Grading the 2027 Offensive Position Groups

Happy Rankings Week, and welcome to my favorite article series of any rankings cycle. I don't do this often; the last time was <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2025/06/grading-the-2027-offensive-position-groups/">almost a year ago</a>. But it's time to take a step back and look at the class as a whole. It's helpful to look at the position groups for trends. Which are the strongest? Where are the deepest positions? Here, we're looking at the offensive position groups in the 2027 class, grading each one and providing some big-picture analysis.   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Grading the 2027 Offensive Position Groups</h2>   <h3 class="wp-block-heading">Quarterbacks: C+</h3>   The Numbers: 67 ranked QBs, three top 50, six top 100, 23 top 250   Highest Ranked: [player_tooltip player_id='254550' first='Ethan' last='Royal']<a href="https://prepredzone.com/player/jamouri-nichols/"></a> (No. 33 overall), Hough   Strongest Level: Division II   Let's be honest. The transfer portal has killed quarterback recruiting. FBS teams took an average of just under 0.5 high school quarterbacks per school. That's played a small role in how we project quarterbacks, though it hasn't really hurt or helped this particular group. It's not a deep FBS group, with only Royal, [player_tooltip player_id='915835' first='Jared' last='Street'] (Weddington), and [player_tooltip player_id='1321007' first='Jamouri' last='Nichols'] (West Charlotte) having clear FBS grades from us.   [player_tooltip player_id='1050807' first='Tyson' last='Broadway'] (Reidsville), [player_tooltip player_id='1328747' first='Lex' last='Sevilla'] (Middle Creek), and [player_tooltip player_id='1301805' first='Hudson' last='Irwin'] (Central Cabarrus) each have the upside to get there with a strong senior season.   The depth of this group lies in the 200-300 range, which in this particular class is the higher end of the Division II range. We have 12 quarterbacks ranked in the 200s, starting with newcomer [player_tooltip player_id='2142468' first='Sam' last='Finch'] and ending with Apex Friendship quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='1078753' first='Ethan' last='McGarrigan']. In this group, there are several athletic, productive players, including Seaforth's [player_tooltip player_id='2134913' first='Duncan' last='Parker'], Hunt's [player_tooltip player_id='1953755' first='Mez' last='Harris'], and Knightdale's [player_tooltip player_id='1954080' first='Jamel' last='Perry'].   I'll be interested to see how a few of these guys develop as pure passers, but the athleticism should translate, and local D-II schools should be all over this class.   <h3 class="wp-block-heading">Running Backs: B</h3>   The Numbers: 78 ranked RBs, three top 50, 10 top 100, 25 top 250   Highest Ranked: [player_tooltip player_id='378957' first='Amir' last='Brown']<a href="https://prepredzone.com/player/jamouri-nichols/"></a> (No. 28 overall), Rolesville   Strongest Level: High Division II-Low FCS   Like the quarterbacks, there aren't a ton of surefire FBS running back prospects. But there are still plenty of talented ball carriers who will play at the college level. Honestly, it's been difficult to separate some of the backs, and you'll notice "clusters" of 2-3 within a 10-slot range.   As of now, the deepest group is the FCS range. Because the position is one that is often recruited based on preference across the country, running back tends to be the position that goes underrecruited in our rankings. Basically, if we have an FCS grade on 10 guys, we only expect five or six to actually start college at that level.   We have seven running backs ranked between 51 and 100. Of those, we'd expect three or four to end up at the FCS or FBS level.   [player_tooltip player_id='1607799' first='Kamari' last='Holloway'] is a riser after we finally got confirmed speed numbers. The way he runs, his verified 4.48-second 40 is one of the last pieces of the puzzle, and we expect his recruitment to take off soon. Ashbrook's Savion Lindsey, new Wake Forest transfer [player_tooltip player_id='1634632' first='Jaden' last='Hartsfield'], and Burns' [player_tooltip player_id='1608319' first='Max' last='Davis'] all have great vision and contact balance, and it's a question only of the recruiting game, and not their talent, as to whether they'll play at the FCS level.   I'm intrigued by two guys just outside the top 100, in Garner's [player_tooltip player_id='1225217' first='Amir' last='Wallace'] and North Lincoln's Landon Agee, each of whom has a few offers and could blow up with a strong senior season.   <h3 class="wp-block-heading">Wide Receivers: A-</h3>   The Numbers: 94 ranked WRs, seven top 50, 13 top 100, 36 top 250   Highest Ranked: [player_tooltip player_id='1217496' first='Jonathan' last='Dillon'] (No. 9 overall), Southern Durham   Strongest Level: FBS   The wide receiver position, especially at the top, has gotten considerably better over the last year for the 2027 class.   When we <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2025/06/grading-the-2027-offensive-position-groups/">did this exercise last season</a>, Rolesville's [player_tooltip player_id='1222913' first='Anthony' last='Roberts'] was the top-ranked receiver, amongst a sea of defensive prospects. Roberts has actually dropped a bit in our rankings (WR4), due not to a change in how we view him, but the emergence of other top guys.   Southern Durham's [player_tooltip player_id='1217496' first='Jonathan' last='Dillon'] and Dudley's [player_tooltip player_id='1607877' first='Vermont' last='Carmack'] are top athletes who we now classify as receivers. Carmack was a tight end, but he's gotten faster, and we like him on the outside now. Dillon plays quarterback for Southern Durham, but he's been an explosive receiver in the past and that's his future full-time position.   Crest's [player_tooltip player_id='1154024' first='Namajay' last='Thompson'] has risen the old-fashioned way: he's the rare back-to-back-to-back stock-riser, the only one in the Power Four bucket of our rankings that I can remember in years. (Maybe Byrum Brown in 2022?). This time last year, we didn't even have Thompson ranked—he entered in August when he made his full-time varsity debut—and he's risen in three-straight updates, all the way to the top 10.   I used "FBS" as the top group here because there are a bunch of tweeners who are Group of Five bound, but could sneak up to the Power Four level.   South Garner's [player_tooltip player_id='1607095' first='Randolph' last='Ross'] is one such guy. We only got half a season of a true evaluation of Ross after the Titans had a brutal run of quarterback injuries last season. He's one of the best in the state with the ball in the air, with speed and route-running to boot. Add new Roberson receiver [player_tooltip player_id='1953538' first='Tristan' last='Thompson-Wynn'] and Providence wideout [player_tooltip player_id='1106577' first='Otavio' last='Oliveira'] to that list, too.   <h3 class="wp-block-heading">Tight End: C+</h3>   The Numbers: 15 ranked TEs, two top 50, six top 100, 11 top 250   Highest Ranked: [player_tooltip player_id='1607779' first='Jaxon' last='Dollar'] (No. 1 overall), East Lincoln   Strongest Level: High FCS-Group of Five   I'll be honest, I have no clue how to grade the thinnest and most top-heavy position in the state. We have just 15 ranked tight ends, five fewer than in the 2026 class. But for the second-straight season, we have a tight end atop the class, and a strong group of Division I guys at the position.   There's a huge gap after the top 10-11 and the rest of the group, and some of the guys at the top have some recruiting momentum. Williams' [player_tooltip player_id='1665263' first='Braeden' last='Vetter'] and Southeast Alamance's [player_tooltip player_id='668611' first='Drew' last='Easter'] are two of the top tight ends in the state and happen to play <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2026/03/deep-dive-top-10-tes-in-rdu/">right down the road from each other</a>.   They're not the only risers, as [player_tooltip player_id='1718784' first='Phoenix' last='Barnes'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1125763' first='Alex' last='Haywood'] each made sizeable jumps. Other guys like [player_tooltip player_id='718315' first='Hudson' last='Nolden'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1029787' first='Matthew' last='McCoy'] have some recruiting momentum with recent FCS offers.   If there's one sleeper who could make some noise this season, look out for versatile Wakefield athlete Greyson Clopton, who plays some quarterback, but could gain some traction as a tight end on the recruiting trail.   <h3 class="wp-block-heading">Offensive Line: B+</h3>   The Numbers: 77 ranked OL, three top 50, nine top 100, 32 top 250   Highest Ranked: [player_tooltip player_id='2204831' first='Gavin' last='Milton'] (No. 24 overall), Grimsley   Strongest Level: Division II-FCS   The offensive line group has some momentum right now, at every level. It's not the most top-heavy group, just six linemen in the top 75, but it's a fun, high-upside group. Just do some math and you'll see that we have 23 offensive linemen ranked between 100 and 250.   We've got some risers in this group, including Lake Norman's [player_tooltip player_id='2198505' first='Sammy' last='Wooten'] and Providence Day's [player_tooltip player_id='2056052' first='Cooper' last='Hodson'].   In my opinion, this is the position that will look better in six months. You've got guys like Charlies Stauffer (Country Day), [player_tooltip player_id='1607759' first='Malek' last='Griffin'] (Cardinal Gibbons), [player_tooltip player_id='1607907' first='Nick' last='Albright'] (Crest), and [player_tooltip player_id='1607754' first='Ian' last='Powell'] (Jordan), among others, with plenty of talent, but few offers. A couple of those guys are building momentum on the trail. That being said, FCS and Division II schools are a bit behind recruiting a huge group of linemen. Six months from now, we could see a bunch of guys with offers who haven't yet been fully evaluated by colleges.   Expect the offensive line group in North Carolina to build some momentum. Like the position itself, this group lacks some star-power, but does a lot of the heavy lifting in the rankings.   Disagree with my grades? Let me know your thoughts on Twitter/X (<a href="https://x.com/whelms21">@whelms21</a>).

Happy Rankings Week, and welcome to my favorite article series of any rankings cycle. I don't do this often; the last time was almost a year ago. But it's time to take a step back and look at the class as a whole. It's helpful to look at the position groups for trends. Which are the strongest? Where are the deepest positions? Here, we're looking at the offensive position groups in the 2027 class, grading each one and providing some big-picture analysis.