Nate Tice’s 2027 big board: Mestemaker is QB1 at No. 5, and Manning stays eighth

Nate Tice expanded his 2027 draft big board from a preseason top 30 into a midseason list of more than 60 prospects. He is ranking everyone as if they will declare, while noting many players could still return to school.

Ohio State receiver Jeremiah Smith is No. 1 again, with Notre Dame cornerback Leonard Moore at No. 2 and South Carolina edge rusher Dylan Stewart at No. 3. LSU tackle Jordan Seaton is No. 4, ahead of Oklahoma State quarterback Drew Mestemaker at No. 5.

Mestemaker remains the top quarterback at No. 5 overall. Texas’s Arch Manning stays inside the top 10 at No. 8, well ahead of Eric Edholm’s board this week, which had him 18th.

Missouri’s Austin Simmons rises to No. 12 overall. Tice kept the ranking in place after noting Simmons has re-signed with Missouri for 2027, with a caveat that he can still explore the draft after the season.

Ole Miss’s Trinidad Chambliss is No. 16 and South Carolina’s LaNorris Sellers is No. 19. Oregon’s Dante Moore, Miami’s Darian Mensah and Notre Dame’s CJ Carr sit together near the end of the top 40.

Both Tice and Edholm keep Smith, Moore and Stewart 1-2-3. After that they split: Tice has Seaton fourth and Manning eighth, while Edholm had Charlie Becker fourth and Manning 18th. Tice says the board will keep moving as the college season unfolds.