For college football fans hoping to get a sneak peak at the sport’s next crop of star quarterbacks, it doesn’t get much better than the Elite 11 competition.
ESPN’s trademark quarterback camp has been attended by the likes of Tim Tebow, Vince Young, Geno Smith and Teddy Bridgewater since its introduction in 1999. It’s really become one of the premier events on the college football recruiting calender.
This year’s competition figures to feature another star-studded roster of college-bound signal-callers. According to the official Elite 11 Twitter feed, over 700 quarterbacks from around the country competed on the regional stage to qualify for the premier final competition.
Shout out and congrats to all 700+ QBs that came out and competed on the 3 month tour! #KeepClimbing #EmbraceTheJourney #AlwaysCompete
— Elite11 (@Elite11) June 11, 2013
In all, 18 of the best high school quarterbacks in the country will compete for the distinction of being in the Elite 11. They will be receiving instruction from ESPN analyst and former NFL quarterback Trent Dilfer, NFL veteran Jordan Palmer and quarterbacks coach George Whitfield.
This year, ESPN combined their exclusive quarterback competition with their competition for the top non-quarterback prospects in the country, The Opening. Here’s everything you need to know
Dates and TV Coverage
Saturday, June 29: Untelevised
Sunday, June 30: Untelevised
Monday, July 1: ESPNU at 7:00 p.m. ET
Tuesday, July 2: ESPNU at 9:00 p.m. ET
Wednesday, July 3: ESPN U at 9:00 p.m. ET
Full Roster
Composite rankings and commitments via 247 Sports, roster via ESPN.
Prospects to Watch
DeShaun Watson
Watson is one of the most intriguing prospects in the competition.
He’s listed by 247 Sports as one of the top pro-style quarterbacks in the nation, but that’s not to say he isn’t a spectacular athlete. He has an impressive 4.65 40-yard dash time and threw for over 4,000 yards and 50 touchdowns to eight interceptions in his final high school season.
Watson’s abilities as a passer will be put to the test in Oregon—all of the nation’s best passers will be competing side-by-side in drills. If he proves to be one of the better passers, the Clemson commit could be making waves early in his career once Tajh Boyd graduates.
David Cornwell
It appears Nick Saban has locked up his next star quarterback.
A.J. McCarron came to Alabama as the No. 7 ranked pro-style quarterback in the country according to 247 Sports’ composite rankings in 2009. In his time at Alabama, Saban has turned him into the winningest quarterback in college football.
Now he’ll have the opportunity to groom Cornwell into the next championship-winning quarterback at Alabama. The highly sought-after Cromwell is as impressive physical specimen as you’ll see at the competition coming in at 6’5″ and 230 pounds.
Cornwell is No. 4 in the 247 Sports composite rankings, but seen as the No. 1 quarterback in the class by many. He’ll have a chance to show he deserves to move up with a good performance here.
Sean White
White enters the competition as the only quarterback that has yet to commit to a school, which means he may have the most to gain from a stand out performance.
At 6’2″, 204 pounds, White doesn’t have jaw-dropping size, but he is capable of moving around in the pocket to create throwing windows and delivering the ball with accuracy.
He currently has offers from schools such as Cincinnati, West Virginia and Houston. Christopher Nee of 247 sports predicts that he will wind up in Wisconsin.
A strong showing among the best quarterbacks in the country may expand the list of offers he has received.