No. 9 Ranked College Football QB Recruit Emerges as Top Target for Five Programs

One of the highest ranked quarterbacks in the 2027 college football recruiting class has already announced his commitment to an insurgent Big Ten program, but that hasn’t stopped other schools from looking to change his mind and flip him to their side.

Four-star West Valley City (Utah) quarterback Kamden Lopati has given his pledge to Illinois, but five other college football programs are still in pursuit.

Who wants to flip him?

Right now, five schools are in the conversation for the quarterback, including some real heavyweights.

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“He’s an Illinois commit, but he’s very interested in the likes of Cal, Duke, Michigan,” Rivals’ Mike Singer said of the quarterback.

Kyle Whittingham is fast at work building his first class with the Wolverines, securing six commitments to a class ranked 20th nationally, but is yet to grab a quarterback.

Cal and Duke sit inside the top 50 nationally in recruiting, but neither have a quarterback commitment at the end of March.

Fighting Irish in the mix

Lopati was recently in South Bend to see the Golden Domers up close, and they like their chances at the top 10 signal caller.

Notre Dame boasts the No. 8 recruiting class in the 2027 cycle, according to an industry weighted average of the national classes.

Five of its eight commitments play on the defensive side of the ball, and Marcus Freeman has no quarterback pledges yet heading into the spring.

SEC blue blood in play

In addition to those other programs, the reigning SEC champions are also involved.

“Georgia just offered,” Singer added of the Bulldogs.

Among their seven commitments is consensus No. 1 ranked running back Kemon Spell and No. 3 cornerback Donte Wright, but no quarterbacks.

But the Bulldogs do have top ranked quarterback Jayden Wade committed to their 2028 recruiting class.

What the experts say

Lopati has been heralded as a “savvy dual threat quarterback that excels as a vertical passer and a power runner in a spread attack,” according to 247Sports director of scouting Andrew Ivins.

The quarterback is “built almost like a linebacker” and “projects as a potential Power Four starter that can thrive in a system that wants to capitalize on his mobility.”

Lopati is considered the No. 9 ranked quarterback in the 2027 class, according to an industry weighted average of the national recruiting services.

That average marks him as a consensus four-star prospect and the No. 2 overall recruit at any position in the state of Utah.

Solid on the field

Lopati helped lead his team to the 5A semifinals in the state of Utah this past football season after compiling an 11-2 overall record.

He completed 114 of his 176 passes for a nearly 65 percent completion rate while covering 2,671 yards, throwing 34 touchdowns and just eight interceptions.

He can run the ball, too

A capable dual threat prospect, Lopati ran the ball 90 times for 730 additional yards while averaging 8.1 yards per carry and scored another 10 touchdowns.

The year before, his first season as a starting quarterback, Lopati had 3,050 yards passing while hitting 67 percent of his attempts with 25 touchdowns and four interceptions.

A multi-sport athlete, Lopati ran the 100 meter dash in 11.98 seconds and the 200 meter dash in 24.91 seconds as a freshman in high school.

(Rivals)