Clik here to view.
What makes Town so in demand for college teams?
California-based pro-style quarterback Ricky Town is widely considered one of the top passing prospects in the nation and top players in the Golden State. Town, who currently plays at St. Bonaventure High School in Ventura, Cal., is the consensus No. 2 player in California and a top five overall prospect. He has received five-star ratings from Rivals, Scout and 247 Sports; both Scout and 247 rank Town as the nation's top pro-style quarterback recruit. ESPN has given Town a four-star rating.
The 6'4, 190-lb. Town had received ten offers from across the country by February, including Southern Cal, Alabama, Florida State, Georgia, Miami, Stanford, Texas, Tennessee, UCLA, and Arizona State.
Town is on Twitter at @RickyTownQB.
Town is an impressive prospect. Having seen him in person, and on film, I believe he is one of the best pro-style quarterback recruits in the class of 2015. I am not, however, ready to say he is the best pro-style quarterback recruit in the class. He does not necessarily "pop" to me like Christian Hackenberg did in the class of 2013, or like Kyle Allen did in 2014.
But there are many things to like about Town. First, he has a consistent, compact stroke. I'd like to see him hold the ball a bit higher, but a consistent throwing motion that is mechanically sound is one of the keys to good quarterbacking. His motion actually reminds me a bit of Jay Cutler's, though perhaps a bit more robotic. He also does a nice job with play fakes, which helps to hold the rush.
On tape we are able to see Town be pressured a lot, because his offensive line is not great. He does drive the ball with authority though, and he is able to quickly release it to get it to his playmakers. And he moves well within the pocket, though he is far from what I would consider to be a dual-threat quarterback.
And while Town makes the difficult throws, I would like to see him have better accuracy within the target. Too often he does not hit his receivers in stride. That and his somewhat robotic style are two things I would like to see him improve before naming him the top pro-style quarterback recruit for 2015.
But he has major tools, and that can be seen in the NFL-type throws in which he fits the ball into tight windows down the field. If Town continues to develop, he has the physical tools to be one of the best quarterbacks in college football down the line.
