A summer with a limited camp and in-person exposure was difficult for colleges and recruiters. As we try to find verified or reliable information about a player’s height or weight, we have had to find other ways to ensure that our rankings are as accurate as possible.
The way we tackled the problem with our first full ranking in 2022 is to delve deeper into the available film. That means watching more, having more analysts watching it, and working position by position. Looking at 100 players in a row at a position, subtle differences can appear, which can help narrow the rankings. A four-star movie appears in the middle of watching a chain of three stars. Indeed, we have a new best player with six positions.
Experts were assigned posts to present to the panel of other experts, who also assessed the outlook. The individual film study by the experts culminated in 10 hours of conference calls where the ratings for each prospect were suggested, debated and assigned.
This list of the best prospects extends the focus of a complete Top247 (click HERE for the rankings) to more than three and four stars.
A NEW NO. 1 AT THE TOP OF THE RANKING
There are several perspectives that deserve to be discussed for number one in the general classification. But it was by assessing the class of QB 2021 after the Elite 11 event that we started to realize where QB Quinn Ewers of Southland Carroll High was already better than many quarters of the class of 2021.
Ewers completed more than 72% of his passes in the second year with more than 4,000 yards, 45 touchdowns, only three interceptions and more than 500 yards on the ground.
Texas and Midlands Analyst Gabe Brooks called Ewers as good as any quarterback he saw last fall and Brooks saw them all in the state of Texas. As a sophomore, Ewers led his high school team to a 13-1 record, losing only to finalist Duncanville. Blessed by size, arm skills and athleticism, Ewers is the best QB prospect we’ve seen since Trevor Lawrence.
THE STARS ABUNDER THE DEFENSIVE END
I was responsible for examining and presenting the defensive group with Gabe Brooks and was blown away.
Our former No. 1 player in Shemar stewart remains at the top of the final defensive position, maintaining its high rating of 98.
It is what a prospect # 1 should look like in second year. His March assessment is glaring and unchanged; we just love Ewers a little bit more as a # 1 global perspective.
Stewart plays a premium position as an edge rusher. He is 6 feet 5 inches tall and around 240 pounds. He tested in a combine at a high level and production was there in the second year with 15 bags under his belt. The guy checks each box and has established himself as an elite talent again with his recent performance at Camp Under Armor. Currently, he wins with length and raw athletics. As Stewart continues to refine his game as a pass defender, he has the talent to hold onto the No. 1 spot for another two years.
But it’s not just Stewart. We currently have 10 of the top 50 national hopefuls on defense. They understand Pennsylvania Enai white (96 reviews), Alabama Jeremiah Alexander, a commit from Alabama (96), Texas ” Malick Sylla (95) and Omari Abor (95), Nevada Cyrus Moss (95), three from Florida in Marvin Jones Jr. (95), Kenyatta Jackson (94), and Dante Anderson (94), as well as that of Maryland Derrick Moore (94).
And we could have had more in this group, but we have moved four players that we previously classified as defensive enders to defensive tackles as they are more likely to be internal players to the next level. What is interesting is that there will undoubtedly be current outside linebackers who will become runners over the next two seasons. This has all the characteristics of a panel.
A CULTURE LOADED WITH CORNERS
The other group that really wowed us was the cornerback position. In fact, seven of our top 31 players in the updated Top247 are cornerbacks.
The new upper cornerback is Tomorrow jackson, from Santa Ana (California) Mater Dei. Jackson showcases elite athletics and the ability to play tight male coverage. This proven covering capacity of the man gave him the slightest advantage on our cornerback n ° 2 in Travis Hunter, Florida State of Georgia’s engagement, but the two are in the five-star discussion.
In addition to Jackson and Hunter are William Johnson of Michigan, Texas ” Denver Harris, Florida Jaheim Singletary, Alabama Trequon Feganand South Carolina Jeadyn Lukus.
ONLY 6 OF THE TOP 100 ARE ENTERED
Given that few 2022 prospects have had many opportunities to visit, meet in-person coaches, and be recruited, it makes sense that fewer commitments are made at this point in the cycle than a given year. . However, perhaps this is a larger deficit of committed actors than we could have predicted. The number of Top 100 players who sign up at the start of the cycle is generally around 10.
THE BEST IN EVERY POSITION
Strategist: Quinn Ewers, Texas (overall # 1, see above).
Come back: Emmanuel Henderson, Alabama (21)
Henderson reminded our experts of former Auburn and current NFL star Kerryon Johnson. He has tenacity, maneuverability and verified track times. He is productive and good enough to be a high level of security if he wanted to play that side. Henderson plays in the county of Geneva in Hartford.
Wide receiver: Caleb Burton, Texas (8)
Burton had 882 yards on 51 catches and 12 touchdowns in second year for Del Valle High, just outside Austin. He is an electric athlete whose strip bursts. His father Charles also played linebacker for Syracuse. Greg Biggins of 247Sports says that Burton gets an easy parting, is explosive after capture, has shaky movements, soft hands and is all.
Tight end: Jaleel Skinner, South Carolina (81)
Skinner is a player formerly listed on the wide receiver. But after seeing its setting and receiving comments from the university, it is clear that the 6’4.205 pounds should evolve towards a close end with two seasons of high school remaining. Skinner is productive and has numbers of promising sports tests. Skinner plays for Greer High.
Interior offensive line: Devon campbell, Texas (12)
He could be a tackle to the next level, but we’re projecting him inward at this point, and Campbell has raised some comparisons of Donovan Jackson with some of our analysts. Campbell is a product of Arlington Bowie.
Offensive tackle: Zach rice, Virginia (11)
Rice is a fluid motor whose length, athleticism and body control are not normally seen from an age perspective. Rice plays for the Liberty Christian Academy in Lynchburg.
Defensive line: Walter Nolen, Florida (3)
A native of Mississippi who will play at the IMG Academy this fall, Nolen has had 26 tackles to lose in second year and has been exceptional at camp recently. He is athletic, powerful and mean.
Edge: Shemar Stewart, Florida (2, see above).
Linebacker: Gabe Powers, Ohio (47)
The powers are long, varied, physical and probably have enough athleticism to end up staying in linebacker. He is the most impressive to date of a group in which it is fair to say that we are still looking for five stars. Powers plays for Marysville High.
Cornerback: Jackson (4, see above)
Security: Kamari Wilson, Florida (36)
Wilson was great at Camp Under Armor. He has a physical and active film and he has a list of elite offers, to start with. Wilson is at IMG Academy.
Athlete: Keon Sabb, New Jersey (7)
We know Sabb is fast. We know he is an elite athlete as evidenced by his style above the rim in basketball. And we know it has size. He plays a little bit of everything for his high school, but whether he ends up in linebacker, security, wide receiver or something else is very much in suspense.
RELATED CONTENT
– Get off the updated Top247
– Meet the class: superlatives
– State Ranking: Who has the most Top247 players?
– VIP: Steve Wiltfong recruits information from the top 10 not engaged
– Strengths and weaknesses of class 2022
