Sophomore Spotlight: Scouting top 2027 receivers
It’s never too early to begin looking at the next stars of college football, so welcome to the Sophomore Spotlight. Each week Rivals national data analyst Austin Cochran will highlight a number of prospects from each position who made our initial 2027 Rivals250.
We continue this week looking at receivers.
SOPHOMORE SPOTLIGHT: Scouting top 2027 quarterbacks | Running backs
Player comp: Brandon Aiyuk
Feaster plays on an absolutely loaded DeSoto team with tons of FBS talent up and down the roster, but even as a sophomore, Feaster still stands out.
The five-star prospect has a great release off the line to immediately create separation against man coverage. He has good speed and is a vertical threat. He has elite body control and a really good catch radius to make difficult catches look easy. Feaster is an all-around great receiver who is still getting better.
The crown jewel, so to speak, of the 2027 class, Feaster has offers from pretty much every Power Four program in the country. He has already visited Oklahoma and Texas this season and has visits set up with Texas A&M and Nebraska.
Player comp: Zay Flowers
The son of former NFL running back Julius Jones Sr., Jones is one of the most technically sound receivers in this class. He runs great routes and is a really savvy player who does a great job filling the holes against zone coverage. He sinks his hips and explodes out of his breaks on routes to create lots of separation.
Jones has elite speed and is a dangerous deep threat. He has really solid hands and a good catch radius for his size. He does a good job making contested catches. And to really put the cherry on top, he’s a great blocker.
Jones has the ability and the potential to be an elite slot receiver at the next level. He has a total of 15 offers so far, but if he keeps putting up the numbers he has, he’ll start to get a lot more attention.
Player comp: Stefon Diggs
McAfee likes to go by “Scrap,” which fittingly describes his playing style. The four-star prospect has great acceleration and burst; he explodes off the line of scrimmage. He has great footwork and runs excellent routes, shooting out of his breaks to create separation. McAfee has elite body control and bounce to be able to go up and contort his body to make a lot of tough catches. He’s not afraid of contact and does a good job making contested catches as well as getting his face on someone to make a block.
McAfee has been busy this season. He has 12 total offers and has visited Penn State, Ohio State, Virginia and Clemson.
Player comp: Michael Pittman
Warren has the one thing you can’t teach, and that’s size. At 6-foot-4, 210 pounds with crazy long arms, the four-star is an absolute red-zone nightmare for opposing defenses. He’s got solid long distance speed because he has extremely long strides and covers a lot of ground with each step. He’s got strong hands and a good catch radius to reel in everything in his vicinity.
Warren has been extremely productive so far this season and teams are taking notice. He has offers from Alabama, Georgia and Michigan, among others. He visited Utah last weekend to watch the Utes take on TCU. Prospects with his size and speed aren’t easy to find. He will definitely be a name to keep an eye on going forward.
Player comp: Jaylen Waddle
Yancey is a very strong runner who breaks a lot of tackles, and he has some wiggle to him to make guys miss. He gets lots of touches off screens and quick hit plays because he is a big-play threat anytime he has the ball in his hands. The four-star prospect has good hands and runs good routes. As he continues to develop and get stronger, he will only get more dangerous after the catch.
Yancey transferred to Duncanville pretty late in the calendar, but even with limited practice time with his team, he has been a key, impact player for them. Yancey has 30 total offers with his most recent one coming from Michigan. I expect the interest will only grow as Yancey continues to perform at such a high level on an elite team such as Duncanville.
