'27 Prospects I Have Higher Than the Industry, Part I

A year ago, I highlighted 10 prospects, mostly in the 2025 class, that I had higher than the rest of the industry. Each of those 2025 prospects went on to play college ball. I wanted to use the same concept to highlight some of my favorite prospects in the 2027 class, starting with these 13. This is part 1.    Impressive ATH profile. 11.04 100M, 7.36 60M. Sticks out physically on tape. Impressive frame. Rallies hard to the football. Has plenty of range. Can come down and play in the box. Strong enough to lift ball carriers off the turf when he attacks the trunk. Best right now as a run and chase defender, but has the size and speed to cover ground in coverage. Fast, big, and physical. His blend of traits and energy sticks out the most to me and is the reason I am buying stock in him.     5'11 155. Plays bigger. Excellent bounce, consistently rises up and wins over top. Plucks ball away from body. Impressive initial quickness off the line to find top speed. Really loose in his routes, unpredictable. Impressive burst in open field. Finds creative stop/start, and hurdle ways to evade tacklers. Plenty of room to grow. Real underrated. Holds FBS offers. Every FBS personnel member I've talked to has been extremely impressed.     10.94 100M (2024). Elite athletic traits. Breakaway long speed. Sudden accel to top gear. Able to dance and create his own yards without sacrificing speed. His size might be what is preventing the big boys from getting involved here, but he has time to fill out. At the worst, he is a gadgety playmaker out of the backfield who will play at the D1 level, and likely FBS.     Stout, strong frame. UV 20+ MPH GPS speed. Excellent explosiveness/speed profile given size. Leverages that with play strength to buckle blockers and manhandle ball carriers. Has the mass to plug gaps and the speed to roam larger areas of the field. His reclass from the 2026 class to the 2027 class gives him more time to develop and generate some recruiting attention. Holds over a dozen offers, but we were on him well before the crowd here at Prep Redzone.     [player_tooltip player_id='1660212' first='Trace' last='Washington'] is a speedy second-level defender who has turned some heads this fall. He impressed me first on the T/F scene, running an 11.2 in the 100M. Then, he ran under 11.00, which got P4 schools interested. The major question surrounding Washington is his size. Regardless, he is a pure run-and-chase defender with plenty of range and the speed to hawk the ball down across the field. As a sophomore, he created chaos when the ball came his way. I was on him really early. If he doesn't go P4 out of HS, he will likely get a crack at the FBS level. He is simply just too dynamic of a size/speed prospect. He still has time to pack on weight.     '24 All-State. Baseball athlete. Good foot speed. Fires out of stance and maintains speed to get DBs vertical. Decels well at TOR. Tracks ball brilliantly over shoulder. Times jumps well. Decent short-area quickness. Real underrated player. Cable was playing baseball when I went to check out North Hall this spring. I am excited to learn more about him and will continue to check in on him this fall.     Impressive frame. Versatile. Shows flashes of impressive bend coming off edge. Real impressive speed given his size. Tackles with good pad-level. Manhandles ball carriers. Real intriguing size/speed prospect with versatility and early HS production. He has started to emerge and holds P4 offers as a result. He has solidified himself as a premier LB prospects in Georgia, but I was on him early and continue to be impressed with him.     Impressive length relative to height. Ample room for growth in lower body. Gets good depth on pass set, anchors well at bottom of set. Good pad-level. Clicks from one defender to another efficiently. Play strength developing, but works feet through whistle. Good fundamentals and upside.   I was on Agbanoma months before his first offer. Now, he has emerged as one of the premier 2027 OL prospects in the state.     Stout, aggressive, mean-mannered IOL projection. Impressive short area quickness. Can break the game. Explodes through contact and works through whistle. Stands straight up and waddles in space as a mover. Would benefit camping so coaches could get a better feel for his size and length.   This guy is mean. I would be really intrigued at a P4 school and have him marked as a guy who could earn an offer.     Good frame. Skinny ankles. Has room to get bigger. Impressivee athlete, has some bounce in his pass set. Looks to have desired length to stick at tackle. Balance is wacky, he is pretty raw. Still, impressive blend of raw athleticism, length, and play strength. Holds FBS offers.   I would offer this kid at a P4, and I think that's coming soon.     Undersized for a pass rusher, might end up sliding back. Arms look long for HT. Speed rusher off the edge. Overwhelming speed paired with his bend helps him win often. His motor is electric, consistently chasing the ball across the field. Will need to bulk up to better absorb contact. Can compensate for HT with speed. Holds FBS offers.     Short, stout prospect. Not much juice as a runner, but pinballs off tackles and tough to bring down. Compact lefty release. Operates well off-platform and on the run. Hits receivers in stride, good ball placement. Does a great job mixing up trajectories. Not super traitsy, but surgical. Holds Miami OH offer.   I've seen him work in person several times now. I have been impressed with his touch, timing, ball placement, and his operational skills. He strikes me as a guy who will end up balling at an FCS level for a few years.     Craig was on this list last year, and he makes it again. This time, he has finally gotten some of the recruiting buzz he deserves. Here is an excerpt from what I said on him in this same write-up a year ago.   "Craig is a smooth, quick lateral mover, which allows him to shuffle in front of defenders and handle secondary rush moves. He gets into his pass set quickly and plays with a good base. At times, he can get out in front of his toes upon contact. However, he shows impressive bend in his knees and ankles, allowing him to recover and anchor down against pass rushers. Craig is fundamentally sound and has the athletic profile to shield off the edge. He should generate some P4 buzz over the next few years."

A year ago, I highlighted 10 prospects, mostly in the 2025 class, that I had higher than the rest of the industry. Each of those 2025 prospects went on to play college ball. I wanted to use the same concept to highlight some of my favorite prospects in the 2027 class, starting with these 13. This is part 1.