Unveiling the 2023 On300 football recruit rankings

On3 has expanded its football prospect rankings for the 2023 recruiting cycle. We initially released a Top 100 prior to the season. The On300 is updated on a regular schedule over the course of the year. 

We’re mid-way through the junior season for the 2023 cycle, which has allowed ample evaluation opportunities. This class has had a rather disjointed past few years with several states pushing back their 2020 seasons to the spring or cancelling them all together. With that said, it’s worth noting that this cycle appears to be a bit behind others in terms of evaluation and college attention. We’re seeing a bunch of prospects pop up on the radar every week as colleges are evaluating the junior seasons.

UPDATED 2023 On300 Football Ranking

Our goal is to assess a prospect’s long-term potential in college football, as manifested by the NFL Draft. We currently have 13 prospects rated as five-stars and will finish with 32 five-stars every cycle. 

Let’s get into some of the storylines surrounding this update.

Five-star movement

The top three of quarterback Arch Manning, Oklahoma quarterback commit Malachi Nelson and athlete Sonny Styles remain unchanged. Lakeland (Fla.) Lake Gibson cornerback Cormani McClain moves up one spot to No. 4.

This release saw three prospects earn their fifth star, starting with Notre Dame EDGE commit Keon Keeley at No. 5. The Tampa Berkeley Prep pass rusher continues to be an ascending prospect and is putting together a fantastic junior season. Keeley has been dominant, racking up 22 tackles for loss and 11 sacks in seven games. He’s a gifted athlete at 6-foot-6, 230-pounds and pairs supreme length (7-foot wing-span) with get-off and flexibility as a pass rusher.

When it comes to the highest upside among the pass rushers in the cycle, Keeley may be challenged by another new five-star, Nyckoles Harbor. The Washington (D.C.) Archbishop Carroll pass rusher checks in at No. 8. Harbor has continued to show promise on the field as a junior, playing as a defensive end and wide receiver/tight end. As we’ve documented in the past, he’s one of the more unique prospects we’ve seen from a size and athleticism perspective. Harbor is 6-foot-5, 240-pounds with 34-inch arms and ran a 10.38 second 100-meter time at 15 years old. The new five-star has visited Penn State and Oklahoma this fall.

The third new five-star is Hoschton (Ga.) Mill Creek safety Caleb Downs. The 5-foot-11, 185-pounder has been fantastic this fall for one of Georgia’s better teams. We’ve watched a handful of Downs’ games and he’s consistently been a dominant performer, making plays in all three phases. As a safety, Downs plays exceptionally fast with the ability to quickly diagnose and make plays on the ball. He’s among the very best high school football players in Georgia, regardless of class. Downs has visited Clemson and North Carolina this fall. His older brother Josh Downs is a standout wide receiver for the Tar Heels.

Big debuts in the top 50

As is the case with any big rankings overhaul, we have a number prospects make big debuts.

The highest previously unranked prospect is Monroe (La.) Neville offensive tackle Zalance Heard at No. 15. The 6-foot-5.5, 295-pounder transferred to Neville this season and made the move from defensive tackle to offensive line. That move is paying dividends, as Heard looks like one of the best linemen in the cycle. The big man is a high-end athlete with 36-inch arms. He combines the unique dimensions and athleticism with some high-end upper body strength. Heard is an athletic mauler at right tackle who is already dominant in his first year at the position. He holds early offers from Michigan, Ole Miss and Texas. Expect him to blow up.

EDGE Jaquavious Russaw from Montgomery (Ala.) Carver is one of the more active defensive players we’ve watched this fall. The 6-foot-3, 230-pounder checks in at No. 26. He is dynamite off the edge and plays with his hair on fire. We’ve also seen Russaw flash his athleticism while playing as an off-ball linebacker at times. Russaw has added fall offers from Alabama, Florida and Georgia to go with several more.

Garland (Texas) Naaman Forest’s Markis Deal is the No. 2 interior offensive lineman, debuting at No. 28. The 6-foot-4, 280-pounder has some very strong video on both sides of the ball. Deal is a twitched up, quick lineman with some nice strength as well. While he makes plays on defense, his highest upside is on the offensive interior. Deal has offers from the likes of Texas, Texas A&M, Oklahoma, Notre Dame, Michigan and others. He visited Texas A&M for a game this fall.

We have a new No. 1 running back with Orlando (Fla.) Edgewater’s Cedric Baxter Jr. making his debut at No. 45. Baxter was previously used as a two-way athlete, but is thriving in a bell cow role this fall. At 6-foot-1, 205 pounds, Baxter checks size and speed boxes and is transferring those traits onto the field. He’s averaging over 150 yards per game this season while showing the ability to cut at full speed and out-run defenses in the open field. Baxter has added fall offers from Ohio State, Alabama and Georgia.

Strong cycles in Florida, Alabama

The 2023 cycle currently looks to be quite strong in the state of Florida and Alabama.

The Sunshine State is typically known for its quality and depth of talent and this cycle is no different. Fifteen Floridians are represented in the top 10 with a leading 47 in the On300. Those totals do not count IMG Academy prospects who are from out-of-state. The state is particularly deep at wide receiver. As we were putting this together, it seemed like a talented Florida wide receiver popped up every 15 minutes.

We’ve known the state of Alabama was loaded in 2023 for a while now. To be honest, the group might be even deeper than expected. There are currently 11 prospects from Alabama within the top 100 with 19 checking in within the On300.

Commit Leaderboard

We’re still pretty early in the recruiting cycle when it comes to tracking commitments. Still, a few teams are off to early starts.

Oklahoma leads the way with five commitments within the On300, including five-star quarterback Malchi Nelson and the trio of wide receivers – Brandon Inniss, Makai Lemon and DeAndre Moore Jr.

Notre Dame and Georgia are tied for second with each having four commits in the On300. The Irish class is led by new five-star Keon Keeley while the Bulldogs have two cornerbacks, Marcus Washington (No. 22) and Kayin Lee (No. 46) in the top 50.

See the full 2023 On300 here.