Rivals Rankings Week: Rumor mill on top 2027 prospects

It’s very early in the 2027 recruiting cycle but never too early to talk recruiting as a lot of top 100 players are already going down the road of having top programs. Here’s the latest from Rivals national recruiting director Adam Gorney on many in the new Rivals top 100 for 2027:

Georgia is the front-runner for the Santa Ana (Calif.) Mater Dei tight end who loves how the Bulldogs operate their program, he sees similarities to Mater Dei being so dominant and clearly Brock Bowers’ success is playing a key role in Bowman’s thinking. Oregon is also really intriguing to him and he will take a visit to Alabama (when Georgia visits) soon as well.

Auburn is the early team to beat for the speedy all-purpose back from Birmingham (Ala.) Spain Park since the coaching staff has shown an “insane” amount of love early in his recruitment. The two others to watch for Cowley are Miami and Ole Miss as he has more than a dozen offers.

An in-state battle could be brewing for the Jackson, Ala., standout running back as Auburn and Alabama have made Crowell a massive priority. Texas also highly intrigues Crowell with Ohio State and UCF of interest early on as well.

Relationships are going to play a big role for the Miami (Fla.) Norland cornerback when it comes time to make a decision and right now Dopson has great bonds with the coaches at Louisville, South Florida and Syracuse. Those three have made the biggest impression on Dopson, who doesn’t have a Miami offer yet.

It would not be a shock if Edmunds makes a commitment before the end of his sophomore season as it looks like Ohio State has the big edge in his recruitment but others are pushing. The Huntington Beach, Calif., quarterback will be at Texas for the Georgia game and then he’s hitting up both USC and UCLA along with a stop in Columbus before any decision.

The 2027 receiver class in Texas is absolutely loaded and now it’s a question of whether all of them will stay in state. The Crowley, Texas standout definitely has Texas A&M, Texas and TCU on his list but he mentioned USC, Ohio State and Oregon first and Oklahoma is also right there at the top for him.

Oklahoma, Florida State, Georgia and Auburn are the four programs that stand out most to the Stone Mountain (Ga.) Stephenson standout mainly since all four develop elite defensive players but all bring a unique approach to his recruitment. More game-day visits are coming up so things could change but those four have taken the early lead.

LSU, Michigan, Ohio State, Michigan State and Tennessee are the main programs to watch early on for Guerrant with the Tigers and the Wolverines possibly standing out a little more at this point but the Buckeyes are right there as well. The Harper Woods, Mich., standout loves Michigan since it’s the hometown school. He will visit LSU later this season with Bryce Underwood so that’s a major draw as well.

LSU could have the early edge for the Chatsworth (Calif.) Sierra Canyon since position coach Corey Raymond has shown so much interest and because of the Tigers’ success developing defensive backs. The SEC power will be one to watch but there are some close connections to Oregon and Ohio State is right there as well. USC was the dream school early on but others have jumped higher early on.

Georgia was the dream school growing up for the massive offensive tackle from Texarkana (Texas) Texas and the Bulldogs are one of the favorites along with Oregon, Tennessee, Texas A&M, Arkansas, Ole Miss and Missouri. His running back, Tradarian Ball, is committed to the Ducks so that could be something to watch.

Oregon, Florida State, Oklahoma and Tennessee are the four programs making the biggest impact on the Tampa (Fla.) Jesuit standout early on so those programs have the lead. But Henderson is also talking with Ohio State, Georgia and Alabama as well and while those three haven’t offered those could be game-changers in his recruitment.

The tough and physical offensive tackle from Chandler (Ariz.) Hamilton is mainly talking with Arizona State, Baylor, Florida State, Texas A&M, Arizona, Oklahoma, Oregon, Utah and Washington so far. While the list is long, it could get even longer once more programs see Hildebrand, whose first offer came from the Sun Devils so there is some loyalty to consider there.

Penn State, Oklahoma and Maryland have jumped out to the early lead for the offensive tackle from Coatesville, Pa., as the Nittany Lions could be the one to watch since he’s less than three hours away from campus. But a new offer from Ohio State could be something to watch especially if the Buckeyes continue to show interest in Hiller moving forward.

This could end up being a classic battle between Texas and Oklahoma for the Shreveport (La.) Evangel Christian quarterback as the Sooners have the slight edge right now. Those two along with Georgia, Texas A&M, Tennessee, Miami and LSU make up an early list but his best relationships so far are in Norman and Austin.

A two-team battle could be brewing for the Ruston, La., tight end as LSU and Texas A&M are already positioning to battle it out for Hudson, who also has Houston and Purdue high on the list. More offers are pouring in for the 6-foot-7, 220-pound prospect but the Tigers and the Aggies have taken the lead.

Georgia and Tennessee have the early lead for the Roswell (Ga.) Blessed Trinity defensive end but those are not the only teams involved in his recruitment. Teammate Josh Petty just committed to Georgia Tech so the Yellow Jackets should be watched as well with Ohio State rounding out a top four.

When it comes to recruiting, Tennessee has been the most interested in Johnson-Cook so far and the DeSoto, Texas athlete has definitely taken notice of the Volunteers early on. Tennessee and Texas A&M are the standouts for Johnson-Cook and the Aggies have a real chance to land him since the in-state prospect has such a strong relationship with running backs coach Trooper Taylor.

His father by the same name played at Notre Dame before being a second-round NFL Draft pick but two other schools have Jones’ attention early on. Miami is the hometown team for the Fort Lauderdale (Fla.) St. Thomas Aquinas standout and then LSU was one of his favorite programs growing up. His connection with both of those teams give them the edge early in his recruitment.

Three programs are making the biggest impact early on in McDonald’s recruitment as Florida State, Auburn and Ole Miss are the early standouts. The Morton, Miss., cornerback loves the “big family” feel at all three of those schools so those are the ones to watch early on.

Penn State, Maryland and Virginia Tech are the three early programs to watch for the Severn (Md.) Archbishop Spalding standout. The Hokies offered when McAfee was in eighth grade and his relationships in Blacksburg are very strong. The Nittany Lions could be the team to watch since McAfee has a strong bond with coach James Franklin and the position coaches and then the hometown Terrapins are right there as McAfee loves coach Mike Locksley as well.

The Red Oak, Texas cornerback is nearing double-digit offers already but one school has already separated itself early in his recruitment. Baylor is the program to watch for McGee as he loves that the coaching staff calls him every week to check in and he considers them “family” as others continue to push as well.

Ohio State, Alabama, Tennessee, Penn State, Oregon, Miami, Notre Dame and LSU are the early programs to watch for the Aliquippa, Pa., defensive back. While the list remains long for Moon there could be some early standouts as he loves what the Buckeyes do on both sides of the field, he has a ton of respect for the in-state Nittany Lions from coach James Franklin to position coach Terry Smith and the culture at Alabama and Miami stand out.

The Flower Mound (Texas) Marcus quarterback has been diplomatic about which teams stand out early in his recruitment but the word is that Texas, LSU and Wisconsin would be the three to watch. Nussmeier definitely likes the Longhorns a lot and his brother, Garrett, is the starting QB in Baton Rouge right now.

Ohio State, Missouri and Tennessee are the schools to watch early on for the Brandon, Miss., running back who is off to a strong start in his sophomore season. Ole Miss has offered Robinson but three out-of-state programs have caught his attention the most at this point.

Ole Miss has jumped out and caught the attention of the Ackerman (Miss.) Choctaw County standout after a recent visit but Shumaker was at Mississippi State over the weekend which is only about 30 minutes away. Florida State is also working on getting the 6-foot-3, 270-pound defensive tackle up for a visit but nothing has been scheduled yet as those three programs have offered so far.

The hard-hitting safety from Waxahachie, Texas has three programs standing out the most early on with Oklahoma leading the way since he loves the Sooners’ coaching staff and their development of players in the secondary. Texas A&M is high early on because of the culture and the “amazing” fan base there and Snell is also highly intrigued with USC as well.

Recruiting is just starting to pick up for the great-looking cornerback from Las Vegas (Nev.) Bishop Gorman with Cal and Miami the main schools coming after him now. It feels almost inevitable that Stepp will see his recruitment take off in the coming months and one school he’s watching closely is LSU. It was his dream school growing up and Gorman teammate Derek Meadows is committed there.

Three programs have made the biggest impression on the Fontana (Calif.) Summit defensive tackle so far with Oregon, Miami and UCLA leading the way. His brother, Jay, plays for the Bruins so that will be something to watch but those three programs and many more should be involved as Toia’s recruitment continues.

Utah, Tennessee and Alabama are three others to definitely watch for the Las Vegas (Nev.) Arbor View standout but USC probably has the early edge. Warren was at the Trojans’ season-opening win over LSU in Las Vegas and he definitely loves the offense under coach Lincoln Riley.

As the Atlanta (Ga.) Pace Academy standout heads toward double-digit offers, three programs are making the biggest impression so far in his recruitment. South Carolina, Tennessee and Georgia Tech are the three to watch for the 6-foot-5, 225-pound defensive end so far.

The Chesterfield (Va.) Bird athlete has Penn State, Florida State and Tennessee as the three early standouts as he loves the weight room, the people, the campuses and the environments at those three programs. Going to a night game in Knoxville especially stood out to Whitehead who is not only looking at the football aspect in his recruitment but also looking for a “moment” that stands out.

Georgia is definitely an early school to watch since the Gardena (Calif.) Serra defensive back is so close with assistant coach Donte Williams but many others will be involved as well. USC and Alabama are definitely two others to watch with Texas A&M and Oregon also rounding out his top list.

One of the most exciting receivers in the 2027 class, Yancey has Oregon, Oklahoma, USC, Texas, Ole Miss, Miami and Tennessee standing out most. The Duncanville, Texas standout loves how those schools run their offenses and those are some places where Yancey could see himself playing as the Sooners might have a slight edge.