Grading top recruits’ decision to reclassify in modern era
Expected news is still big news, especially when it surrounds the top-ranked prospects in a given recruiting class.
No. 1 2026 talent Jahkeem Stewart went through with his decision to reclassify to the class of 2025 on Saturday, ending months of speculation about his high school and college timeline. The five-star will join the senior class as the top-ranked defender in the updated Rivals250.
Moves like this are becoming more common in high school football with elite prospects, at one point seemingly reserved for quarterbacks. Now we see these jumps all over the field.
Rivals looks back at some of the highest-ranked non-quarterbacks to make the move up one class to try and gauge if it was it worth it or not.
Jump: Class of 2026 to 2025
Returns: Stewart’s move is the freshest to gauge in this scenario, but it’s becoming more understandable as time as moved forward. The Louisiana native is physically one of the most dominant prep prospects in the nation at 6-foot-6, near 270 pounds and he has already worked very successfully against class of 2025 members both locally and nationally, like at the Rivals Five-Star back in late June. He proved he more than belongs among the best regardless of class, so the thought of Stewart needing two more prep seasons before college football may be an ultra-conservative one.
Grade: B+
Jump: Class of 2025 to 2024
Returns: There was never a doubt with Williams’ overall talent, as he was the top-ranked wide receiver in his class before making his move up one grade. Even then, he challenged for the top spot before settling at No. 2 behind generational talent and top-ranked prospect overall Jeremiah Smith. It didn’t take long for Williams to splash at UA, making big plays against college defensive backs as a 17-year old. It translated to his first game, too, where he hauled in a pair of long touchdown passes in the Crimson Tide’s blowout win over Western Kentucky.
Grade: A
Jump: Class of 2025 to 2024
Returns: A big, physical and speedy defensive back with a college body as an underclassman in high school, Gran’t move felt like one of the most expected in his class. It was viewed as a massive win for Purdue, too, as many programs had been working on flipping Grant before he jumped up one class. Now a freshman in the Big Ten, he splashed in his college debut with multiple tackles, including a big hit along the sidelines.
Grade: A
Jump: Class of 2025 to 2024
Returns: A longtime standout in the south Florida 7-on-7 circuit and Friday nights alike, Gilmore was heavily recruited since his underclassman days and was one of the prospects to announce his intentions to reclassify fairly early in the process. It tilted his recruitment some, but Kentucky never let up in its pursuit of the long and lean pass catcher. He appears to have made some splash plays in camp and was in line to crack the deep wide receiver rotation at UK before suffering an injury that will keep him sidelined until at least the middle of his freshman season.
Grade: B
Jump: Class of 2025 to 2024
Returns: Another recruit coveted and well-known as a sophomore in high school, Mitchell starred in the state of Texas before making the move to California for what would be his senior season of high school. Oklahoma landed him last summer and he never looked back, enrolling in the spring. However, it may take some time for Mitchell to crack the rotation in what became a deep OU tight end room thanks to the transfer portal. He wasn’t listed among the top four at the position ahead of the 2024 opener.
Grade: B –
Jump: Class of 2025 to 2024
Returns: Williams was a late decider relative to most on this list, opting to make his decision to jump just two months before the traditional National Signing Day in February, when he picked Florida State. A long and lean two-way player on Friday nights, he kicked off his collegiate career at tight end in Tallahassee, where he sits behind a combination of experience and highly-rated peers like No. 4-ranked tight end recruit Landen Thomas, who has already seen some action for Mike Norvell’s program.
Grade: B –
Jump: Class of 2025 to 2024
Returns: A backside pass rusher who committed to Penn State this summer, Granville joined the team for fall camp. Perhaps a bit undersized compared to what the Nittany Lions usually trot out on the edge, it could take some development before the former four-star makes a significant impact on Saturdays. There is considerable depth at the position, as usual, though Granville has already put on 10 pounds since arriving on campus.
Grade: C
Jump: Class of 2025 to 2024
Returns: Originally from the United Kingdom before moving to the Jacksonville area to play small private school football, the massive Florida signee was not only a surprise take for the Gators, but a surprise reclassification along the way. Though one of the biggest prep line recruits in any class, with a gaudy wingspan to boot, Wangoy is among the most raw lineman in all of the SEC. He is a developmental prospect who may be years away from having a shot at the two-deep. More prep experience could have probably gone a long way.
Grade: C –
Jump: Class of 2024 to 2023
Returns: A highly-touted cover corner since the beginning of his high school career with notoriety as the little brother of former five-star Eli Ricks, Desmond made a name for himself early on. He then made the move to IMG Academy, similar to his big brother, and starred there before making the move up one class to head to Alabama ahead of the 2023 season, seeing some snaps as a true freshman in Nick Saban’s final season. Ricks saw plenty of action in the cornerback rotation in the top-25 showdown against Notre Dame to kick off the 2024 season, registering three tackles including one for a loss.
Grade: B+
Jump: Class of 2024 to 2023
Returns: A late reclassification move affected his original signature for the University of Miami, so Jackson enrolled at East Carolina in time for the 2023 season after being granted a release. A long and savvy corner, he flashed with a pick-six in his first game. Jackson would start several games for the Pirates as a freshman and see action in nearly every game, totaling 19 tackles in the process. Jackson entered the transfer portal in January and is now at UCF, where he again registered an interception in his first game with his new collegiate team.
Grade: A
Jump: Class of 2024 to 2023
Returns: A coveted Miami native who became a national recruit ahead of his junior season of high school, Capers would suffer a torn ACL and go through a lengthy rehab before the surprise decision to reclassify up a year and make the jump to college despite some positional questions as his experience was between the defensive linw and the edge. Louisville brought him in as a linebacker, where he lost considerable weight during a redshirt freshman season. Year 2 began with some snaps in the blowout win over Austin Peay, where Capers registered his first collegiate interception and tackle.
Grade: B –
Jump: Class of 2023 to 2022
Returns: Highly-decorated prep recruit known for his positional and scheme versatility for years. It wasn’t a big surprise when Styles reclassified ahead of the 2022 season with his immense frame and athleticism. He hit the ground running at Ohio State, playing in double-digit games as a 17-year old freshman before starting nearly every game as a sophomore in 2023. Now he’s working more as a full-time linebacker as one of the key players for the national championship contenders, having racked up six tackles in the opener.
Grade: A+
Jump: Class of 2023 to 2022
Returns: A five-star early on in the evaluation process, Overton was part of the historic Texas A&M defensive line haul as the final signature in on the class. He still found his way on the field as a freshman and racked up 31 tackles, including one sack, right out of the gates. It was a deeper line in 2023, but Overton still made plays in 12 games before transferring to Alabama. His Crimson Tide debut on Saturday included four tackles and there is some draft buzz building.
Grade: A
Jump: Class of 2023 to 2022
Returns: A blue-chipper from the Peach State, Washington was a Georgia legacy recruit who followed in his father’s footsteps out of high school. After not playing much as a freshman, he hit the transfer portal and played for Louisville as mainly a special teams contributor in 2023. Now Washington reunites with former Georgia assistant Fran Brown up at Syracuse, where he was not listed among the top defensive backs ahead of the Orange’s Week 1 or Week 2 matchup.
Grade: C
Jump: Class of 2022 to 2021
Returns: A two-way player out of high school with great size long to his name, Allen jumped up a class and picked the in-state Badgers. As a freshman he played in all 12 games and made a handful of starts in leading the team in rushing at 1,268 yards, making him the first true freshman back to hit 1,000 yards in the storied UW history. Allen would average better than 1,000 yards in each of the next two seasons, marking a top 10 total in school history, before the New York Jets took him in the fourth round of the NFL Draft.
Grade: A+
Jump: Class of 2022 to 2021
Returns: Another big body at the running back spot coming out of high school, few blinked when Megwa jumped up one grade from a physical standpoint. He picked Washington and redshirted in 2021 before transferring to Oklahoma, where he suffered a major injury. Last season Megwa finally made his Sooner debut and got a carry against TCU late in the season. He opened the current campaign buried on OU’s depth chart due to a deep running back room.
Grade: C
Jump: Class of 2021 to 2020
Returns: A coach’s kid who became a national recruit early in his prep career, Grimes was a two-way star who projected as a big cornerback at the next level. Despite his move to the 2020 class and the pandemic, he made four starts as a freshman at North Carolina and appeared in every game, even registering an interception and a sack in the process. Grimes would start 24 games over the next two seasons and registered 16 pass breakups in that span. Texas A&M earned his commitment out of the transfer portal ahead of the 2023 season, but an injury led to a year on the sidelines. Now he is at UNLV as a senior starter.
Grade: B+
Jump: Class of 2021 to 2020
Returns: A long and lean edge rusher from the Miami area, Harris was ultra productive in high school and became a national recruit early on. Miami would get him committed before SEC programs began to push. Texas A&M won out and he would play in four games over his first two years in College Station, totaling three tackles. Harris was then medically retired at A&M before being announced as a 2023 signee at Louisiana-Monroe despite not playing on record thereafter.
Grade: C
Jump: Class of 2021 to 2020
Returns: A big, speedy wide receiver out of the state of Virginia, Johnson was a coveted recruit who wound up at Auburn just before the start of the 2020 season. He would redshirt as a freshman after appearing in just one game before cracking the two-deep in 2021, 2022 and 2023, totaling 14 catches for 199 yards and one touchdown as a Tiger. Johnson then hit the transfer portal and made his Bowling Green debut as a starter over the weekend, hauling in three passes for 33 yards in a blowout win.
Grade: B –
Jump: Class of 2016 to 2015
Returns: A top 10 back despite making the jump up one year after a storied career at Miami (Fla.) Booker T. Washington, Walton stayed home with the Miami Hurricanes and racked up more than 1,000 all-purpose yards as a freshman. He was All-ACC as a sophomore with more than 1,000 rushing yards and 15 offensive touchdowns to his name and averaged more than 100 yards per game as a junior before a season-ending injury. Walton would declare for the draft the following offseason before becoming a fourth-round pick of the Cincinnati Bengals.
Grade: A
