2021 Best Classes: The Receivers

With signing day finally upon us we look at the best classes in the country by position group. We have lumped the wide receivers and tight ends together as a group. For the purposes of this article we will use the 247Sports Composite rankings because they factor in all of the major rankings services. Here are the teams that brought in the most talent to catch passes:

Alabama

No one has gotten more production from the receiver position the last two years than Alabama. That ability to have multiple receivers featured and drafted high has paid off on the recruiting trail in 2021. The Crimson Tide have commitments from four top ten wide receivers. They also signed three star tight end, Robbie Ouzts, but the strength of this class is in the wide receiver group. Alabama reloaded with a diverse group that all bring different styles of play to the position.

Jacorey Brooks is the third ranked receiver in the class and is a pure wide receiver with good size, route running ability and excellent ball skills. JoJo Earle is ranked fifth among receivers and is a smaller player who is an explosive athlete and can make big plays after the catch with his elusiveness. Agiye Hall, ranks sixth among receivers and has an excellent combination of size and athleticism that will make him tough to match-up with. Christian Leary comes in at ninth in the composite but has as much pure speed as anyone in the class. The group at wide receiver allows Alabama to reload quickly after losing a lot of top receivers in the last two drafts.

Ohio State

The Buckeyes have been recruiting the receiver position as well as any team in the country since Brian Hartline took over as the wide receiver coach. Ohio State landed the top player at the position for the second straight year by signing Emeka Egbuka out of Washington. Egbuka is a complete receiver with speed, strength, hands, route running ability and run after the catch ability. He can return kicks and punts as well and should be able to crack a crowded rotation in Columbus early in his career.

In addition to Egbuka, the Buckeyes landed Marvin Harrison Jr and Jayden Ballard who rank 14th and 15th at the position, respectively. Both receivers have excellent size and length, but are fast and quick enough to create separation downfield. With their size, Harrison Jr and Ballard should be mismatches in the redzone. At tight end, Ohio State added Sam Hart out of Colorado who is the 16th ranked tight end in the class. Hart has good athleticism and a good frame to fill out as he matures. Ohio State’s receiver class is a strong one and features the best player at the position, which will add to an already talented position group for the Buckeyes.

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Oregon

Mario Cristobal is a strong recruiter and Oregon has a history of recruiting quality skill players from around the country. The 2021 receiver class is another example of how well the two have worked on the recruiting trail. Oregon has three receivers and two tight ends committed, all ranking four stars but none from the state of Oregon and no two players are from the same state. Oregon signed two tight ends in the class, both ranking inside the top ten at the position. Moliki Matavao from Nevada and Terrance Ferguson from Colorado, both of whom have excellent size, length and athleticism that will create mismatches against any defense.

The wide receivers are led by California star Troy Franklin, he is ranked number three in the country at receiver and is one of the most electric prospects at the position. Dont’e Thornton, who checks in at seventh, has a big frame and good athleticism at his size, but still needs to refine his game some. Isaiah Brevard is another big bodied receiver who checks in at 28th in the rankings. He may not have as high of a ceiling as his classmates, but he is a difficult match-up on the perimeter as well. Oregon has big play ability and the size to create mismatches all over the field in their 2021 pass catching class.

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Oklahoma

Lincoln Riley has built an offensive machine at Oklahoma that makes it easy to recruit receivers. Oklahoma does not have a tight end committed in the 2021 class, but the group of receivers is good enough to carry the class on this list. Mario Williams is the highest ranked of the group, ranking fourth among receivers in the composite rankings. Williams may not be the biggest receiver, but he is a quick footed prospect who runs good routes and catches the ball naturally. He will be an explosive threat in Norman, but is not the only big play weapon the Sooners added.

Another big play threat is athlete Billy Bowman, who will likely play receiver for the Sooners. Bowman is the second highest ranked athlete in the class and like Williams is not very big, but is an explosive athlete who can make a big play at any time. Oklahoma also added Cody Jackson and Jalil Farooq who are both a bit bigger than Williams and Bowman but still have big play potential. Jackson and Farooq are ranked 17th and 21st at the position respectively. The foursome brings more speed and big play ability to an offense that is already a handful for defenses to contain.

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Clemson

Clemson has become a perennial playoff contender and consistently fields one of the best passing attacks in the country. The 2021 class was another where the Tigers reloaded with a diverse group of pass catchers to add to their offense. The class starts with Jake Briningstool, who is the top ranked tight end in the 2021 recruiting class. He is an elite receiving threat from the tight end position who has good athleticism and route running ability. Briningstool is an excellent fit in modern passing offenses that can stretch the seams of the defense and provide a safety net over the middle.

The Tigers have added three four star wide receivers to go with Briningstool. Beaux Collins, the 12th ranked receiver in the class, is a bigger receiver who has strong hands and good quickness for his size. Troy Stellato ranks 30th among receivers and has great speed to stretch the field and the quickness to work out of the slot. The third receiver is Dacari Collins, who ranks 32nd at the position. Collins has excellent size and the frame to be an overpowering player on the outside who is a big threat in the redzone. With a diverse group of receivers and a big play threat at tight end, Clemson’s offense will have plenty of weapons going forward.

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