Ups, downs of latest positional rankings
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Since our last round of rankings back in May, Rivals.com analysts have
crisscrossed to the country to see many of the nation's top prospects compete at
various camps and events. With the 2013 season right around the corner, we take
a look at notable movements within each position ranking.
INSIDE LOOK: RIVALS.COM POSITION RANKINGS
Pro-style quarterbacks
Notable riser:
David Blough, Carrolton (Texas) Creekview (From unranked to No. 17)
Notable dropper:
Chance Stewart, Sturgis (Mich.) (From No. 10 to
No. 22)
Comment: Purdue commit Blough (pictured) was one of several quarterbacks to
improve his stock during the summer session, turning heads at the Elite 11 and
rising into the rankings for the first time this cycle. The same can't be said
for Stewart, whose struggles during the summer saw him lose his fourth star and
drop to No. 22 overall. Other movers included Arizona State commit
Manny Wilkins, who moved up to a 5.7 and two spots at the position.
Mission Viejo (Calif.) quarterback
Ian Fieber dropped from No. 29 out
of the rankings.
Dual-threat quarterbacks
Notable riser:
Luke Rubenzer, Scottsdale (Ariz.) Saguaro (From No. 18 to No. 14)
Notable dropper: None
Comments: The position stayed mostly the same with five-star
Clemson commit
Deshaun Watson holding down the No. 1 spot once
again. Future Cal Bears quarterback
Luke Rubenzer (pictured) turned a nice summer
into a four-spot jump, while Arizona State commit Coltin Gerhart
entered the rankings for the first time at No. 25.
All-purpose backs
Notable riser:
Brandon Powell, Deerfield Beach, Fla. (Entered at No. 7)
Notable dropper:
Trevaughn Rodriguez, Daytona Beach (Fla.)
Mainland (Dropped from No. 10 to No. 19)
Comments: Powell (pictured) switched his commitment from Tennessee to
Miami and also switched positions in the process, moving to all-purpose
back and becoming a four-star. The same can't be said for Rodriguez, who dropped
nine spots. One of the other big moves came from Texas commit
Kevin Shorter, who moved over from running back and entered the rankings at No.
14.
Running backs
Notable riser:
Tre Watson, Corona (Calif.) Centennial (From unranked to No. 45)
Notable dropper: Kurt Scoby, Mission Hills (Calif.) Bishop
Academy (From No. 36 to No. 55)
Comments: Another position that didn't see a ton of movement at the top
but there were some interesting changes near the bottom. Cal commit Watson (pictured)
turned a nice summer into an entrance in the rankings, as did Fort Lauderdale
(Fla.) St. Thomas Aquinas running back Madre London, who entered at No.
49. Scoby was one of few player to trend in the other direction, dropping 19
spots to No. 55. Other players who fell out of the rankings completely included
Tampa (Fla.) Alonso running back
Ish Witter (from No. 51).
Fullback
Notable riser:
None
Notable dropper: Josh Harlan, Columbia (S.C.) Spring Valley
(From No. 4 to unranked)
Comments: The fullback position is still playing itself out but Harlan (pictured) let it be known that he's now a linebacker, which caused him to drop from the
rankings at the position.
Wide receivers
Notable Riser:
Malachi Dupre, River Ridge (La.) John Curtis (From No. 7 to No. 1)
Notable dropper:
Ryeshene Bronson, Fort Myers (Fla.) Dunbar
(From No. 19 to No. 48).
Comments: There was a lot of debate among the analyst team but ultimately
Dupre's performance over the summer landed him his fifth star and the No. 1
overall spot. Bronson has seen his star fade recently and a rough summer saw him
take the biggest drop at the position, 29 spots. Another big mover in the
positive direction was Alexandria (La.) wide receiver D.J. Chark. He
was excellent at LSU's camp in June and after earning an offer
committed to the Tigers as well. New Georgia commit
Shakenneth Williams also made his debut in the rankings, at No. 56.
Tight ends
Notable Riser:
Mike Gesicki, Manahawkin (N.J.) Southern Regional (Entered at No. 14)
Notable dropper:
Marcus Mosely, Tampa (Fla.) Alonso (From No. 28
to unranked)
Comments: Gesicki (pictured) was reclassified as a wide receiver this go-round and
also moved up to a 5.7, helping his to debut in the top half of the rankings at
tight end. Also entering the rankings for the first time is Nebraska
pledge Freedom Akinmoladun, who debuted at No. 29. Mosely took a tumble
out of the rankings, while four-star Jacory Washington fell from No. 2
to No. 9.
Offensive tackles
Notable Riser:
Kenyon Frison, West Valley City (Utah) Granger (From unranked to No.
44)
Notable dropper:
Andrew Marshall, Milford, Del. (From No. 31 to
unranked)
Comments: The top of the position remained virtually unchanged but
several new four-stars were added, including Texas A&M commit
Zach Ledwik (unranked to No. 17), Georgia commit Dyshon Sims (unranked
to No. 19) and Florida commit Nolan Kelleher (No. 40 to No.
27). Marshall took the biggest fall, dropping out of the rankings and was the
only major dropper at the position. Also entering the rankings for the first
time along with Frison (pictured) is USC commit
Jordan Austin, who debuted at No. 61.
Offensive guards
Notable Riser:
Montel McBride, Plant City, Fla. (From No. 21 to No. 14)
Notable dropper:
Natrell Curtis, Phoenix (Ariz.) Mountain Pointe
(From No. 4 to No. 15)
Comments: There was a ton of movement at the top of the position, with
four of the top five players seeing their Rivals ratings change. However, one of
the biggest movers was Alabama commit McBride (pictured), who has now risen all
the way to No. 14 overall. Also now in the mix is former two-star and Georgia
commit Jake Edwards, who turned a terrific summer into the No. 20
overall ranking at the position. Curtis was the only player to make a
significant drop, losing his fourth star and settling in at No. 14.
Centers
Notable Riser:
Andrew Marshall, Cumming (Ga.) West Forsyth (From unranked to No. 7)
Notable dropper:
Joshua Casher, Mobile (Ala.) St. Paul's (From
No. 1 to No. 2)
Comments: Marshall (pictured) parlayed an impressive performance at
Auburn's camp to move up to a 5.7 rating and into the rankings at No.
7. Casher on the other hand didn't show the same dominance he did during the
spring and lost his No. 1 spot to Alabama commit J.C. Hassenauer, who
moved from No. 6 to No. 1 in the country at his position.
Weakside defensive ends
Notable Riser:
Jarrell Owens, Palestine, Texas (unranked to No. 16)
Notable dropper:
Lorenzo Featherston, Greensboro (N.C.) Page
(No. 7 to No. 13)
Comments: There were a few big jumps including Miami commit
moving from No. 11 all the way to No. 4 after dominating some of the summer's
biggest events. Owens (pictured) also moved over from strongside defensive end and made his
debut at No. 16. Featherston was among the biggest droppers as it looks more and
more like his ceiling may not be as high as originally thought. A couple of
players made debuts at the bottom of the rankings, with Oklahoma State commit
Cole Walterscheid debuting at No. 29 and Muskogee (Okla.) defensive end
Tramal Ivy entering at No. 30.
Strongside defensive ends
Notable Riser:
Matt Dickerson, San Mateo (Calif.) Junipero Serra (From No. 17 to No.
14)
Notable dropper: None
Comments: The position group remained largely unchanged except for a few
moves among the four-star prospects near the top. Dickerson (pictured) moved up three spots
but more importantly gained his fourth star while Davon Godchaux turned a solid
performance at the Rivals Five-Star Challenge into a 5.9 rating and a three spot
move at the position.
Notable riser: O.J. SmithClick DEFENSIVE TACKLESHere to view this Link., Bossier City (La.) Airline (From
unranked to No. 30)
Notable dropper:
Tashon Smallwood, Fresno (Calif.) Central East
(From No. 23 to No. 32)
Comments: With the exception of new four-star Matt Elam moving up from
No. 24 to No. 18 there weren't a ton of big time movers. Smith (pictured) entered the
rankings for the first time at No. 30 after getting a new evaluation while a new
evaluation caused Smallwood to lose his fourth star and settle in at No. 32.
Inside linebackers
Notable riser:
Bobby Okereke, Bakersfield (Calif.) Foothill (From unranked to No. 17)
Notable dropper: Josh Mabin, Klein (Texas) Oak (From No. 15 to
No. 25)
Comments: After nabbing his third star during the last go-round of
rankings, Okereke (pictured) continued his climb up and is now in the mix at No. 17. The
Stanford commit moved to inside linebacker after being classified as a
tight end earlier in the cycle. Mabin's summer struggles saw him lose his fourth
star and saw him fall 10 spots.
Notable riser: Fred WarnerClick Outside linebackersHere to view this Link., San Marcos (Calif.) Mission Hills
(From unranked to No. 25)
Notable dropper: Hoza Scott, La Porte, Texas (From No. 1 to No.
22)
Comments: There were several moves at the position aside from Warner (pictured), including Alabama
commit Christian Miller taking over the No. 1 overall spot after a
strong summer. Also moving up and gaining a fourth star was Mississippi State
commit Gerri Green, whose strong camp performance propelled him to No.
13 after previously being unranked. Scott's on-field talent is unquestioned but
his senior season is in doubt after some off-the-field issues.
Cornerbacks
Notable riser:
John Plattenburg, Corona (Calif.) Centennial (From No. 50 to No. 35) (pictured)
Notable dropper:
Darrion Johnson, Brenham, Texas (From No. 29 to
No. 43)
Comments: There was a lot of movement among the cornerbacks including
South Carolina commit
Wesley Green making a jump from No. 23
back up to No. 14 following a strong showing at the IMG 7-on-7 National
Championships. A couple of Georgia prospects, Evan Berry (No. 39 to No.
22) and Auburn commit Nicholas Ruffin (No. 30 to No. 26) both added their
fourth stars and made nice jumps as well.
Safeties
Notable riser:
Darrion Owens, Orange Park (Fla.) Oakleaf (From
No. 49 to No. 33)
Notable dropper:
Deion Singleton, Tallahassee (Fla.) Godby (From
No. 21 to No. 47)
Comments: The safety position saw several plays make big jumps including
Florida State commit Trey Marshall (No. 30 to No. 20) and
Vanderbilt commit
Trey Sherfield (entered at No. 22). Owens (pictured)
also got a big bump for his summer performances, while Singleton slipped after
some summer struggles. A couple of other players also got decent bumps, with
Purdue commit Drue Tranquill entering the rankings at No. 33 and
Louisville commit
Michael Johnson moving to a 5.7 and three
spots to No. 42.
Athletes
Notable riser:
Stanton Truitt, Monroe (Ga.) Monroe Area (No. 29
to No. 11)
Notable dropper:
Devante Downs, Lynnwood (Wash.) Mountlake
Terrace (From four-star, 5.8 running back to three-star, 5.7 athlete)
Comments: Several players moved from athlete to other positions but one
player moved in and took over the No. 1 spot. Five-star Adoree' Jackson
might play wide receiver at the next level, so for now he's the No. 1 athlete in
the country. Auburn-bound Truitt (pictured) got a bump to a four-star, moving him up 18
spots in the rankings. Downs was the only major dropper, while Princeton, Texas
athlete Jourdan Blake debuted at No. 35.
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