In college football, there’s an age-old saying that “stars don’t matter.”
Well, don’t tell the 2023 NFL Draft that.
According to 247Sports’ rankings, seven of the first ten picks in the NFL Draft were former five-star prospects.
7 of the first 10 picks in the #NFLDraft were @247Sports five-star recruits.
Stars matter, y'all.
— Chris Hummer (@chris_hummer) April 28, 2023
The Carolina Panthers started that run by selecting Alabama quarterback Bryce Young with the 1st overall pick. Young was a five-star recruit in the 2020 recruiting class, earning the No. 1 ranking nationally.
Third-overall pick Will Anderson, Jr., Young’s college teammate, was also a five-star prospect in the 2020 recruiting class. Anderson, Jr. was ranked as the No. 14 player overall in the class.
The only three players in the top ten who were not five-star prospects are C.J. Stroud, Anthony Richardson, and Devon Witherspoon.
According to 247Sports, their rating system is designed to project NFL success, so it shouldn’t be surprising that the stars rating was successful this season.
Our ultimate goal is to accurately project college success with an element of raw ability baked in. To that end, we have turned to the NFL Draft as the measuring stick and answer key that best indicates, in a quantitative manner, the level of success and ability players showcased during their college careers.
