MANHATTAN BEACH, Calif. – The Elite 11 is now in the books after three days of competition from 20 of the best quarterbacks in the 2025 class. It’s now time to hand out some Gorney Awards from the event.
STEADY AS SHE GOES AWARD – Julian Lewis
The No. 1 player in the 2025 class maybe didn’t have the highlight-reel throws every single time or shock us with his performance but the USC commit was like a fine wine – subtle and refined and definitely worthy of praise.
Especially during the Elite 11 pro day, the Carrollton, Ga., standout didn’t need to zip every ball 100 miles per hour but Lewis went through every drill, missed only one pass and kept throwing to his receivers in stride. There will be a debate about who finishes No. 1 in the class but there is a clear argument that could be made for Lewis.
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FIVE-STAR WATCH AWARD – Keelon Russell
Russell has shot up the rankings all the way to No. 47 nationally but it might not be enough. The new Alabama commit (after flipping from SMU) throws the ball so smoothly. It pops off his hand, his accuracy was elite and he threw on the run extraordinarily well.
I made the comparison to Jayden Daniels and he’s not as long as lean as Daniels was but he’s more advanced at the same stage. Russell will definitely be in the five-star discussion soon.
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FIVE-STAR SHOWING AWARD – Tramell Jones
Jones’ ascendency up the rankings has taken the same path as Nvidia stock – straight up – going from 157 to 90 in the last few cycles. The Florida State commit made a huge statement at the Elite 11 – that he should be considered in the five-star discussion.
No one threw it better over three days than the Jacksonville (Fla.) Mandarin standout. Perhaps there are bigger, more athletic quarterbacks in the class but maybe no one more consistent.
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FLIP WATCH AWARD – Ty Hawkins
There was a lot of recruiting discussion during the Elite 11, but some of the biggest buzz was around Hawkins, who has been committed to TCU for nearly a year. However, SMU has become a very serious contender.
Hawkins is visiting the Horned Frogs this weekend and things should be settled soon, one way or another.
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HUGE UPSIDE AWARD – Kamario Taylor
Taylor has great size at 6-foot-4 and 200 pounds. He has all the physical tools and a fantastic arm. If the Macon (Miss.) Noxubee County puts all the pieces together then the Mississippi State commit could be really special down the road.
There were times when Taylor totally flashed during the Elite 11 and looked like an elite quarterback. But there were also some throws that the four-star would want back. There is plenty to love about his game and if Taylor rounds out those rough edges, he has great potential.
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MICHAEL PENIX CLONE AWARD – Deuce Knight
Knight is taller than Penix by about two inches and he’s way more filled out than Penix was at the same stage but the way they throw the ball and play the position, it’s almost uncanny. Penix is a lefty; Knight is a lefty. Both have a very similar throwing motion.
Penix was a first-round draft pick (even if it was a major surprise) and Knight is the No. 1 dual-threat QB in the class.
Where they differ, though, is that Penix was not a great passer outside of the pocket. Knight can sit in there and deliver, but at the Elite 11 he was also great rolling right and left and hitting receivers in stride.
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*****
UNDERRECRUITED & UNDERRANKED AWARD – Jaron Sagapolutele
Maybe it’s because he’s from Hawaii and he’s not as exposed nationally as other quarterbacks. Maybe some programs are taking a pass on a lefty. Maybe it’s because Sagapolutele hasn’t done the camp and 7on7 scene for years.
But the Ewa Beach (Hawaii) Campbell three-star can not only hang with the best quarterbacks in the class but he might be one of them. Sagapolutele was great the first night and had a strong showing during the pro day portion.
If Cal, Boise State, Oregon State and Utah State are the frontrunners, some team is getting a steal.
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RICKY VAUGHN AWARD – Husan Longstreet
This award goes to the quarterback who zipped the ball the fastest like Ricky “Wild Thing” Vaughn in the famous movie Major League and Longstreet is clearly the winner. If ball speed and spin were measured at this event it would be interesting to see what the Texas A&M commit clocked because that football is flying off his hand.
The question coming in was would the four-star from Corona (Calif.) Centennial be able to take some pace off the touch throws at the pro day and he definitely did that as well. Longstreet had a great showing at the Elite 11.
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SURPRISE, SURPRISE AWARD – Robert McDaniel
The only reason McDaniel even came to the Elite 11 was because Tennessee commit George MacIntyre had a late injury that sidelined him but the three-star quarterback from Hughson, Calif., not only made the most of his opportunity but proved he belonged at the event.
After a sort of anonymous first night, McDaniel absolutely shined in the pro day portion of the event (the most important part on Wednesday night), was in rhythm with all his throws and ended up among the top handful of performers.
Arizona is getting a competitor after his commitment to Cal didn’t work out.
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LOOKS LIKE AN NFL PLAYER AWARD – Tavien St. Clair
Already 6-foot-4 and 228 pounds, the five-star quarterback is about the same size as Drake Maye or Jameis Winston and he looks like a grown man on the field. St. Clair is not only really impressive physically but he was one of the best quarterbacks at the entire event, throwing with great accuracy, throwing to receivers in stride and showing numerous times and in many ways that he could be an elite quarterback at Ohio State.
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CLIMBING THE LADDER AWARD – Ryan Montgomery
When the 2025 class rankings started more than a year ago, Montgomery was a fringe top-100 player. Over the last 12 months, the four-star Georgia commit has slid a little bit as others moved up, as he sits No. 163 overall.
But after the Findlay, Ohio, standout impressed on night one with a ton of pop on his passes and accuracy, then followed with a solid showing in the pro day. Now, Montgomery could be making a move back up. A dozen pro-style quarterbacks better than him in this class? No way.
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