UA All-America Game: Five who could make the jump to five-star

The Under Armour All-America Game week gets going this weekend with several of the nation’s upper-tier prospects converging on Orlando for the annual event. All-star games always play a vital role in the final rankings updates, with practices and games being the perfect time for prospects to get over the hump to five-star status. Today, we take a look at five players who have a chance to earn a coveted fifth star and get National Recruiting Director Mike Farrell’s thoughts on what he’s looking to see from each prospect.

MORE: Last year's UA All-America Game coverage | How things stand with unsigned Rivals100 prospects | Class of 2018 Rivals100

The situation: The Georgia signee comes into the event ranked as the No. 34 overall prospect in the country, just eight spots away from five-star status. Several elite defensive ends will be at the event, so he will have every chance to earn his way to five-star status against some of the other contenders.

Farrell’s take: “Cox has been on the verge of five stars a few times and has the physical talent to dominate when he wants to. He’s been inconsistent at times and his motor can diminish if he gets frustrated, so we’ll be looking for him to be going 100 percent all the time and to dominate a fairly average group of tackles at the event and during the week.”

The situation: Jones was one of the headlines of the Early Signing Period, making the flip from Ohio State to Florida and giving new coach Dan Mullen one of his first big recruiting wins. He comes into the event as the highest-ranked four-star in the country.

Farrell’s take: “Jones was a five-star at one point, so those skills are still there. We just want to see him be more consistent with his overall accuracy and show the ability to get in a rhythm as a pocket passer, rather than look to one read and then freelance. As a dual-threat, we like his ability to run and extend the play, but we’d like to see him be more patient in the pocket and go through progressions more often.”

The situation: The Notre Dame signee has been a fixture on the national scene over the past year, climbing up the rankings all the way to No. 35 overall. His season at IMG Academy should have him more than ready to compete in Orlando.

Farrell’s take: “Griffith has the length, size and quickness to be special. We just want to see more explosion to the football and better coverage ability when he’s in one-on-one situations. He has a chance to be special, and if he puts it all together during the week he’s one of the guys I could see soaring up the rankings.”

The situation: Alabama was the first school to offer Davis and ended up landing his signature. But unlike some Tide commits over the years, he’s kept a relatively low profile in terms of notoriety on the national stage. Davis is ranked No. 37 overall and will have a chance to vault himself above Cox and others.

Farrell’s Take: “The defensive end position is coveted greatly, and Davis has the physical tools to be a great one. His level of competition hasn’t been that great and he hasn’t dominated as consistently as we’d like to see from a five-star, but this could be the week he shows us he can put it all together.”

The situation: Thought by some to be the nation’s top tackle, the athletic offensive lineman will have the chance to show that he has the football skills to go with his immense upside. The lowest-ranked prospect on this list, he would make quite a leap to five-star status, but bigger jumps have been made in the past.

Farrell’s Take: “The top tackle I’m interested in seeing. He has a great frame to build on and the length and feet to be special. Can he be aggressive and physical on a consistent level and show that he can keep his balance and not overstep against speed rushers? That will be part of the key when evaluating Petit-Frere.”