The new 2027 rankings were released Monday and there were a lot of changes after all the big summer events. Here’s the latest intel and some thoughts on the top players in California heading through July:
When Wright was committed to Georgia, a lot of the talk around him was that he was going to end up flipping but that Oregon was the biggest threat.
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But there were people who kept saying Miami was the team to beat – although they were in the minority – and the Ducks seemed confident that they’d end up landing him in the end.
The new No. 1 cornerback in the Rivals rankings, the Long Beach Poly standout said he loved everything about Miami, how it got to the national championship last season, how coach Will Harris and Terry Jefferson interacted with him and a promise from coach Mario Cristobal that he’d have a big opportunity to start from Day 1.
From the early stages of his recruitment, USC was going to be tough to beat for the San Diego Cathedral Catholic two-way standout who idolized Reggie Bush and others from his hometown growing up.
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Oregon tried hard. Texas is still trying. All the top dogs came after Fa’alave-Johnson but USC not only recruited him really well but constantly had him up to campus and made him feel welcomed.
Fa’alave-Johnson committed in March and while the Longhorns are still coming after him, it would be a stunner if he flipped. Coach Lincoln Riley has sat down with him to discuss how he’d be used on defense, some offensive packages and the two have gotten close.
Malik James, the founder of James Sports Group and Smith’s former coach at Inglewood, would tell anyone who would listen for more than a year that Smith was an elite talent.
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He has the size, power, athleticism and everything else needed by a defensive tackle to be special. Texas A&M not only fully believed in Smith but he loves that the Aggies have multiple defensive line coaches – he’s biggest on development – and that the whole coaching staff showed him love.
Washington, Nebraska, Cal, USC and others were all involved but Smith felt the most love from Texas A&M and he’s given no indication of looking anywhere else.
I’ll never forget the day of the Sierra Canyon showcase when Fakatou sat on a bench on the sideline and talked about his favorites at the time – Ohio State, Notre Dame, Oregon, Texas and Georgia.
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Ohio State position coach Larry Johnson was there that day along with an army from Texas and other coaches but Fakatou just seemed to like up when he talked about the Buckeyes.
I asked him where his heart was and he said he felt it was with Ohio State. After his official visit – where coach Ryan Day made his parents tear up in a good way when he described how they’d take care of their son – it was going to be nearly impossible to beat the Buckeyes.
After his USC de-commitment, it looked like a quick flip to Miami could happen but that ended up not being the case.
Cal became a real and serious contender for the Temecula Chaparral standout whose quarterback, Dane Weber, was already committed to the Golden Bears and was actively recruiting Woodard without being overbearing. Many talks between the two were had.
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UCLA jumped in the picture and even got an official from Woodard but this felt like a two-horse race down the stretch.
There were some rumors that the ‘tell’ in his recruitment was that if he were picking Cal, he would have committed at The Opening on Nike’s headquarters. One source said that was “bull***” but in the end the Hurricanes – an adidas-sponsored school – won out.
Davis was essentially locked and loaded for UCLA. The versatile pass catcher from Westlake Village Westlake had whispered to people during a visit to Westwood that he was going there, commitment stories were being paired, graphics were coming together.
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Then all of a sudden, Davis got on the phone with Cal coach Tosh Lupoi and that made all the difference as days later, the four-star pledged to the Golden Bears, where his brother, Niles, also plays.
“That Tosh Lupoi effect,” Davis would say later.
Oregon was clearly the frontrunner for Lang but then USC would not stop. Would not stop inviting him up to campus for spring practice – he made at least four trips – and would not stop pursuing him until he gave the Trojans a commitment.
The deciding factor was when the USC coaching and recruiting staff took Lang and his family to The Coliseum and on the big screen had a bunch of former Mater Dei teammates who now play for the Trojans talk about why Lang should join them.
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Tears followed. So did a commitment.
USC was always the frontrunner in Hale’s recruitment when he played down the road at Los Angeles Cathedral – a gorgeous view of the LA skyline could be seen from its football field – or when he transferred to Corona Centennial for his senior season.
His relationship with Dennis Simmons has always been a key in his recruitment and while he considered powerhouses across the country, the Trojans have always had an edge.
Over the summer, Miami seemed to be making things interesting again but Hale shut things down and reinforced his pledge to the Trojans. It would be a stunner if he looks around any longer.
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In December, Johnson was heavily leaning toward making a commitment to Oklahoma and it looked like that decision was pretty much done.
But after missing his junior season with a knee injury, Johnson wanted to slow things down and see how else his recruitment changed once he was on the field. A source said the Sooners were fine with waiting and still felt through the early offseason that they were the leader.
But then UCLA jumped in with everything it had. And Johnson kept returning to Westwood, getting more comfortable and finally feeling like it was the place for him. He committed in early May.
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Kasi Currie – Texas commit
Multiple sources said that Ohio State was the frontrunner for a long time and even Currie made it seem like the Buckeyes were way ahead of others.
Georgia and Oregon were on the periphery of his recruitment and Texas surged right to the top after he took his official visit there, spent the entire weekend with former teammate and close friend Richard Wesley and saw the vision for how he’d be used in the Longhorns’ defense.
