Top 50 of 2026: Who's Next on Offense?

In December, we released our first-ever <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2025/12/top-50-of-2025/">Top 50 of 2025</a>, honoring the 50 players who told the story of the 2025 season. It's never too early to get a start on the 2026 season, and here, I'm going to attempt to predict which players will make their mark in 2026. After the year, I'll revisit this to see what I got right and where I went wrong.   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Predicting the Top 50 of 2026</h2>   We had 18 underclassmen on the list this season, who we'll list as we go position by position to predict this year's players. We'll list a few players at every position who could be next up.   <h3 class="wp-block-heading">Quarterback</h3>   Underclassmen on 2025 List: [player_tooltip player_id='1328747' first='Lex' last='Sevilla'] (Middle Creek), [player_tooltip player_id='1321007' first='Jamouri' last='Nichols'] (West Charlotte), [player_tooltip player_id='1048930' first='Brody' last='Lowe'] (Grimsley), [player_tooltip player_id='1687459' first='Reginald' last='Gray'] (Northside-Jacksonville), [player_tooltip player_id='254550' first='Ethan' last='Royal'] (Hough)   Sevilla and Gray had breakout years for non-traditional powers, while Royal and Nichols battled for the top quarterback spot in the 2027 rankings, and Lowe showed (as a freshman) that Grimsley's dynasty probably isn't over.   Best Bet To Join in 2025: [player_tooltip player_id='1678610' first='Rashad' last='Lynch'] | Lincolnton   Lynch just missed this year, after throwing for almost 2,700 yards and running for another 1,100 last season, and he'll be in position to make another run at the list this year. He's not the biggest guy, but he's extremely athletic, with a strong arm and the opportunity to put up big numbers in meaningful, late-season games.   Up Next: [player_tooltip player_id='1625015' first='Christian' last='Ormandy'] of Garner has steadily improved, culminating in a big junior season as the Trojans made a 7A run. In a <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2026/01/3-storylines-to-watch-in-2026/">weird and wide-open quarterback class</a>, Ormandy has the chance to separate himself.   Others Considered: [player_tooltip player_id='1607782' first='Aury' last='Greenfield'] (Jay M. Robinson), [player_tooltip player_id='1854319' first='Zak' last='Ishman'] (Northeastern), [player_tooltip player_id='485965' first='Bryson' last='Gray'] (Millbrook)   <h3 class="wp-block-heading">Running Back</h3>   Underclassmen on 2025 List: [player_tooltip player_id='1616114' first='John' last='Evans Jr.'] (Reagan), [player_tooltip player_id='378921' first='Christian' last='Freeman'] (Southeast Raleigh), [player_tooltip player_id='1616304' first='Teo' last='McPhatter'] (Princeton)   Evans was a true workhorse for a team that grinded out games against top competition. Freeman was instrumental in two 7A class-defining upsets, and McPhatter put up ridiculous numbers as a running back, return man, and Wildcat quarterback.   Best Bet To Join in 2025: [player_tooltip player_id='378957' first='Amir' last='Brown'] | Rolesville   The Rolesville offense struggled some in 2025, but Brown still managed nearly 1,500 yards of total offense, including nearly 79% of the Rams' rushing yardage. He's a Power Four back with breakaway ability, and assuming Rolesville rights the ship, he'll be on plenty of postseason awards lists.   Up Next: To make the Top 50 list, players need to not only play well, but also play meaningful, season-defining games. Murphy's [player_tooltip player_id='1290996' first='Cameron' last='Clem'] and his team fell short in the 2A State Championship to an elite Tarboro team, but the door is open for a title run next season. Clem is our top-ranked offensive player in 2A, making him an ideal Top 50 candidate   Others Considered: [player_tooltip player_id='653512' first='Shon' last='Pone Jr']. (Seventy-First), [player_tooltip player_id='950967' first='JaMarion' last='Morrison'] (Hough)   <h3 class="wp-block-heading">Wide Receiver</h3>   Underclassmen on 2025 List: [player_tooltip player_id='651159' first='Braylon' last='Clark'] (Charlotte Country Day), [player_tooltip player_id='1953538' first='Tristan' last='Thompson-Wynn'] (Brevard), [player_tooltip player_id='1421082' first='RJ' last='Lynch'] (Lincolnton)   Clark was the best receiver in a loaded NCISAA class, while Thompson-Wynn paced a wildly successful Brevard offense, and Lynch did it all offensively for Lincolnton.   Best Bet To Join in 2025: [player_tooltip player_id='1154024' first='Namajay' last='Thompson'] | Crest   No single player raised his stock more in the final month of the season than Thompson, whose route-running is catching up to his elite athleticism. We'll see how he does after losing a Power Four quarterback commit, but expect big things from the fast-rising 2027 receiver.   Up Next: [player_tooltip player_id='1607095' first='Randolph' last='Ross'] was unstoppable at times for South Garner before the injury bug hit the quarterback room and turned the Titans into a run-heavy unit. Assuming everyone stays healthy, he could be in for a massive senior year, considering he was on a 12-game pace of nearly 1,300 yards and 12 touchdowns for the half of the season the Titans were able to run their offense.   Others Considered: [player_tooltip player_id='483642' first='Immanuel' last='Collins'] (Shelby), Ethan Dempsey (Providence Day)   <h3 class="wp-block-heading">Tight End</h3>   Underclassmen on 2025 List: [player_tooltip player_id='1607779' first='Jaxon' last='Dollar'] (East Lincoln)   Dollar is the top overall player in our 2027 rankings, but he'll have to adjust to a new quarterback next season. Still, he was second in the class in receiving in 2025, with almost 1,200 yards, the best mark in the state among tight ends. It's almost impossible to imagine him taking a step back as a senior.   Best Bet To Join in 2025: [player_tooltip player_id='1607810' first='Qualteau' last='Hawkins'] | Stuart W. Cramer   The 2027 tight end class is loaded, and Hawkins is second in our positional rankings. He had quite the year as a receiver himself, averaging 23 yards a catch and scoring nine touchdowns. With a bit more volume, he's a good bet to make noise next season.   Up Next: A great place to look for potential sleepers is to find key contributors on young teams that may make a deeper run next season. Two-way player [player_tooltip player_id='668611' first='Drew' last='Easter'] had six touchdowns and six sacks for a Southeast Alamance team that went 8-4 in 2025 and returns the vast majority of its production.   Others Considered: [player_tooltip player_id='1665263' first='Braeden' last='Vetter'] (Williams)   <h3 class="wp-block-heading">Offensive Line</h3>   Underclassmen on 2025 List: None   We're not afraid to put offensive linemen in the Top 50 list, but we didn't have any underclassmen at the position on the 2025 list, putting two seniors on the list instead. I'd expect at least a couple on the 2026 list.   Best Bet To Join in 2025: [player_tooltip player_id='946623' first='Nori' last='White'] | Independence   White burst onto the scene as a freshman with impressive size and some early offers, but he's not the loudest guy, nor does he post much on social media. Instead, he lets his play do the talking. He has the combination of individual talent and potential team success needed to make the 2026 list.   Up Next: Similarly, Weddington's [player_tooltip player_id='415457' first='Bryce' last='Johnson'] is a potential national recruit who plays on a team that should make noise next year. We know the Warriors love to run the ball, and Johnson anchors that unit from his center position.   Others Considered: [player_tooltip player_id='1097828' first='Azhir' last='Waddell'] (Dudley), [player_tooltip player_id='548207' first='Grayson' last='Williams'] (Southeast Raleigh)   We'll look at the defensive prospects early next week and have plenty of coverage this offseason, including rankings updates, All-State teams, hyper-local deep dives, and more. Disagree with this assessment or think I missed a player? Let me know on Twitter/X (<a href="https://x.com/whelms21">@whelms21</a>)

In December, we released our first-ever Top 50 of 2025, honoring the 50 players who told the story of the 2025 season. It's never too early to get a start on the 2026 season, and here, I'm going to attempt to predict which players will make their mark in 2026. After the year, I'll revisit this to see what I got right and where I went wrong.