2026 Rankings Watch List: Bay Area Newcomers

Elliott is one of the top players at his position across the Bay Area heading into the fall and has been flying under the radar up to this point in his recruiting. He has excellent hips, natural ball skills and can provide run support on the perimeter while having the ideal length and frame that offers some upside as he moves through his college career. He is a very twitchy athlete with closing speed and recovery length while showing he excels both in man coverage and is a high IQ player in zone, baiting quarterbacks into poor throws and staying patient with his eyes. The Rodriguez product is currently awaiting his first offer and remains one of the very best available across the region.     Lopez is one of the top two-way playmakers in the North Bay heading into 2025, and is poised for a huge Senior season for Windsor. Defensively, he is a very instinctual player that breaks quickly to ball carriers with a quick trigger and is not afraid to come up and bang in the box/take down bigger ball carriers. He is an excellent open field tackler with fluid hips in transition, takes the proper angles when closing and has natural ball skills when making a play on the ball. Offensively, he is a twitchy route runner with strong hands and tracking abilities over the top while able to settle against zone coverage and quickly knife up-field. Overall, a very tough and physical player especially for his size and is a no-brainer college caliber kid on either side of the ball.     Spessard is coming off a very nice Junior season for Windsor and is one of the top linebackers returning across the redwood empire. He is a true plug in the middle of the defense and is a throwback player that projects as a true mike in college that bangs in the box, shows he can quickly get off blocks and is violent at the point of attack when coming downhill. He has a nose for the ball and shows he can navigate downhill quickly, is very smart pre-snap when sniffing out plays and is a high-motor kid that plays with good toughness and physicality. Spessard flashes the ability to apply pressure up the middle or off the edge with well timed pressures and wins with violent hands and power at the POA and is another no-brainer college caliber kid.     Purcell is one of the top linebackers across the Bay Area heading into the Fall and should continue to draw college interest and potential offers through his senior season. He's very athletic for the position and can make plays both inside and outside the tackles while flashing closing speed and excellent tackling abilities in the open field. He is a balanced prospect against the run and the pass and shows pass rush abilities with active hands and natural bend off the edge while quickly able to redirect and collapse the pocket. Overall, he can bring a lot to the table at the next level and offers position versatility at either backer spot.     Mackechnie checks into our WL rankings after having a strong Junior season for Clayton Valley and is a true road grader that plays with a heavy punch, strong base through out his blocks and should kick inside in college even though he does have good length. He shows he can create immediate vertical push up front, has a consistent inside strike and shows quick enough footwork to work in open space/pull when needed and kick out or get to the second level. He should draw plenty of D3+ interest/offers as he moves through his final season and will be one of the best at his position across the Bay.