Putting A Bow on the 2026 Class

We dropped our <a href="https://prepredzone.com/north-carolina/rankings/2026-rankings/">final 2026 rankings update</a> on Monday, and we're wrapping up coverage of the senior class. I want to end well, and treat this class—one of the favorites that I've ever covered—with the respect it deserves. This is my attempt to honor this class, looking at some big-picture trends, superlatives, and bold predictions for the 2026 class.   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Wrapping Up the 2026 Class</h2>   Every class develops big picture themes. There's only so much individual players can do to alter those, but on the whole, there are things classes become known for. Here are a few positional trends and big-picture thoughts about the 2026 class.   <h3 class="wp-block-heading">A Fun Defensive Line Class</h3>   Take a quick look at our class rankings, and you'll quickly see more than a handful of defensive linemen at the top of the rankings.   In total, 15 of the top 50 players in this class are primarily edge rushers or interior defensive linemen. It's a mixture of high-floor and high-ceiling players, some guys who developed through high school and some guys who could take a jump once on a college campus.   [player_tooltip player_id='1156972' first='Ebenezer' last='Ewetade'] finished as the top edge guy after years of impressive development. When we first ranked him, in 2022 or 2023, I think his weight was in the 170s. Year after year, he added muscle in the offseason which led to consistency. Some of the flashes from his sophomore year became his every down level of play by his senior year. Southeast Raleigh's [player_tooltip player_id='648670' first='Keysaun' last='Eleazer'] followed a similar path, even if his senior year wasn't quite to the level of his breakout junior season.   The interior guys are an interesting mix of profiles, as well. [player_tooltip player_id='823700' first='Aiden' last='Harris'] was always a top recruit, but he showed steady improvement over the final two years. [player_tghjjj/ooltip player_id='1165755' first='Keshawn' last='Stancil'] ended up as DL2 in the class after a strong senior season. DL3, [player_tooltip player_id='953021' first='PJ' last='Dean'], was a guy we were far lower on than most other recruiting sites, suggesting that his athleticism might be best served on the defensive side of the ball. When it came out that several of the schools in his final group wanted him as an interior defender, he immediately shot up the rankings and finished 14th overall in the class.   We have seven total Group of Five commits in the top 50, with three of those ([player_tooltip player_id='1600434' first='Terande' last='Spencer'], [player_tooltip player_id='1165700' first='Manny' last='Lewis'], and [player_tooltip player_id='612252' first='Christopher' last='Bispham']) being defensive linemen.   <h3 class="wp-block-heading">A Weird Quarterback Class</h3>   To be completely transparent, this is not one of the best top-to-bottom quarterback classes of the past decade, but it is probably the most underrated. Everyone knows QB1 [player_tooltip player_id='284090' first='Faizon' last='Brandon'] as a national recruit, but beyond that, a strong crop of passers went under the radar.   Just look at our quarterback rankings and where those players are going to college. Only five of our top 10 are committed to Power Four schools. But digging deeper, it gets weird. We have six quarterbacks ranked in the top 55, which should be Power Four range. But outside of Brandon, the other five had a combined six Power Four offers, some of them ultimately not committable.   Even [player_tooltip player_id='896157' first='Zaid' last='Lott'], our second-ranked quarterback and 29th-overall prospect, flipped from North Carolina to Syracuse largely because Bill Belichick didn't prioritize him like Mack Brown and, ultimately, the Orange did. Other players ranked in his range have dozens of Power Four offers, Lott had a handful. The same could be said for No. 3 [player_tooltip player_id='1144640' first='Ely' last='Hamrick'], who chose Virginia over several smaller schools.   [player_tooltip player_id='612118' first='Brody' last='Norman'] (No. 46 overall) wowed some of the national scouts at the Shrine Bowl, and yet not only did he pick Temple over a handful of FBS and FCS offers, but only three local schools at any level offered the Mooresville star.   Both [player_tooltip player_id='690769' first='Gannon' last='Jones'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1671861' first='Grant' last='Lawless'] picked Wake Forest over several smaller schools, and [player_tooltip player_id='1099168' first='Lan' last='Farmer'] has a clear FBS grade from us, but hasn't even gotten much FCS interest.   The quarterback class as a whole is critically underrecruited. While it's unlikely all of them find huge success at the college level, it is likely that one or two outplay their recruiting ranking, perhaps transferring up in the seasons to come.   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Class Superlatives</h2>   Here, I'm going to rapid-fire a few random class superlatives, both individual and corporate. Feel free to tell me I'm wrong (<a href="https://x.com/whelms21">@whelms21</a> on X/Twitter), or give me your thoughts.   <h3 class="wp-block-heading">Most Talented Team (2026 Class Only): Grimsley Whirlies</h3>   While Hough had more seniors in the rankings (12 to 9) I gave Grimsley the nod here. The Whirlies outnumbered the Huskies in the top 100, six to five. Hough has a few more big-school commits, but we have some Grimsley players ranked ahead of their recruiting level. [player_tooltip player_id='909357' first='Kaden' last='Catoe'] is a Charlotte commit ranked closer to the Power Four range, while offensive linemen [player_tooltip player_id='903425' first='Jackson' last='Sammons'] (uncommitted) and [player_tooltip player_id='850278' first='Nick' last='Kashubara'] have huge upside.   Defensive back [player_tooltip player_id='1661003' first='Kosci' last='Barnes'] was a big riser for us late in the process, and linebackers [player_tooltip player_id='402293' first='Kyrie' last='Millner'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1751605' first='Drew' last='Searls'] should be excellent late pickups.   Honorable Mention: Hough Huskies   <h3 class="wp-block-heading">Most Underrated Player, Power Four Bound: [player_tooltip player_id='1157260' first='KD' last='Cotton'], Weddington</h3>   Cotton was a late-riser for us, a guy who can play safety, corner, running back, and receiver, and who was Weddington's best player late in the playoffs. He's going to Duke, but he's getting very little press. He finished 23rd in the state for us, while several other recruiting services, including Rivals, 247, and ESPN all have him outside of the top 60 in the state.   Honorable Mention: [player_tooltip player_id='771231' first='Dallas' last='Brannon'], Independence   <h3 class="wp-block-heading">Most Underrated Player, Group of Five Bound: [player_tooltip player_id='1600434' first='Terande' last='Spencer'], Richmond</h3>   Spencer broke out early in his junior year, and when I talked to coaches around the state who had either played Richmond Senior or had the Spiders on the future schedule, he'd frequently come up unprompted. Coaches were terrified of the imposing edge rusher, but he never really caught on at the Power Four recruiting level. East Carolina has a fantastic recruiting class, and Spencer looks like another smart add.   Honorable Mention: [player_tooltip player_id='974827' first='LJ' last='Porter'], Hough (Also an East Carolina commit)   <h3 class="wp-block-heading">Most Underrated Player, FCS Bound: [player_tooltip player_id='870217' first='Tanner' last='Payne'], West Carteret</h3>   A running theme here at Prep Redzone North Carolina is that we believe the coastal area of the state is critically underrecruited. Payne put in the work on the camp/recruiting trail, falling in love with Elon along the way. The Phoenix nailed a few evaluations in this class, walking away with Payne as the jewel of the class, a movile pocket passer with Group of Five upside.   Honorable Mention: [player_tooltip player_id='775970' first='Braylon' last='Peebles'], Cardinal Gibbons; [player_tooltip player_id='1130290' first='Rob' last='Lange'], Northwest Guilford (Both Furman signees); [player_tooltip player_id='473951' first='Sam' last='Johnson'], West Charlotte   <h3 class="wp-block-heading">Most Underrated Player, Division II/III: [player_tooltip player_id='1076281' first='Cameron' last='Melvin'], Cleveland</h3>   In terms of pure production against high-level competition, Melvin is a fantastic prospect. Ultimately, one of his strengths may have become a weakness on the recruiting trail, as the lack of one primary position and elite size may have hurt him. He recently committed to D-II Anderson, and we think he could dominate early, especially if he gets into that weight room and either puts on weight to be a true interior lineman, or slims down and moves off the ball.   Honorable Mention: [player_tooltip player_id='1194747' first='Brandon' last='Bevilacqua'], Mount Pleasant (Catawba)   <h3 class="wp-block-heading">Most Underrated Player, Uncommitted: [player_tooltip player_id='1124842' first='Jayden' last='Jones'], Independence</h3>   It may be Jones' lack of elite size that has scared some schools away (or that many schools would rather wait and see in the transfer portal instead of offering a high school player they like a lot, but isn't necessarily the No. 1 player on their board) but teams at the FCS and even FBS levels should be running to sign Jones, who put up nearly 1,500 yards from scrimmage at the 7A level. We could see him thriving early after a late college offer, proving that he should have had more recruiting interest.   Honorable Mention: [player_tooltip player_id='1099168' first='Lan' last='Farmer'], Shelby   There's plenty to come as we put a bow on the 2026 class. Want to share Prep Redzone with a friend? 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We dropped our final 2026 rankings update on Monday, and we're wrapping up coverage of the senior class. I want to end well, and treat this class—one of the favorites that I've ever covered—with the respect it deserves. This is my attempt to honor this class, looking at some big-picture trends, superlatives, and bold predictions for the 2026 class.