Rivals Rankings Week: Five-Star Countdown for 2025 class

The Rivals250 for the 2025 class is receiving a refresh this week as the high school football season winds down across the country. We kick things off as always with a countdown of the five-stars.

Rivals national recruiting director Adam Gorney gives his thoughts on each of the 28 five-stars.

RIVALS RANKINGS WEEK

Sunday: Who should be No. 1?

Monday: Five-Star Countdown | Meet the new five-stars

Tuesday: New Rivals250 released | Gorney’s thoughts | Biggest risers

Wednesday: Offensive position rankings

Thursday: Defensive position rankings

Friday: State rankings

Gorney’s Take: What sold us on Hylton Stubbs as a five-star prospect was at the Rivals Five-Star, some elite receivers caught passes on him during one-on-ones but the Jacksonville (Fla.) Mandarin standout was always right there in the hip pocket and making every catch incredibly difficult.

The Miami commit has awesome length, he can run, he can cover, he’s competitive and he has that dog mindset where he’s going to go after people on every play.

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Gorney’s Take: A Florida State commitment since December 2023, Solomon Thomas is a crucial piece for the Seminoles to keep in this recruiting class because he’s versatile along the offensive line and the meanness factor is off the charts when it comes to how Thomas plays.

He’s big and tough and the Jacksonville (Fla.) Raines standout plays with surprising athleticism for someone his size.

Florida had him on campus over the weekend and LSU is trying to flip him as well, so this will be one to watch heading toward signing day.

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Gorney’s Take: One of the new five-stars in this rankings release, Dijon Lee is as talented and as impactful as any cornerback in this class. The Alabama commit, who will visit Texas A&M for the Texas showdown, has phenomenal length and is incredibly smooth and fast in coverage. He’s great battling the receiver when the ball is getting there.

Lee made such an impact at Mission Viejo, Calif., this season that he was also one of the team’s best receivers.

Gorney’s Take: When we finally got to see Nathaniel Marshall in person this season, the Oak Park (Ill.) Fenwick defensive end might not be his listed 6-foot-5 but his traits and his productivity cannot be questioned. A new five-star who doesn’t do many events, Marshall can blitz off the edge and looks like he was shot out of a cannon. He covers so much ground and he makes an impact on nearly every play defensively.

That type of production cannot go unnoticed. It’s what so many elite edge rushers and outside linebackers are known for and Marshall plays the game physically and hard every down.

Gorney’s Take: Jaime Ffrench did not have the best season from a statistical perspective but four-star quarterback teammate Tramell Jones suffered a knee injury so that chemistry on offense was definitely not present for Jacksonville (Fla.) Mandarin.

This ranking is more than just one season of stats, though, as Ffrench has proven for some time, including at the Rivals Five-Star, that he’s a smooth and effortless route runner who has great hands and deceptive speed to stretch the field.

The Texas commit – who’s still being pursued by Florida and others – reminds us a ton of Garrett Wilson at the same stage.

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Gorney’s Take: When Nathaniel Owusu-Boateng is on the field and not dealing with nagging injuries, the Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy five-star linebacker is special. He is muscled up but he doesn’t play tight. Owusu-Boateng can hit, he can run, he can move laterally and do all the things a linebacker needs to do in space and to play downhill.

Michigan has looked like a very strong contender for him but a recent visit to Colorado now makes things very interesting.