The Rivals rankings have long been the standard by which college football recruiting successes and failures are measured. Since 2002, high school football players, college coaches and fans have trusted and relied on the Rivals national analyst team to scout, evaluate and rank the best prospects in the nation.

Our sport and the methods of evaluation have evolved. So has Rivals and today marks another important step in that evolution.

As part of a larger effort to modernize the Rivals rankings infrastructure, the national analyst team has adjusted the prospect position designations.

Prospects will no longer be designated as an outside linebacker (OLB), inside linebacker (ILB), strongside defensive end (SDE), weakside defensive end (WDE), center (OC), guard (OG), fullback (FB), pro-style quarterback (PQB), dual-threat quarterback (DQB) or kicker (K).

Going forward, those players will be listed as defensive end (DE), edge defender (EDGE), interior offensive lineman (IOL), linebacker (LB), quarterback (QB), nickel (NICK), slot (SLOT) and specialist (SPEC).

The rankings and prospect position designations for players prior to the 2026 recruiting class will remain unaltered.

The Rivals evaluation process has, from its inception, been modeled after the NFL Draft preparation process. Measuring and studying each players’ skills, traits and abilities on the field in games and during the offseason continues to be our focus.

The NFL Draft in recent years has been littered with players who fit the more modern NFL demands for specific positions.

Quarterbacks at every level of football are now required to be much more athletic than in the past, rendering the pro-style quarterback designation obsolete.

The evolution of the high-flying NFL passing schemes has demanded a more well-rounded receiving corps, which led to the search for specialized slot receivers, who can stress defenses in different ways.

The majority of starting centers in the NFL did not actually play that position at the beginning of their college careers. Classifying guards and centers as interior offensive lineman now aligns the Rivals position designations with NFL scouting perspectives.

With the advancement of NFL offenses came the next generation of defenses. As part of that evolution, coaches and scouts devised new schemes that required players with different levels of athleticism and skill sets.

Instead of drafting a strongside and a weakside defensive end, NFL teams have placed a greater emphasis on selecting edge defenders who possess greater speed, athleticism, and quickness than pure defensive ends, leading to the edge defender designation.

The advent of a specialized receiver who can consistently line up in the slot demanded defenses field more defensive backs who are able to successfully cover these playmakers. Elite nickel defenders possess a wide range of defensive back skills along with the size/strength and aggressive style that allows them to be effective against the running game.