Rivals is a service provided by On3.com that focuses on college football, basketball, and softball recruiting in the United States. It releases individual high school athlete rankings each year.
History The service was founded in 1996 and launched as Rivals.com in November 1998 in Seattle by Jim Heckman, Shannon Terry, William Sornsin, and other investors.
In February 2000, the company raised $35 million from SoftBank Group. In total, the company raised $90 million in venture capital from investors including SoftBank Group, Hummer Winblad Venture Partners, Intel, and Fox Digital Entertainment.
In December 2000, Rivals.com switched to a subscription business model. By March 2001, it had 20,000 paying subscribers.
In January 2000, Rivals acquired AllianceSports, a regional network that primarily covered college sports in the Southeastern United States, founded by Shannon Terry, for $3 million.
At its peak in 2000, Rivals.com employed close to 200 people, operated a network of 700 independent websites, filed for an initial public offering worth $100 million led by Goldman Sachs, and sponsored the Hula Bowl in Hawaii.
In April 2001, the bursting of the dot-com bubble caused the operator of the website, Rival Networks, to cease operations, though it never sought bankruptcy protection. Shannon Terry then bought back the assets for $500,000.
In June 2007, Yahoo acquired Rivals.com for approximately $100 million.
In April 2025, On3.com, led by Shannon Terry, acquired Rivals and Yahoo Sports acquired an ownership stake in On3.
Rivals Football #1 Ranked Football Players YearPlayer namePositionHigh School2002Vince YoungQuarterbackMadison HS (TX)2003Ernie SimsLinebackerNorth Florida Christian HS (FL)2004Adrian PetersonRunning BackPalestine HS (TX)2005Derrick WilliamsWide ReceiverEleanor Roosevelt HS (MD)2006Percy HarvinWide ReceiverLandstown HS (VA)2007Jimmy ClausenQuarterbackOaks Christian HS (CA)2008Terrelle PryorQuarterbackJeannette HS (PA)2009Bryce BrownRunning BackWichita East HS (KS)2010Ronald PowellDefensive EndRancho Verde HS (CA)2011Jadeveon ClowneyDefensive EndSouth Pointe HS (SC)2012Dorial Green-BeckhamWide ReceiverHillcrest HS (MO)2013Robert NkemdicheDefensive EndGrayson HS (GA)2014Da'Shawn HandDefensive EndWoodbridge HS (VA)2015Byron CowartDefensive EndArmwood HS (FL)2016Rashan GaryDefensive TackleParamus Catholic HS (NJ)2017Najee HarrisRunning BackAntioch HS (CA)2018Trevor LawrenceQuarterbackCartersville HS (GA)2019Nolan SmithDefensive EndIMG Academy (FL)2020Bryan BreseeDefensive TackleDamascus HS (MD)2021Korey ForemanDefensive EndCentennial HS (CA)2022Travis HunterCornerbackCollins Hill HS (GA)2023Arch ManningQuarterbackIsidore Newman HS (LA)2024Dylan RaiolaQuarterbackBuford HS (GA)2025Keelon RussellDual-threat QBDuncanville HS (TX)2026Luke WafleDefensive EndHun School (NJ)
Rivals Football Camp Series Beginning in 2012, Rivals hosted "Rivals Camp Series", which features assessment camps and athletic combines for skilled high school athletes in the United States. Notable players to have attended the camp include Lamar Jackson, Joe Burrow, Saquon Barkley, Patrick Mahomes, Puka Nacua, Sauce Gardner and Jayden Daniels.
Rivals Basketball #1 Ranked Basketball Players YearPlayerHigh School2003LeBron JamesSt. Vincent-St. Mary High School, OH2004Dwight HowardSouthwest Atlanta Christian Academy, GA2005Tasmin MitchellDenham Springs High School, LA2006Greg OdenLawrence North High School, IN2007Michael BeasleyOak Hill Academy2008Brandon JenningsOak Hill Academy, VA2009Lance StephensonLincoln High School, NY2010Josh SelbyLake Clifton High School, MD2011Austin RiversWinter Park High School, FL2012Shabazz MuhammadBishop Gorman High School, NV2013Andrew WigginsHuntington Prep, WV2014Jahlil OkaforWhitney Young High School, IL2015Ben SimmonsMontverde Academy, FL2016Josh JacksonProlific Prep, CA2017Michael Porter Jr.Nathan Hale High School, WA2018R.J. BarrettMontverde Academy, FL2019James WisemanMemphis East High School, TN2020Cade CunninghamMontverde Academy, FL2021Chet HolmgrenMinnehaha Academy, MN2022Dereck Lively IIWesttown School, PA2023Isaiah CollierWheeler High School, GA2024Tre JohnsonLink Year, MO2025AJ DybantsaUtah Prep Academy, UT2026Tyran StokesRainier Beach High School, WA
References
External links