Thoughts on the 2021 Position U Rankings

We created the Position U Rankings in an effort to help settle the debate about which team actually is producing the best players at each position. After each NFL Draft the rankings will be updated and we will give our thoughts on the latest update. Our methods are explained here.

The Position U Rankings are live and can be found here. Here are a few things that caught our eye:

Quarterback

Oklahoma continues to lead the QBU rankings with two first overall picks and a second round pick in three of the last four drafts. With Spencer Rattler considered one of the top prospects heading into the 2021 season, it looks like the Sooners are in great position going forward. Lincoln Riley has a quarterback friendly offense and will have top quarterbacks vying to play for Oklahoma for years to come.

Texas A&M moved into the second spot with Kellen Mond being drafted in the third round. Nonetheless, most of the Aggies points in the rankings are from the early part of the decade and unless they produce more quarterbacks soon they will fall behind in the QBU rankings.

Alabama, Clemson and Ohio State made a big move in the rankings and are likely to stay near the top of the list. All three will have a second year player starting in 2021 who was a top 2020 recruit and have continued to add good talent at the position. These three are perennial playoff contenders and the strong play at the quarterback position will help keep them in contention.

Running Back

Alabama continued it’s domination in the RBU rankings. The Tide benefited from Najee Harris being drafted in the first round and have increased their lead at the position. With a substantial lead, they are likely to hold the top spot for at least the next few years.

Ohio State moved into the fourth spot in the RBU rankings. Thanks to Trey Sermon being picked in the third round in 2021, the Buckeyes are the only team to have a running back drafted in each of the last three drafts and are steadily climbing the rankings.

With two running backs drafted in the first four rounds, North Carolina made a nice jump in the RBU rankings this year. Mack Brown has the Tar Heels moving up in the ACC and continues to bring good talent to Chapel Hill. Expect North Carolina to continue to climb the rankings as they develop the talent they are bringing in.

Wide Receiver

Alabama and LSU both had a big year with receivers getting drafted. Alabama had two players drafted in the top ten and extended their lead in the rankings. Meanwhile, LSU moved from fifth to second with three receivers drafted this year. The two rivals continue to excel developing wide receivers.

Ohio State is likely to make a big move next year with both Chris Olave and Garrett Wilson expected to be top draft prospects at the position. Brian Hartline is recruiting the position as well as or better than anyone in the country and has a stacked wide receiver room that will yield several high picks over the next few seasons.

Mississippi has had several talented receivers drafted over the past decade and sits at eighth in the WRU rankings. Elijah Moore was the first of those receivers to play for Lane Kiffin but with the high powered offense being run in Oxford, expect there to be plenty of receivers joining him in the next few years.

Tight End

The top of the TEU rankings remained constant as Notre Dame, Stanford and Iowa held the top three spots on the list. The three teams are separated by just 30 points and are in a heated competition to take over the top spot annually.

Florida and Penn State continue to climb the list at TE. Kyle Pitts was picked fourth overall and boosted Florida into the top ten, while Penn State moved into the top ten with Pat Friermuth being selected in the second round. Both offenses feature the tight end and this trend should continue for both teams.

Offensive Line

Alabama continues to develop offensive linemen better than any other team in the country. The Tide recruit at a high level and have had at least 1 offensive lineman drafted in each of the last nine drafts. With three more selected in 2021 the lead at the top grew for Alabama and they should have more on the way in 2022.

Notre Dame took over the 2nd spot with a big year of their own in the draft. The Fighting Irish had three offensive linemen drafted, two in the second round and one in the third round to score 160 points and take over the second spot.

With two players drafted in 2021, Ohio State moved into the third spot. Josh Myers and Wyatt Davis were selected in the second and third round respectively, but left tackle Thayer Munford returned to school and could be a high pick in 2022. The Buckeyes have had at least one offensive linemen drafted in nine of the last ten drafts.

Defensive Line

Clemson, Alabama, Ohio State, and Florida State held serve in the top four spots on the DLU rankings. The top three teams have excelled over the course of the last decade and Florida State is hoping to return to where they were in the early 2010s. The top three are expected to continue to produce defensive linemen at a high rate, it will be interesting to see if the Seminoles can keep up.

Miami and Washington made the biggest jump in the DLU rankings in 2021. The Hurricanes had three players selected, including two in the first round. Miami jumped from 30th on last year’s rankings to 15th this year. The Huskies had one first round pick and one second rounder to jump from 20th to 13th on the DLU rankings.

The sixth team on the list is Florida. The Gators have been remarkably consistent, having at least one player drafted in each of the last ten drafts. Florida recruits well and has plenty of top talent in state, so this trend should continue going forward.

Linebacker

Alabama did not have a linebacker drafted this year after nine straight years of having at least one picked. The Tide still held on to the top spot in the LBU rankings, despite not adding to their score in 2021. With the way Nick Saban’s program has been churning out draft picks it won’t be long until they are back on the board at linebacker.

Penn State made a big jump from 45th to 18th thanks to Micah Parsons. The Nittany Lions will need to have more talent follow him near the top of the draft to crack the top ten, but they scored more points this draft than the previous nine combined. There’s still a ways to go but Penn State made a big move at a position their fan base takes great pride in.

Kentucky also made a big jump thanks to Jamin Davis, the first round selection helped vault the Wildcats from 53rd to 21st. Mark Stoops and company have done an excellent job building the program and this could be a trend with Kentucky developing more and more high end talent.

Defensive Back

Alabama pulled away a bit from Ohio State and LSU this draft, so those two will need to make up ground next year. The trio continue to hold a sizeable lead over the rest of the country, but this race is not as close as it was a year ago.

Georgia had four players drafted in 2021 and made a nice jump in the DBU rankings. The Bulldogs had a first round pick, a second round pick, a fifth round pick and a seventh rounder to add 165 points to their score and jump from 27th to 10th in this update. Kirby Smart has had plenty of strong recruiting classes and more jumps like this one could be on the horizon for the Bulldogs.

Another team that made a big jump in 2021 was UCF who moved up from 28th to 11th. The Knights had three players drafted from their secondary in the 2021 draft. With Gus Malzahn now leading the way this might be just the beginning for a program that has become one of the powers in the group of five.

Next Update

The next update to the rankings will come after the 2022 draft.

To view the full rankings click here.

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