmatched and Bissainthe is a tackling machine who should definitely be in the Rivals250. His size is something to watch but his production cannot be debated.
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TY SIMPSON DISCUSSION
There has been lots of discussion whether Alabama quarterback commit Ty Simpson should be a five-star and should be ranked ahead of LSU pledge Walker Howard. At the Elite 11, Howard had the more dynamic showing but it wasn’t really the setting for Simpson to shine.
After Week 1 where Simpson threw for 325 yards and five touchdowns and rushed for 100 more with another score, that debate is going to be brought up again. It’s tough, though, because we have Simpson as the third-best QB in the class, he’s No. 42 nationally and so we like him a ton. There is no questioning that.
If there’s a concern, it’s that Simpson plays in small-town Tennessee and might play against a handful of Division I competition each season. His stats are incredibly impressive and I love that he’s the son of a coach, a gym rat and he’ll be a great fit at Alabama. But his showing at the all-star events should be the final determination of whether he’s a five-star QB or not.
