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It's National Signing Day - the annual date when college football fans live and die with the decisions made by 17 and 18 year old kids. That means the day will consist of made-for-TV moments where a high school football players put on a college team's hat, and families will (mostly) celebrate.
With National Signing Day upon us, I wondered how the Miami Dolphins' players rated when they were coming out of high school. Using Rivals.com, I looked up the 60 players on the Dolphins' active roster, injured reserve, and non-football injury list. Below are the rankings for each player.
Rivals.com rates players on a 1-5 star rating, as well as giving them all a score ranging from 4.9 up to 6.1. As they explain it, a 6.1 is a franchise player, 5.8-6.0 is an All-American candidate, a 5.5-5.7 is an All-Region selection, 5.0-5.4 is a Division I prospect, and a 4.9 was given to players that weren't known to the Rivals.com scouts. Both the stars and the ratings are in the chart below.
Of course, not all players were available. Some players' recruitment from high school to college pre-dates Rivals.com. Some were never on major schools' radars, and weren't picked up by Rivals.com. Some may have had a grade, but it's no longer available. Those players are all listed at the bottom of the chart.
Before we get to the list, it's interesting to note how few five- and four-star high school prospects are on the Dolphins roster. There are nearly as many two star prospects (14) as combined four- and five-star (15). It does show that the high school star ratings do not necessarily translate to success at the college or pro levels.
Here's the Dolphins' roster:
| Player | High School | Position | College | Stars | Ranking |
| Jelani Jenkins | Olney (MD) Good Counsel | Outside linebacker | Florida | 5 | 6.1 |
| Reshad Jones | Atlanta (GA) Booker T. Washington | Safety | Georgia | 5 | 6.1 |
| Jared Odrick | Lebanon (PA) Lebanon | Defensive tackle | Penn State | 4 | 6.0 |
| Lamar Miller | Miami (FL) Killian | Running back | Miami | 4 | 6.0 |
| Dannell Ellerbe | Rockingham (NC) Richmond County | Outside linebacker | Georgia | 4 | 5.9 |
| Pat Devlin | Downington (PA) East | Quarterback | Penn State | 4 | 5.9 |
| Danny Watkins | Oroville (CA) Butte CC | Tackle | Baylor | 4 | 5.8 |
| Dion Jordan | Chandler (AZ) Chandler | Tight end | Oregon | 4 | 5.8 |
| Dion Sims | Orchard Lake (MI) St. Mary's | Tight end | Michigan State | 4 | 5.8 |
| Mike Gillislee | Deland (FL) Deland | Running back | Florida | 4 | 5.8 |
| Mike Pouncey | Lakeland (FL) Lakeland | Guard | Florida | 4 | 5.8 |
| Olivier Vernon | Miami (FL) American | Defensive end | Miami | 4 | 5.8 |
| John Jerry | Chatham (VA) Hargrave Military Acad | Tackle | Mississippi | 4 | |
| Matt Moore | Newhall (CA) Hart | Quarterback | UCLA | 4 | |
| Paul Soliai | Coffeyville (KS) Kofeyville CC | Guard | Utah | 4 | |
| Brian Hartline | Canton (OH) Glenoak | Wide receiver | Ohio State | 3 | 5.7 |
| Jonathan Martin | North Hollywood (CA) Harvard Westlake | Tackle | Stanford | 3 | 5.7 |
| Brandon Gibson | Puyallup (WA) Rogers | Athlete | Washington State | 3 | 5.6 |
| Dallas Thomas | Baton Rouge (LA) Scotlandville | Tackle | Tennessee | 3 | 5.6 |
| Michael Thomas | Houston (TX) Nimitz | Athlete | Stanford | 3 | 5.6 |
| R.J. Stanford | Chino (CA) Chino | Running back | Utah | 3 | 5.6 |
| Sam Brenner | Oceanside (CA) Oceanside | Guard | Utah | 3 | 5.6 |
| A.J. Francis | Washington (DC) Gonzaga | Defensive tackle | Maryland | 3 | 5.5 |
| Austin Spitler | Bellbrook (OH) Bellbrook | Inside linebacker | Ohio State | 3 | 5.5 |
| Charles Clay | Little Rock (AR) Central | Running back | Tulsa | 3 | 5.5 |
| Chris Clemons | Arcadia (FL) De Soto | Running back | Clemson | 3 | 5.5 |
| Jamar Taylor | La Mesa (CA) Helix | Cornerback | Boise State | 3 | 5.5 |
| Koa Misi | Santa Rosa (CA) Santa Rosa JC | Outside linebacker | Utah | 3 | 5.5 |
| Nolan Carroll | Green Cove Springs (FL) Clay | Wide receiver | Maryland | 3 | 5.5 |
| Ryan Tannehill | Big Spring (TX) Big Spring | Quarterback | Texas A&M | 3 | 5.5 |
| Will Yeatman | San Diego (CA) Rancho Bernardo | Tight end | Notre Dame | 3 | 5.5 |
| Philip Wheeler | Columbus (GA) Shaw | Outside linebacker | Georgia Tech | 3 | |
| Armon Binns | Pasadena (CA) Pasadena | Wide receiver | Cincinnati | 2 | 5.4 |
| Caleb Sturgis | Saint Augustine (FL) St. Augustine | Kicker | Florida | 2 | 5.4 |
| Will Davis | Cuperton (CA) De Anza College | Cornerback | Utah State | 2 | 5.4 |
| Michael Egnew | Painview (TX) Plainview | Wide receiver | Missouri | 2 | 5.3 |
| Derrick Shelby | Misouri City (TX) Hightower | Defensive end | Utah | 2 | 5.2 |
| Don Jones | Perkinston (MS) Gulf Coast CC | Cornerback | Arkansas State | 2 | 5.2 |
| Mike Wallace | New Orleans (LA) O. Perry Walker | Wide receiver | Mississippi | 2 | 5.2 |
| Chris Owens | Los Angeles (CA) Dorsey | Cornerback | San Jose State | 2 | 5.1 |
| Jalil Brown | Phoenix (AZ) South Mountain | Athlete | Colorado | 2 | 4.9 |
| Jonathan Freeny | Margate (FL) Coconut Creek | Defensive end | Rutgers | 2 | 4.9 |
| Brandon Fields | Toledo (OH) St. Johns Jesuit | Kicker | Michigan State | 2 | |
| Dustin Keller | Lafayette (IN) Jefferson | Wide receiver | Purdue | 2 | |
| Marcus Thigpen | Detroit (MI) Mumford | Wide receiver / Running back | Indiana | 2 | |
| Nate Garner | Pulaski (AR) Robinson | Tackle | Arkansas | 2 | |
| Brent Grimes | Philadelphia (PA) Northeast | Cornerback | Shippensburg | ||
| Bryant McKinnie | Woodbury (NJ) Woodbury | Tackle | Miami | ||
| Derek Cameron Wake | Beltsville (MD) De Matha | Outside linebacker | Penn State | ||
| David Arkin | Wichita (KS) Kapaun Mt. Carmel | Guard | Missouri State | ||
| Dimitri Patterson | Orlando (FL) Maynard Evans | Cornerback | South East Missouri State | ||
| Jason Trusnik | Macedonia (OH) Mordonia | Linebacker | Ohio Northern | ||
| Jimmy Wilson | San Diego (CA) Point Loma | Running back / Safety | Montana | ||
| John Denney | Thornton (CO) Horizon | Defensive end | Ricks College | ||
| Jordan Kovacs | Oregon (OH) Clay | Safety | Michigan | ||
| Marlon Moore | Sacramento (CA) Natomas | Wide receiver | Fresno State | ||
| Randy Starks | Waldorf (MD) Westlake | Defensive tackle | Maryland | ||
| Richie Incognito | Glendale (AZ) Mountain Ridge | Center | Nebraska | ||
| Rishard Matthews | Santa Ana (CA) Saddleback | Wide receiver | Nevada | ||
| Tyson Clabo | Farragut (TN) Farragut | Tackle | Wake Forest |
