JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The Rivals Five-Star is in the books and now it’s time to start the position breakdowns and give thoughts on each prospect who competed at the summer’s biggest event. We start with quarterbacks:
One of only two underclassmen at the Rivals Five-Star, when Grubbs was in rhythm the four-star Notre Dame commit looked great, threw a beautiful ball and hit receivers in stride. There were also times when the Lake Mary, Fla., standout struggled maybe the speed of the receivers and defensive backs and was slightly tentative at times. But on the whole, Grubbs had a good performance – not great, not terrible – as the 2026 prospect will only grow from playing more and more with older, elite players.
*****
Jones did what Jones does. The four-star Florida State commit from Jacksonville (Fla.) Mandarin is always consistent, always throws a very catchable ball and he makes great decisions. It’s not all flash and wow throws but Jones spins it well, can fire it into tight windows or put touch on his passes, layer it to all levels and he’s just a smart, savvy, responsible quarterback.
*****
When Knight is dealing, he looks like arguably the best quarterback in the country. The lefty is so smooth, the ball looks so pretty, it gets to the receiver in stride and there is a very Michael Penix feel to how he plays the position. Over the last few months and the last many big-time events nationally, Knight has knocked away this criticism of inconsistency and the Notre Dame commit has looked phenomenal in recent months, more than backing up his No. 1 dual-threat ranking.
*****
The last few weeks have been very busy for the No. 1 prospect in the Rivals250 as he went from event to event, visit to visit but he came to Rivals Five-Star and had another phenomenal performance. Lewis throws a phenomenal deep ball that is right on the money every time. It’s actually pretty surprising when he misses down the field because it almost never happens and it looks effortless. Does he throw the fastball as impressively as some others? No. But nobody is as consistent to all levels as the USC commit.
*****
After the Elite 11 and the Rivals Five-Star, Russell was put on five-star watch and with rankings coming up later in August, the discussion around whether the Alabama commit should have that highest ranking will certainly be talked about a ton. The Duncanville, Texas quarterback, who flipped from SMU to the Crimson Tide, has a beautiful, smooth delivery, the ball comes out so smoothly and naturally and he has phenomenal touch on all his passes. Russell showed off tremendous consistency as well at numerous events and was arguably the best (or second-best) quarterback at the event.
*****
The five-star quarterback from Newbury Park, Calif., who had a monstrous sophomore season had some really big highlights during the Rivals Five-Star and I’m sure will go home with some things to work on as well. The new Florida State commit has a big arm and put the ball right where it needed to be numerous times. He also looked unsure on some passes and double clutched so he didn’t get everything behind it and was behind receivers a few times. He’s already ahead of so many 2026 QBs even being at the event so there were definitely some positives and some learning lessons.
*****
Smith has thrown the football a ton in recent weeks as he was at the Elite 11 last week and then came right to the Rivals Five-Star and definitely had some bright moments. Smith showed he could layer the ball well during 7-on-7 play and did a nice job throwing to all levels as well. He could still tighten up some things but the Oregon legacy has had some quality showings as well and with his size and pedigree there is a lot to like.
*****
The Ohio State commit will fully be in the conversation for the No. 1 ranking in the 2025 Rivals250. He has the same physical size as first-rounder Drake Maye in April’s NFL Draft, he has been absolutely outstanding at numerous events this offseason including at the Rivals Five-Star in every environment – one-on-ones, 7-on-7, the QB Challenge and he threw the ball 70 yards in the long toss. A big discussion is ahead and St. Clair will be a major part of it.
