Spring Rankings Update: 2026 Athlete New Additions

We've reached the end of our 2026 rankings breakdowns. After 25 articles featuring over 200 players from the 2026 class, we're finishing with our final positional breakdown: evaluations on the five newly-ranked athletes. Earlier Friday I wrote about the <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2025/05/spring-stock-risers-2026-athlete-report/">athlete stock-risers</a>, guys who moved up in the rankings.   Here, I'm looking at the five athletes we added to the rankings. How'd they find their way on our list and what do we like about them?   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">2026 Athlete New Additions</h2>    Culbreth had over 850 total yards on offense and three takeaways on defense, a testament to his importance and versatility. He also impacted the game as a Wildcat quarterback, and Harnett Central did a great job of getting him the ball where he could make plays. As the season went on he became less of a runner and more of a receiver, but wherever he lines up, he has the quickness to make people miss.     Bonner was a guy who hit my radar during my deep dives series for Orange County. The question then was whether he'd make the list as a running back or receiver, because he does both well from a variety of alignments. He plays in a slotback role in the Wing T but has plenty of experience actually going out in pass patterns and making big plays. I like the ability to make people miss in the open field.     After dominating at South Wake in 2024, Pannell is transferring to Southern Durham. While I'm not sure where he'll play this season, he has the athleticism and size to impact the game in a variety of ways. He was a big-play defender with ball skills but also put up plenty of yards on offense as a rusher and receiver. I'm interested to see where he plays the most at a bigger school, but there's no reason to think he can't have success as a senior.     Harrell has moved all around the field as he's gotten older, starting with some Wildcat quarterback as a freshman to running back and receiver as a sophomore to his new role as a slot corner and safety as a junior. He has good athleticism which shows up best on the defensive side of the ball and has good instincts, despite being a relatively new full-time DB. We like the upside here and think he could have a great senior season.     Hailing from an underrecruited part of the state, Ellerbe is electric with the ball in his hands, making key impacts on special teams, offense, and defense. His highest upside is as a receiver and return specialist, as he just makes people miss in the open field. He can make people miss in a phone booth and needs very little space to make a big play, something he did frequently, even on screens and other short passes.

We've reached the end of our 2026 rankings breakdowns. After 25 articles featuring over 200 players from the 2026 class, we're finishing with our final positional breakdown: evaluations on the five newly-ranked athletes. Earlier Friday I wrote about the athlete stock-risers, guys who moved up in the rankings.