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A longstanding debate in the recruiting world has been which metro area produces the best football players. So now in conjunction with millions of other brackets, ours has reached the final four metro areas: Miami, Dallas, New Orleans and Atlanta.
Our national recruiting analysts picked the top 16 metro areas for high school football talent and seeded them 1-16, with No. 1 Tampa being their collective pick as the best. Our analyst group focused solely on the talent churned out so far in the 2020s.
And we will let the fans take it from there. So far, there has been two rounds of voting to whittle the 16 cities down to a final four.
Vote now in the semifinals and help decide the metro area that produces the best football talent.
PREVIOUS RESULTS
FIRST-ROUND RESULTS
No. 1 Tampa/St. Pete defeated No. 16 Philadelphia
No. 2 Atlanta defeated No. 15 Charlotte
No. 3 Dallas/Fort Worth defeated No. 14 Chicago
No. 4 Los Angeles defeated No. 13 Las Vegas
No. 5 Miami/South Florida defeated No. 12 St. Louis
No. 7 Detroit defeated No. 10 DMV
No. 8 New Orleans/South Louisiana defeated No. 9 Houston
No. 11 Birmingham/Montgomery defeated No. 6. South Georgia
QUARTERFINAL RESULTS
No. 8 New Orleans/South Louisiana defeated No. 1 Tampa/St. Pete
No. 2 Atlanta defeated No. 7 Detroit
No. 3 Dallas/Fort Worth defeated No. 11 Birmingham/Montgomery
No. 5 Miami/South Florida defeated No. 4 Los Angeles
No. 2. Atlanta vs. No. 3 Dallas/Fort Worth
The Case For Atlanta: The Greater Metro Atlanta Area has No. 1 written all over it. The Peach State is rich with talent year in and year out, and in the past half-decade has churned out some of the top recruits and top players in college football each Saturday. It's draft season -- so the conversation starts with former Rivals No. 1 overall player Travis Hunter.
The reigning Heisman Trophy winner is expected to come off the board early -- just like former five-star DE Myles Murphy (Cincinnati Bengals) and five-star OT Broderick Jones (Pittsburgh Steelers) did not too long ago. Brian Branch is another Atlanta area standout making noise on Sundays in Detroit. Like Hunter, former top-100 SAF Malaki Starks is a projected first-rounder. Former five-star LB Barrett Carter is expected to hear their name called later this spring in Green Bay.
Former five-star Caleb Downs is arguably the top safety in college football coming off a title run with the Buckeyes. His brother Josh is an emerging receiver with the Colts. Other five-stars from the ATL we anticipate continuing to make noise in college football this upcoming season include DL Edrick Houston (Ohio State), SAF KJ Bolden (Georgia), WR Mike Matthews (Tennessee), and QB Julian Lewis (Colorado). Other notable recruits from the area include RB Justice Haynes (Michigan) and LT Overton (Alabama).
– Sam Spiegelman
The Case For DFW: Everything is bigger in Texas -- especially the football talent. The Dallas Metroplex, in particular, has yielded a heavy volume of blue-chippers over the years -- several of which are making waves on Saturdays and on Sundays already. Former five-star WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba is one of the best young receivers that the Seattle Seahawks are building their passing game around.
After a historic senior season, Marvin Mims finished inside the Rivals250 -- and provides juice for the Denver Broncos' offense. Former four-star CB Christian Gonzalez is one of the best young corners in New England out of The Colony (Texas). As they set the pace in the league, there's a wave about to follow.
Quinn Ewers (Texas) and Shedeur Sanders (Colorado) are both projected early draft picks. Some of college football's best are also from DFW. Former five-star EDGE Colin Simmons was named the Shaun Alexander Freshman of the Year with Texas. His teammate -- former five-star Anthony Hill Jr. -- is one of the most imposing linebackers in the nation.
Former five-star Peyton Bowen is one of the top safeties in the country heading Brent Venables' defense in Norman. Evan Stewart, another former five-star, has been dynamic at Texas A&M and also Oregon. Heisman Trophy hopeful Garrett Nussmeier is also from the area.
– Sam Spiegelman
No. 5 Miami/South Florida vs. No. 8 New Orleans/South Louisiana
The Case For South Florida: When it comes to the perception, the numbers and certainly the names, South Florida continues to hold onto its reputation as one of America's truly fertile football hotbeds. Narrowing the production window to the first half of this decade proves more of the same, whether leaning on the names stationed on Saturday's like Ohio State's Jeremiah Smith or those about to enter at the highest level like fellow former five-star and one-time prep teammate of Smith in first round projection Shemar Stewart.
Dipping into the Rivals rankings, five-stars flood in from the region, including an even one dozen since the class of 2020 wrapped up. The blue-chip depth thereafter remains just as staggering, with 79 additional recruits ranked within the Rivals250 hailing from Dade, Broward and Palm Beach Counties combined. The volume is just as impressive relative to the NFL Draft, too, as more than 50 South Floridians have been drafted since the decade began, including nine in Round 1.
Some of the names near the top of the list have made sense all the way through the process like Smith's certainly will. Dallas Turner was a five-star who worked his way into the first round and he put together a great rookie campaign in the league thereafter. Fellow five-stars from that 2021 cycle included James Williams, Terrence Lewis and Corey Collier, however. Of the trio only Williams, drafted in the seventh round in 2024, heard his name called on the big stage.
So for every Patrick Surtain II, fresh off of a Defensive Player of the Year campaign with the Denver Broncos, there are also some big-name busts relative to ranking dotting the line in SoFlo.
– John Garcia Jr.
The Case For South Louisiana: No state churns out more NFL talent per capita than Louisiana -- and South Louisiana produces a massive amount of talent that is taking over the league and also college football.
Both former first-round picks Brian Thomas Jr. and Malik Nabers exploded onto the scene in Year 1 as rookies. Thomas, out of Walker, La., was a Rivals250 WR who since surfaced as one of the NFL's best young perimeter receivers in Jacksonville. Nabers, who was sidelined as a senior due to state transfer rules, set multiple records while at LSU before breaking the mark for receptions by a rookie last season with the New York Giants. Former No. 2 overall player Maason Smith in 2021 was a second-round pick of the Jags and is quickly becoming one of the NFL's most formidable young DL.
There is expected to be another wave of South Louisiana talent to come off the board during the NFL Draft. Among them -- former Rivals250 OL Emery Jones (LSU) and former four-star WR Jack Bech (TCU). Some of college football's best are from The Boot. That includes former No. 1 overall recruit Arch Manning, who will orchestrate the Texas offense full-time this season. His teammate -- Derek Williams -- is one of the best young SAF expected to step into a bigger role this fall in Austin.
Former Rivals five-star WR Aaron Anderson came on strong in his second season at LSU and should be a part of a high-octane offense in Baton Rouge this fall. So should Chris Hilton, a top-100 recruit in 2021. Former five-star DL Dominick McKinley closed his freshman season out with a bang -- and is part of what should be a formidable front in the Bayou this upcoming season.
Former five-star Harlem Berry is expected to be an impact freshman this season with the Tigers. Former five-star DE Jahkeem Stewart is also a candidate to be an immediate contributor at USC.
– Sam Spiegelman
OUR PICKS
Below you will find how each of our national recruiting analysts filled out their bracket.
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