UA All-America Game: Five schools that will be watching

All-Star games have become a rite of passage for the next crop of college stars. Most of today’s draft hopefuls were high school All-Americans not long ago, and the 2017 Under Armour All-America Game will keep with that tradition. Plenty of top-level colleges will have their eye on the contest (Jan. 1, 1 p.m., ESPN) as they look to the future.

Below, Rivals.com outlines five colleges that should pay close attention to the events of the week in Orlando.

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Alabama makes this list every year and that fact is correlated with the program’s recruiting success. This time around, the Tide have more committed prospects participating in the event (six) than any other school.

The Bama constituency is led by five-star prospects Jerry Jeudy, Alex Leatherwood and Jedrick Wills. One of the country’s highest-rated four-star players, Dylan Moses, will also represent Nick Saban’s dynasty in the game. Jeudy will use the game to solidify himself as the top wide receiver in this year’s class, while Moses could earn a fifth star with a dominant performance against all-star-level competition.

Alabama is also in the mix to land a pair of players announcing their commitments at the game in four-star athlete Deangelo Gibbs and four-star defensive back Xavier McKinney.

A monster and a mystery punctuate Miami’s interest in this year’s game.

Offensive lineman Navaughn Donaldson is the Hurricanes’ highest-rated commit and could use the big stage to bolster his already lofty ranking. Donaldson has a college-ready body but is coming off a senior season in which his team and offense failed to meet high expectations.

Donaldson’s foil is running back Robert Burns, a longtime UM commit whose impressive sophomore season made him a full-fledged recruiting commodity years ago. Burns has yet to match that success and has been plagued by minor injuries since. He missed time again as a senior but has a massive frame that impresses off the hoof. Almost no player at the event carries more intrigue.

After a season that placed Brian Kelly’s chair directly over an open flame, Notre Dame needs some semblance of help for next season. That help could very well be on the roster already. Or it could also come in the form of one or more of the five Fighting Irish commitments partaking in this event.

Quarterback Avery Davis, offensive lineman Robert Hainsey, defensive back Saiid Adebo, tight end Brock Wright and linebacker David Adams will represent Notre Dame in Orlando. It possible that the group could provide some semblance hope for a program and coach needing some form of immediate assistance.

UGA has four commits that will be involved in the contest. That in itself is enough to create curiosity from Bulldog fans looking to the future after an uneven first year of the Kirby Smart era.

The real draw for Georgia, however, will be the player it is expected to add during the game. In-state prospect Deangelo Gibbs, a Rivals250 member, will announce his college choice at the event. Gibbs is thought to be focused most heavily on Georgia and Alabama, with the Bulldogs holding an edge.

Any time there’s a chance for a school to add a Rivals100 prospect, intrigue exists. So is the case for Clemson, which is considered the frontrunner to land Xavier McKinney, the No. 43 player in the class of 2017.

McKinney plans to announce his commitment during the Under Armour Game and seems to be down to the Tigers and Alabama. He is thought to be a slight Clemson lead but Alabama’s involvement creates plenty of intrigue.

Tiger fans can also use the game to get a glimpse of wide receiver commits Tee Higgins and Amari Rodgers. Clemson-bound A.J. Terrell will also play in the game.