Miami QB commit Judd Anderson not at Elite 11 finals, but many still convinced Hurricanes landed a winner

Miami 2024 quarterback commit Judd Anderson was not invited to this week’s Elite 11 Finals in California with the other top quarterbacks around the country, but those around him are still convinced the Hurricanes landed a future winner with massive upside.

Anderson missed the cut for the Elite 11 Finals following the regional competition several weeks ago, but one could make a case for why he should have earned an invitation, according to On3 Director of Scouting and Rankings Charles Power. Power has seen Anderson make encouraging strides this offseason and thought he performed well at the Elite 11 regional competition, and he believes he has one of the better upsides among three-star prospects in the class.

The Gray (Ga.) Jones County native is the No. 1192 overall prospect in the On3 Industry Ranking and No. 72 quarterback — in addition to being On3’s No. 65 quarterback — but Power expects that ranking to improve later this summer. He is listed as a three-star quarterback and stands at 6-foot-6, 217 pounds.

“Whenever we update our rankings later in the summer, he will slide up a bit in that three-star range,” Power said. “He’s huge. He’s well over 6-foot-6, close to 6-foot-7, moves pretty well, I think the arm checks out well in that setting. He’s got a very strong arm, can drive the football and has a relatively tight throwing motion as well for a taller guy, which is something you always wonder about with tall quarterbacks.”

Power added he thinks one could make a case for Anderson to land an invitation to the Elite 11 Finals, although it’s ultimately a subjective selection process that also takes game film and in-season play into account. Anderson’s stats weren’t overwhelming last season with 15 touchdowns and 13 interceptions, but his flashes of upside suggested he could be on track to make a big jump his senior season.

“I think his ceiling is fairly high,” Power said. “He has a lot of physical ability with his size, the arm talent, I think you can see the flashes are definitely there in his highlights. I think the basketball background is encouraging too. A lot of times bigger quarterbacks might be a little slow-footed, but I think he moves well enough.”

Last season was Anderson’s first season playing in a modern spread offense after previously playing in a power-running wing-T offense earlier in high school. Anderson steadily grew more comfortable in the spread and has made consistent progress in the offseason as well, Jones County head coach Mike Chastain said.

“His upside is through the roof,” Chastain said. “He does a good job commanding the offense, has a great head on his shoulders, is very even-keeled and just continues to get better every day. He hasn’t been playing a quarterback for long (relatively) at our position (with the spread offense), and I’m really looking forward to him having an awesome senior year.”

Chastain said Anderson had some “really, really good numbers” at a 7-on-7 competition at Auburn last week and expects him to have a similar showing when he goes to another 7-on-7 competition at Georgia this week.

Physically, Chastain has already seen Anderson grow tremendously and thinks his physical traits are far from their full potential.

“I think he’s really going to catch up even more athletically with his body,” Chastain said. “I’m sure he’s grown about five or six inches over the last two years, so he’s going to continue to get more athletic than even what he is already. He’s a two-sport star and does a phenomenal job on the basketball court too. Again, his upside is through the roof.”

If Anderson’s on-field production climbs to meet his physical traits this fall, Miami could have landed a serious player as he wraps up his senior season, Power said.

“I think he has a case of having one of the higher upsides, but we just want to see improvement on the field,” Power said. “For a guy where all of the physical ability is there, he’s just got to continue to improve as a player, and for us, the senior season is really indicative. If he comes out and has a big senior season, he could certainly continue to move up (in the rankings).”

CaneSport’s Take

The Hurricanes fell in love with Anderson’s upside, and with him on track to have an impressive senior season, Miami’s early evaluation of him is looking promising. But the value of his senior season can’t be overstated when indicating just how polished he’ll be heading into college.

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