Top performers and overall breakdown from Day 1 of 2022 Elite 11 Finals; Dante Moore claims top spot
LOS ANGELES - The first night of the Elite 11 Finals, the nation's premier competition for rising high school senior quarterbacks, took place on Tuesday from Redondo Union High School in Los Angeles. The opening session consisted of group drill work and then an individual throwing competition organized by Trent Dilfer to end the evening.
Here's who stood out on night one:
BEST OVERALL
Martin Luther King (Mich.) QB Dante Moore was one of the most consistent throwers on Tuesday. He performed well in every drill we saw but really stood out firing passes on the run. Moore has impressive mechanics, tremendous athletic ability and a very strong arm that he showed off when he hit the cross bar of the field goal post from 60 yards out to end the night. Moore visited Oregon last week, but said on Tuesday that he has no timetable for making a college decision. Michigan and Texas A&M are also contenders for his services.
>>> Prediction: Oregon Ducks to land 5-star quarterback Dante Moore
Another consistent high level performer was Denton Guyer (Texas) QB Jackson Arnold. The Oklahoma commit didn't have the flashiest night, but he checks all the boxes and showed that he's capable of making every throw. Arnold tosses a great ball.
In terms of flair, Los Alamitos (Calif.) QB Malachi Nelson, a USC commit, made a number of jaw dropping plays. He might not have been as consistent as Moore or Arnold, but a few of his throws stood out as the most impressive of the group. Nelson showed great accuracy and touch when throwing on the run.
Ravenwood (Tenn.) quarterback Chris Parson performed best in the clutch on Tuesday. After the group drills portion of the night ended, the QB's finished the first session of the week with a single elimination rail shot competition. Parson threw very well in the drills, but the Florida State commit really separated himself thanks to beating every high school QB and college counselor to win the rail shot.
WHO ELSE CAME TO PLAY?
Alabama commit and Louisiana native Eli Holstein made some really impressive throws as did St. John Bosco (Calif.) QB and Louisville commit Pierce Clarkson. Pope John Paul II (Tenn.) QB Kenny Minchey, a Pitt commit, was also solid. Nebraska native Zane Flores, an Oklahoma State commit, had a good night too.
WHO WAS THE BEST PASS CATCHER?
Tuesday night's session didn't feature too many top wide receiver recruits, but 2023 Pinnacle (Ariz.) tight end Duce Robinson was there and he made it easy to see why he's a blue chip prospect.
For starters, Robinson looks the part at 6-foot-6 and 225 pounds, but he also catches just about everything. Robinson hauled in the reception of the night when he somehow brought in a one-handed TD during the drill work.
The receiver group will get deeper on Thursday for the 7on7 competition.
WHO ARE THE COUNSELORS?
NC State’s Devin Leary, UCLA’s Dorian Thompson-Robinson and Ohio State’s CJ Stroud, the 2019 Elite 11 Finals MVP, were all working on Tuesday night as counselors. USC’s Caleb Williams stopped by for the session as well despite not being listed as an official counselor. Alabama’s Bryce Young is expected to show up on Wednesday.
The college counselors competed in drills in addition to coaching the high school QB's. Leary performed the best out of the college group on Tuesday. He throws a beautiful ball and just excels overall in a combine setting.
One of the best moments of night one came when Dilfer made fun of Williams for his red and black pants calling them something he would have worn in 1992, the year Dilfer led Fresno State to a 24-7 win over USC in the Freedom Bowl.
Here are photos from Day 1 of competition in Los Angeles:
All photos by Heston Quan
