The Opening Finals is officially back following a six-year hiatus. The Nike Football event gets underway on Thursday from Beaverton, Oregon and will run through Friday.
More than 100 prospects across the 2027, 2028 and 2029 recruiting cycles are in attendance this week at the Philip H. Knight Campus. Prospects earned invites to the finals after competing in regional events across seven cities this spring and summer.
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Some of the program’s prominent alumni include 2024 NFL Defensive Player of the Year Patrick Surtain II, two-time All-Pro receiver Ja’Marr Chase, reigning Offensive Player of the Year Saquon Barkley, and two-time NFL rushing yards leader Derrick Henry.
FULL OPENING FINALS ROSTER | OPENING FINALS PREVIEW
Thursday will feature 1-on-1 action, as well as “training camp” style periods. Rivals National Scout Cody Bellaire, as well as Rivals national experts Greg Biggins, Brandon Huffman and Sam Spiegelman are all on hand this week and will provide analysis throughout the first session.
Join the discussion on the Rivals recruiting board here.
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Opening Finals Day 1 Afternoon Updates
Thursday’s afternoon session will feature a 7-on-7 jamboree followed by the first round of the event’s 7-on-7 tournament in the evening.
3:32 p.m. PT: First game of 7on7 watching Team Midwest v Team South
South Offense
QB Kharim Hughley – 1 TD, 1 INT
QB Elijah Haven – 3 TD, 0 INT
WR Ar’Tavian Brown – 1 TD
RB Jayden Miles – 1 TD
WR Joshua Parker – 1 TD
WR Maddox Porter – 1 TD
Midwest Defense
DB Tristin Hughes – 1 INT, 1 PBU
LB Brayton Feister – 1 PBU — Cody Bellaire
3:31 p.m. PT: We are in the afternoon seven on seven session and Alabama five-star quarterback commit Elijah Haven through touchdowns on three consecutive throws
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Two were deep shots and another a strike in coverage in the middle of the end zone
Alabama freshman quarterback Keelon Russell is coaching Elijah on the field. — Sam Spiegelman
3:26 p.m. PT: Braylen Bedford with an INT, twitchy 2028 safety/corner. — Greg Biggins
3:22 p.m. PT: Cal commit Charles Davis with a TD grab from Ryan Rakowski. — Greg Biggins
3:21 p.m. PT: First game of 7-on-7 watching Team Midwest v Team South
Midwest Offense
QB Trae Taylor – 2 TD, 2 INT
QB Jake Nawrot – 1 TD, 0 INT, 2 passes broken up
WR Ja’Hyde Brown – 1 TD
WR Jamier Brown – 1 TD
WR Branden Sharpe – 1 TD
South Defense
LB Drew Williams – 1 INT
DB Brandon Allen Jr. – 1 INT
DB Captain Munnerlyn Jr. – 1 PBU
DB Adryan Cole – 1 PBU — Cody Bellaire
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3:19 p.m. PT: Juju Johnson almost gets his second pick of the game but settles for a PBU. — Brandon Huffman
3:12 p.m. PT: Amari Patterson with a one-handed touchdown grab from Israel Abrams, beat Hayden Stepp. — Greg Biggins
Rivals names eye-catchers from morning session
Following the end of Thursday’s morning session, Rivals’ Cody Bellaire and Brandon Huffman have named their eye-catchers as the players will break for lunch before returning for the evening session.
Nebraska four-star QB commit Trae Taylor, Miami four-star QB commit Irsael Abrams, Texas Tech four-star RB commit SaRod Baker, Texas five-star WR commit Easton Royal and Miami five-star CB commit Donte Wright were among the 17 prospects featured.
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“Taylor spun it extremely well, placed it well during 1-on-1s, looked good during warmups, the ball jumps out of his hand,” Bellaire wrote. “He finished top five in the longest-throw contest, sending one 66 yards downfield. From an arm talent and strength standpoint, he really does have it all and he showed that.”
On Royal: “The vertical ability of Texas WR commit Easton Royal is second to none in this setting. He’s clearly a sub-10.5 100-meter track star and he shows that on the field. His play speed matches his track speed — if you don’t get a hand on him in the line of scrimmage and can’t re-route him, then you better be as quick as him or he’ll blow by you vertically.”
Opening Finals Day 1 Morning Updates
10:40 a.m. PT: Onto the longest throw competition as the elite crop of QBs let it fly. Clemson four-star commit Kharim Hughley takes first with a 68-yard throw. LSU four-star commit Peyton Houston (67), Nebraska four-star commit Trae Taylor (66), Missouri four-star commit Braylen Warren (63) and Ohio State four-star commit Brady Edmunds (61) round out the top five. — Cody Bellaire
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10:25 a.m. PT: The fastest man competition came down to Texas Five-Star Plus+ CB commit John Meredith and junior four-star WR Deandre Bidden. With a 4.49 hand-time, Bidden was the overall winner after they both won a heat.
10:15 a.m. PT: Pass-catchers like Texas WR commit Easton Royal, Texas Tech WR commit Benny Easter Jr., Cal TE/WR commit Charles Davis and Kentucky TE commit Tank Proctor definitely look the part early on. — Cody Bellaire
10:08 a.m. PT: Three-star SMU LB commit Braylon Williams and Cal three-star RB commit Jaxsen Stokes each win a rep against each other. Williams gets him violently first, then Stokes accelerates past him the next rep. — Brandon Huffman
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10:05 a.m. PT: Four-star LB Brayton Feister is pretty damn physical. Four-star RB Trey Martin jukes right into him and gets drilled. Feister will announce his commitment on July 11. — Brandon Huffman
10:02 a.m. PT: Junior four-star linebacker Allen Kennett just laid out a running back as he tried to juke him. He didn’t have time for that today. Kennett is the No. 12 LB in the 2028 cycle, per the Rivals Industry Ranking. — Brandon Huffman
10:00 a.m. PT: Out of the defensive back group. CB Hayden Stepp, Texas CB commit John Meredith, Miami commit CB Donte Wright, 2028 S Jackson Parker, and Kentucky S commit Tristin Hughes all physically look the part. — Cody Bellaire
9:58 a.m. PT: Four-star RB Trey Martin gets to work in the cat-and-mouse drill, juking his defender with ease. Martin, an LSU commit, is the No. 11 RB in the nation.
9:51 a.m. PT: Trenton Yancey, a four-star WR out of Duncanville (Texas), was held for an entire rep and still comes down with the catch. — Brandon Huffman
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9:49 a.m. PT: Quickly in to 1-on-1s. On the first rep, Quentin Hale, the four-star USC commit, went up against five-star Donte Wright and the Miami CB commit (and Hale’s 7on teammate) gets the breakup. — Brandon Huffman
9:30 a.m. PT: Purely body-typing…out of the quarterback group, Ohio State commit Brady Edmunds, Alabama commit Elijah Haven, 2028 QB Neimann Lawrence, Missouri commit Braylen Warren and Nebraska commit Trae Taylor are the most well put together prospects. — Cody Bellaire
9:15 a.m. PT: Prospects are on the field and getting loose. In addition to participating in the event, a handful of blue-chippers are also nearing their college commitments. Four-star linebacker Fredderick Ford, four-star linebacker Sean Fox and junior four-star quarterback Niemann Lawrence are among those that will announce their decisions on Thursday.
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8:35 a.m. PT: At the Nike World Headquarters in Beaverton this morning for the first day of the The Opening Finals. The morning session will be the Jordan Football Training Camp, with a dynamic workout, individual drills, 1-on-1s and some events before this afternoon and evening see the Nike 7-on-7 portion get underway. Action should be getting underway in the next hour. — Brandon Huffman
