Matthew Stafford has always been highly praised, even in high school.  Stafford was a 5-star recruit and was ranked as the best QB in that year’s class (ahead of many notable names including Bradford, Dalton, and Freeman.)  In his senior year at Highland Park, Stafford passed for almost 4,000 yards.  Of course, when you’re the best QB in the nation, the best college programs from around the country want you.  He would eventually choose Georgia where he had a great career there. (more…)

Matt Kartozian-US PRESSWIRE

College athletic office fax machines started receiving signed letters of intent this morning as high school seniors can officially end their recruitment thanks to the arrival of national signing day. Meanwhile, a group of now former college football players have their sights set on making the transition from college to the pros.

It is essentially a foregone conclusion that Andrew Luck will be picked first overall in April’s NFL draft but it was just four years ago that he was just a high school prospect sending in his signed letter of intent. Luck was a highly touted prep star so his standing heading towards the draft is not particularly surprising, however that isn’t the case for everyone. Here is a look at the 32 players in Mel Kiper’s first mock draft and where they were ranked as they made their move from high school to college (ratings from scout.com):

While the focus today will be on the four and five star rated players, we see here that three of the players that could be first round draft choices into the NFL were rated at just two stars. It also needs to be pointed out that Morris Claiborne, likely the first cornerback selected in April, was rated as the 90th best wide receiver when he signed with LSU. Similarly, Riley Reiff went to Iowa as the nation’s number 69 defensive end and will leave as a first round offensive tackle.

Just as a number one rated recruiting class doesn’t guarantee a national championship, a recruiting ranking only speaks to the prospect’s potential at that given point in time. A whole lot can change, for better and worse.

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Meanwhile, a new crop of professional football hopefuls are preparing themselves for the NFL draft. National signing day is a “been there, done that” for these guys and now their goal is to hear their name called by commissioner Goodell as first round draft picks.

What makes a top recruit and what makes a top draft choice? Do the two groups of players have anything in common?

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