Ultimate 300: Battles and debates

— --

Producing the Ultimate ESPN 300 was a challenging, yet very intriguing process. Recruiting, and the evaluation of 18-year-old high school prospects in general, is not an exact science by any means. By going back and recreating an ultimate ESPN 300 list in retrospect, we relived just how those unknown variables, and circumstances in general, can certainly affect a player's college production and success rate.

Some of the decisions on where to rank certain players were quite easy and made sense to all involved. Others sparked intense debate and discussion. Here is a look at some of the biggest battles for position among the Ultimate 300. 

Jadeveon Clowney the best of the best

This process sparked multiple debates on where to rank prospects and who should be in or left out of this Ultimate 300, but when it came to the top spot there was actually little discussion. Clowney was undoubtedly the top prospect in the 2011 class, and we felt even at the time that he was the best high school prospect we had seen since 2007, when ESPN started ranking recruits. Three seasons later, the outstanding South Carolina defender has lived up to expectations. With a rare blend of size, athleticism and speed, Clowney can be a dominant presence on the field. As a junior, he may not have lived up to the lofty expectations many placed upon him, but he still was an impactful presence and was unquestionably one of the premier players in college football during his career. A potential No. 1 overall pick in this spring's NFL draft, Clowney was SEC Freshman of the Year, a two-time All-American selection, the Hendricks Award winner as a sophomore and finished his career in Columbia, S.C., with 24 career sacks. Clowney was as highly touted a prospect coming out of high school as there has been in recent years, and that initial buzz combined with his ESPN 300 ranking and college performance landed him, deservedly, at the top of ESPN's rankings again.

Where to put Johnny Manziel

Adding Manziel at No. 22 in the Ultimate 300 was an easier decision for some on our staff than it was for others. Coming out of the 2011 class, Manziel was a lightly recruited, 6-foot-1, dual-threat prospect to whom we assigned a grade of 78, and we feel as comfortable and confident with his evaluation now as we did back then. If you read our grading scale and the description of what a three-star prospect means to us (especially on the higher end of the scale, where Manziel was), our grade was more than fair and adequate based on the information we had. We stand by it. In fact, if you have not read his full report from 2011, you should; it might surprise you. Given the limited offers, below-average measurables and lack of recruiting foot traffic in his area, it would have been way outside of a realistic scope to project him any higher than we did. Heck, Texas A&M came in on him so late that it too almost missed on him. More than 100 FBS schools didn't even bother.

Flash forward to 2014 and we have a much different Manziel. Love him or hate him, he's been the most dynamic and difficult-to-defend college football player in the past five years, if not longer. The two-time All-American and first redshirt freshman Heisman Trophy winner ever had the credentials for us to place him in the top 25 of the Ultimate 300. Some even lobbied for a top 10 entry. But the problem is that many of the questions about him coming out of high school still apply as Manziel ventures into the NFL. Manziel hit the right-place, right-time jackpot, and he took full advantage.

Manti Te'o in the top 10

When the initial Ultimate 300 list was compiled, Te'o landed squarely in the top 10, and that sparked a discussion on whether the former Notre Dame linebacker fit there. Te'o's college career ended on a down note -- between the fake girlfriend and Notre Dame's blowout loss to Alabama in the BCS National Championship -- but if you can look past that dark cloud you'll see a player worthy of his No. 7 ranking. The No. 2-rated prospect in the 2009 class, Te'o was unquestionably one of the top prospects coming out that year. While in South Bend, Ind., the instinctive LB with a nose for the ball became a highly decorated player for the Fighting Irish, landing All-American honors and multiple awards in 2012, including the Maxwell and Dick Butkus Awards. It can be easy to let the end of his career cloud your judgment, but when you look at the whole picture he was an excellent prospect who went on to perform at a high level during his college career.

Barkley vs. Luck

In 2008, Andrew Luck was our seventh-ranked quarterback and was in good company, as three of the six signal-callers ahead of him were either first- or third-round draft choices and have started alongside him in the NFL. In 2009, Matt Barkley was the unanimous No. 1 overall player in the class and was amongst a group that featured Tajh Boyd, Aaron Murray, AJ McCarron, Zach Mettenberger and even Garrett Gilbert. So the QB depth in both classes matches up fairly evenly.

The debate was who had the more prolific college career between Luck and Barkley. Barkley was a four-year starter who made the mistake of returning to school for his senior year, a move that likely cost him millions of dollars in draft stock. Luck not only became a starter as a redshirt freshman, but is largely credited with resurrecting the Stanford program.

With that being said, Luck trumped Barkley with developmental upside and overall skill set. Luck is a better athlete. Barkley was more of a finished product out of high school and likely still is. It is tough to argue that any QB over the past eight classes was more college-ready and trained than Barkley, which is why he succeeded so quickly in a high-profile role with very little learning curve. Luck was a prospect in training coming out of high school, but by the time college was over for both, Luck carried far more weight in significant areas. Luck still hasn't even scratched the surface of what he might be, and that's why he's ranked a spot higher than Barkley at No. 9 in the Ultimate 300.

Vernon Hargreaves in the top 30 as a freshman

Of all the premier cornerbacks who have come through over the past eight classes, we could not think of one who made such an immediately successful transition and impact in college as Hargreaves did this season as a true freshman for Florida. Of course, Dee Milliner played at Alabama as a true freshman, but not like this. Alabama's Dre Kirkpatrick had the skill set, but not the intangibles to step right in. Eric Berry at Tennessee started, but was moved to safety. Patrick Peterson is arguably the best we saw over the course of his LSU career. However, none of these guys was All-SEC as a true freshman. Hargreaves, who comes in at No. 26 in the Ultimate 300, will likely be a top 10 overall draft pick after his junior year, and he played like a redshirt junior five games into his freshman campaign. His skill set coupled with maturity and intangibles is extremely rare, and the game has been never too big for him. Prospects like him are once in every seven to 10 years. If we did this same list three years from now, he would be in contention for top five overall without any hesitation.

Tim Tebow

Tebow is one of the most polarizing figures in football. His pro career created a circus-like atmosphere and fizzled out after a few seasons, but that has no impact on this ranking. Quite simply one heckuva college football player, the Gators QB was among the top 15 prospects in the 2006 class and performed as someone worthy of being the top prospect that season. Tebow developed into one of the game's premier players while in Gainesville, Fla., and was a part of two national championships. He racked up numerous accolades, including the 2007 Heisman Trophy. Whatever your personal feelings may be, you can't deny that Tebow was an excellent prospect who became an outstanding college player. He's definitely worthy of the No. 2 slot in the Ultimate 300, and a case could even be made for him in the top spot.

Da'Quan Bowers in the top 15

Bowers was our unanimous No. 1 selection and an inaugural Under Armour All-American in the 2008 class. He played a significant role for Clemson as a true freshman with huge expectations, but did not maximize his overall ability until his junior season, when he led the country in sacks. He chose to declare early for the NFL draft, which may or may not have been the best choice. If it had not been for a late, uncovered knee issue that put into question his long-term viability in professional football, he would likely have been a top-five overall selection. Had Bowers performed as a sophomore the way he did as a junior, he would likely have found himself inside the top 10 of the Ultimate 300 instead of at No. 12.

Where to slot Maurice Evans

Evans is a great example of how success depends on more than just talent. Initially an under-the-radar prospect out of New York, a state known more for its basketball, the explosive defensive end jumped out to us in evaluations. Evans opened some eyes with an MVP-worthy performance at the 2006 Army All-America Bowl and proved he was among the top prospects in that class, landing at No. 11. He wasted little time making an impression at Penn State, playing in every game as a freshman. As a sophomore he was on the cusp of developing into one of college football's top defenders. He earned All-Big Ten honors and was among the finalists for the Hendricks Award. An off-field incident led to a multigame suspension and derailed his junior season. When he returned, he could never get back on track. Had Evans stayed on course and met the expectations that were building for him his junior season, he would likely be ranked much higher in the Ultimate 300 than No. 189. A promising prospect who was beginning to realize his potential, only to see it slip away, he is still worthy of inclusion, but his placement could have been a no-brainer rather than debated.