<
        >

          On The Trail

          EXCLUSIVE CONTENT
          Get ESPN+

          The fan's guide to The Opening

          • Tom VanHaaren
            Close
            Tom VanHaaren
            ESPN Staff Writer
            • ESPN staff writer
            • Joined ESPN in 2011
            • Graduated from Central Michigan
            Follow on X
          • Erik McKinney
            Close
            Erik McKinney
            ESPN Staff Writer
            • Covers recruiting in the Pac-12
            • Joined ESPN in 2009
            • Graduated from USC
            Follow on X
          Jul 1, 2015, 09:00 AM ET

          The Opening presented by Nike is a week-long event that takes place in Beaverton, Oregon at Nike Headquarters starting July 5. The event puts 166 of the top high school football prospects through combine testing, 7-on-7 play, individual drills and coaching and a stiff quarterback competition all in one place.

          There is a lot that goes on within the elite event, so here is a fan’s guide to what to watch for throughout the week.

          Elite 11:

          Some of the top high school quarterbacks have competed all over the country the past few months hoping to be one of the 18 prospects selected to move on to the Elite 11 finals.

          The list is now set and the quarterbacks will kick off The Opening and battle throughout the week to make the final Elite 11.

          In years past, the top signal callers have gone through marine training on the beach and off the field mental testing to go along with the on field events.

          The quarterbacks have to show their mental aptitude by learning a playbook, making the right reads on certain plays and running a multitude of scenarios both on the field and in the classroom.

          They will be judged by their classroom performance, 7-on-7 play, individual drill performance and a variety of other aspects and ultimately selected for the final Elite 11 at the end of the week.

          Nike football rating national championship:

          One of the more exciting aspects of The Opening is when the prospects are put through combine testing, competing to make it to the championship round. Prospects will run the 40-yard dash, shuttle, throw a power ball and show their hops in the vertical to get a total rating.

          Florida State commit Levonta Taylor comes into the event as the leader with a 140.16 rating achieved by demolishing every event he entered.

          The top scores get to move on to the championship round and try their hand at the events all over again to see who is crowned as the winner with the highest rating. We have seen some impressive feats in past years, including current Texas A&M receiver Speedy Noil jumping through the roof with a 45.3 inch vertical.

          The top 10 scores moved on in last year’s championship and was ultimately won by running back Kirk Merritt, who blazed through the forty with a time of 4.46 and a final score of 148.83.

          7-on-7:

          The participants in The Opening Finals are split into six different teams prior to the event, but the teams don’t mean much through the first few days of one-on-ones and SPARQ testing. But on July 9 and 10, those teams -- Hypercool, Superbad, Mach Speed, Lunarbeast, Fly Rush and Alpha Pro -- mean everything, as bragging rights are on the line in a 7-on-7 tournament.

          The first day is pool play, as each team plays four games in order to establish seeding for Day 2, which is the 7-on-7 finals with only the winning team moving on until a champion is crowned.

          Day 1 was certainly interesting last year, as the Land Sharks team dropped all four games and entered the tournament as the lowest seed. But behind solid quarterback play, they made a run to the final game before coming up short against a team led by Alabama commits Blake Barnett and Calvin Ridley.

          Though each team has three quarterbacks, the first day is the only time all three are guaranteed to play, with each getting one half to themselves before rotating out. The second day, however, coaches of the respective teams can play their quarterbacks in whatever rotation they want -- or go with a hot hand and leave one quarterback under center for the duration. Last year, USC commit Ricky Town put a disappointing Day 1 behind him and came up huge on Day 2, taking over his team and working almost exclusively as the quarterback. On the other side in the finals, Team Apocolypse relied heavily on Barnett, but also put Oregon commit Travis Waller (now Travis Jonsen) under center during the second day. As a result, those were the three quarterbacks named to the All-Tournament team.

          Linemen Challenge:

          The skill position players don’t get to have all the fun at The Opening Finals. The linemen have an opportunity to put some pride on the line in a relay race and a tug of war. In addition, the linemen are the ones that get something of a true taste of fall football, as offensive and defensive linemen are able to put on shoulder pads and helmets and go one-on-one.

          Last year, the defensive line was able to beat the offensive line in the tug of war.

          It also gives everyone an opportunity to see the nation’s best go head to head, such as when offensive tackle Martez Ivey and defensive end Josh Sweat lined up across from each other last year.

          Last year’s No. 1 overall prospect and eventual Auburn commitment Byron Cowart gave a glimpse of what Tigers fans will be looking forward to seeing this fall, with this move during one-on-ones last summer.