Elite 11 Quarterback Rankings: What Do They Mean?
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Cover photo of Emory Williams; photo credit to Zach Goodall
Do not get it twisted. If your favorite school had a quarterback that did not get ranked high at the Elite 11 finals, or heck, wasn't even there, that's not the end of the world.
Look at Miami's 2023 quarterback signee Emory Williams as another type of example, too. Few knew about him before he went to the Elite 11 finals last year. He's a really talented player. The Elite 11 helped to show that, but it was still his senior year that made the observations out in California even more valuable because he played really well during his final prep season, when it mattered most.
Bottom line, too many college football fans enjoy complaining about recruiting rankings and Elite 11 rankings than actually following their favorite program, basically. Not everyone, but many...
There are numerous evaluation points that go into quarterback rankings. Here's a quick overview of some of them, then a deeper look into what recruiting analysts typically look for as it relates the most valuable data points for rating a quarterback recruit via a podcast down below.
1) Elite 11 is great and I absolutely love it as an evaluation tool for myself! It's the only place I can go to see that many talented quarterbacks in one place, underclassmen included, and gain a better perspective. That said, it's no place near the only critical point of evaluating a quarterback, like so many compainers on Twitter and other social media outlets are acting like it has been.
2) How did guys like CJ Carr (Notre Dame), Julian Sayin (Alabama), Prentiss Air Noland (Ohio State), Dylan Raiola (Georgia) and Will Hammond (Texas Tech) perform with their peers around them? That mattered.
Sometimes the spotlight hinders players. Based on how the players mentioned above, among others, performed during the 2023 Elite 11, they came out swinging and showed their worth. That will be reflected in their rankings, to some degree.
3) Elite 11 aside, seeing players go at it on a Friday night, that's the No. 1 way to evaluate a quarterback or any other position. Nothing more important than live action. That also leads into a valuable lesson specifically about quarterback play.
4) Can a signal caller make clutch throws under heavy pressure? I talk about this in-depth during the podcast, but that's also a part of the way that NFL teams evaluate making a potential 100 million dollar decision with the first pick of the NFL Draft. If a quarterback cannot do succeed under duress, why would a team like the Dallas Cowboys or Green Bay Packers spend all that money?
5) How do the players that competed at Elite 11 then head off into their next season? Did they learn from all the lessons being taught by the Elite 11 counselors? From other prospects? From former Elite 11 players like Caleb Williams that come out and throw and work these young guys?
Those players that take lessons with them into the next season, those would be the ones that stand the greatest chance of moving up the final rankings; that's something to think about.
Here's the podcast further defining what goes into the Elite 11 and how ranking quarterbacks works in general, by the recruiting services.
2024 Recruiting Rankings: Florida's Top 25 Prospects
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Fan Nation High school football recruiting analyst covering the state of Florida, as well as across the Southeastern United States and the state of Texas.
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