College Football Recruiting 2012: Predicting the Top 25 U.S. Army All-Americans

The 2012 U.S. Army All-American Bowl figures to be another great and exciting game. It routinely is viewed as the "Senior Bowl" for high school football and many of the nation's best come to play.

Slated to be held January 7, 2012, the game will feature a plethora of the nation's most elite recruits. Many past and current college football players and even NFL Pro Bowlers have participated. So it's safe to say that for the players that play in this game, most of them will be in the NFL in a few years.

Here are 25 names to watch out for. 

25. Elijah Shumate, DS/OLB

Shumate is a player that I liken to former Arizona State star Adam Archuleta. At 6'1", 200 pounds, he has great instincts versus the run and fills alleys quickly.

He can play outside 'backer and strong safety and he is nasty in the box. He can stand to improve his coverage ability, but he's too good in the box to be asked to play in space often.

24. Kent Taylor, TE

Taylor could easily be listed as a big receiver instead of at tight end. At 6'5", 215 pounds he can be used in a variety of ways for an offense.

A tight end, H-back, fullback or receiver, Taylor is an offensive weapon. He can snatch balls around his frame, catch in crowds and also factor as blocker.

23. Tracy Howard, CB

At 6'0", 175 pounds, Howard has the length that many teams are looking for in corners these days. Receivers are getting bigger, so corners need to be as well.

Yet Howard also has solid coverage skills and can come out of his backpedal easily and fluidly. He can carry receivers deep and will sniff around in the run game as well.

22. Michael Starts, DL/OL

At 6'5", 275 pounds, Starts reminds me a bit of USC tackle Tyron Smith coming out of high school. He's super athletic and can play guard and tackle.

Starts shows easy movement in his pulls and traps and is dynamic on the second level. He can hit moving targets and is productive in space.

Interestingly enough, Starts committed to Texas Tech where he will actually likely play DL.

21. Travis Blanks, DB

Blanks is among the most physical DBs in the country. He's a big one at 6'1", 195 pounds and is a very, very good and pure athlete. He can play both safety and corner on the back end.

Blanks had over 100 tackles as a junior and made plays on the ball on a routine basis. He's physical in press coverage, using his strength and long arms to stymie WRs in their release. He also has good transition quickness out of his back pedal.

He's headed for Clemson.

20. Jordan Payton, WR

Payton is one of the best players in the country, but his recruitment is also one of the most interesting sagas as well. At 6'2", 190 pounds, Payton is perhaps the best receiver in Southern California.

He is committed to USC, but he has taken an array of visits, including to SMU, Cal and plans to see Michigan and Notre Dame too.

Will he end up at USC or elsewhere? Stay tuned.

19. Durron Neal, WR

The thing about Neal is he plays the same position and is in the same state as Dorial Green-Beckham. Yet Neal is no slouch himself.

At 6'0", 185 pounds, he has good speed, quickness and runs solid routes. He shows an ability to attack the football at its highest point and seems to always find a way to get more yards out of a catch than he should.

Neal committed to Oklahoma last week.

18. Geno Smith, CB

Smith is a tall and long corner at 6'0", 165 pounds. He really excels in off-man and zone coverage. This is where he flashes his smooth backpedal, loose hips and transition quickness.

He lacks strength to jam effectively at the line, but he is so good in coverage that he can still be thrown on an island and forgotten about. He also shows good hands to make picks on balls outside his frame.

17. Ty Darlington, OC

Darlington is an underrated player rankings-wise, as he may be one of the better technically sound offensive linemen in the country. At 6'3", 275 pounds, he gets by with technique, position quickness, toughness, quick feet and finish ability.

He projects best as a center, using his solid athleticism and quickness as a pivot player, along with his instincts, feel and intelligence to set protections, run-blocking schemes and call out defensive fronts.

He's Oklahoma-bound.

16. Barry Sanders Jr., RB

At 5'9", 190 pounds, Sanders actually does remind you a bit of his dad when you watch him on tape. He has excellent elusiveness and quickness in the open field and just enough long speed to get to the house.

He displays great balance to take hits and shoves in the box and he can still stay on his feet and get up field. He won't wow you with his stature, but he will with the ball in his hands.

15. Tee Shepard, CB

Shepard is another cover corner who is among the top in the nation.

At 6'0" and over 170 pounds, he can play free safety and corner. He shows coverage skills of a corner, which is where I think he projects best. Shepard is a great athlete with quick feet and transition ability on the perimeter.

He's headed for Notre Dame. 

14. Zach Banner, OT

Banner is the longest offensive tackle in the country, and I mean that about his overall reach and wingspan. He stands 6'9"—yes 6'9"—and weighs 300 pounds. 

Banner is not just a stick figure, as he shows great athleticism on the edges to set up quickly, bend his knees, slide, mirror and anchor versus all rushers. He can use his long arms to wash, but also can get up in targets' chests as a drive blocker.

13. Leonte Carroo, WR

Carroo is one of the best players, not only in New Jersey, but also on the East Coast. A 6'2", 200-pound receiver, he has very good strength to release off the line to fight press coverage, and he can break free and scoot upfield with speed.

Once he breaks out of his cuts with suddenness and sharpness to gain separation, he becomes QB-friendly, as Carroo catches almost everything in sight. He's also a deep threat with solid RAC ability as well.

12. Jordan Simmons, OL

Simmons has the talent and ability to play tackle and guard , but I like him as a guard more. At 6'5", 335 pounds, he shows very, very good athletic ability, strength and balance as a blocker.

He can even play some center in a pinch, too. He does have some baby fat around his body, but a college strength program will shed that, and he is one of the very elite line prospects in the country.

11. Kyle Kalis, OT

Kalis is a 6'5", 305-pound lineman's type of lineman. He's a lunch-pail type that works on the fronts each snap, whether at right or left tackle. He's best in the run game, showing an ability to play with good leverage at the point of attack and finish ability.

He can pull and trap well, due to his easy movement. As a pass protector, Kalis displays solid foot quickness to slide and mirror well. I like him most at right tackle.

10. D.J. Humphries, OT

The natural comparison for Humphries' game seems to be Jets left tackle D'Brickashaw Ferguson, and rightfully so.

At 6'6", 270 pounds, Humphries is a left tackle through and through and is likely the best athlete in the trenches in the country.

9. Darius Hamilton, DE

Hamilton is a 6'4", 245-pound defensive prospect that can do it all.

Most ends at the high school level only focus on their pass-rushing prowess, yet Hamilton shows the strength to anchor and shed against the end.

Toss that in with his elite pass-rushing ability, and you see a 5-star prospect on the defensive edge.

8. Shaq Thompson, DB

Thompson is a 6'1", 195-pound safety prospect who can also play running back and a little bit of cornerback as well.

His brother Syd plays for the Denver Broncos, and Shaq was the top player for NorCal powerhouse Grant HS (Calif.) as a junior.

Recently Thompson pledged to California, but a few days later, re-opened his recruitment. I still think he ends up at Cal in the end.

He is rumored to be waiting until the Army game to announce.

7. John Theus, OT

At 6'6", 295 pounds, Theus excels at drive blocking and has the ability to finish.

Solid in pass protection, I think Theus' best spot is right tackle. In no specific order, Alabama, Georgia, Texas, Notre Dame, Arkansas and Florida are Theus' top six schools.

He moves targets off their marks with ease, has quick feet and plays physical at the point of attack.

6. Eddie Goldman, DT

Goldman is a 6'5", 305-plus pound defensive tackle that has "special" written all over him. He has the quickness to jump blockers at the snap, strength to toss and shed and anchor ability to stop double-teams in their tracks and make a mess in the middle.

He wants to play 4-3 tackle, but some teams like him at 3-4 nose. He can play both well in my opinion, and could even play 3-4 end. He isn't a wow-you type of athlete that will chase in pursuit, but Goldman does have a bit of range.

5. Arik Armstead, DE/OT

At 6'8", 280 pounds, Armstead has been talked as the top prospect in the country. He can play defensive end, defensive tackle and also shows the feet and balance to play left tackle.

The brother of current USC defensive end Armond Armstead, Arik is a mammoth who isn't just a big man; he's an excellent athlete as well.

He is solid to USC, where he will begin as a strong-side defensive end.

4. Stefon Diggs, WR/RB/DB/RS

Diggs is a player that can factor as a receiver or safety. I could move him onto the ATH board or DS board, but in the end, he is simply too good with the ball in his hands not to play on offense in my opinion.

At 6'1", 190 pounds, he is a quicker-than-fast athlete, but he does have tremendous speed. His RAC ability is amazing, and he is likely tops in this category in the country for 2012. Diggs can shake, bake and clean the dishes routinely.

3. Noah Spence, DE

Spence is the top pure pass-rusher in the country and easily has the quickest first two steps in America. He flies off the ball and gets after the QB with tenacity, passion and sheer speed.

At 6'4", 245 pounds, he has been compared to Dwight Freeney, although he is a bit longer and taller than the 6'1" Freeney.

Spence, at the moment, still seems to be taking the process all in, as he gets a new offer almost every day.

2. Johnathan Gray, RB

Gray is the top running back in the country on my board, as the 5'11", 195-pounder's production is that of three backs.

He has over 6,000 yards and 109 touchdowns over the past two seasons alone. Gray has elite vision, feel, instincts, elusiveness, speed and quickness.

Texas is where he will tote the rock.

1. Kwon Alexander, OLB

At 6'2", 210 pounds, Alexander is a fantastic linebacker prospect. He has tremendous play speed and range and will be a three-down defender in college.

He projects well at WILL, but I think he can also play SAM in a 4-3 scheme due to his ability to carry tight ends around the field in coverage.