Episcopal's Wilson ranked nation's best in 2017

Rivals.com is widely regarded as one of the most respected recruiting sites around.

So when they debuted their Class of 2017 player rankings on Monday, it was a big deal for the top player in the nation to be from Houston. Episcopal defensive tackle Marvin Wilson is at the very top of the list that involves the entire country.

"You just can't believe it at first," Wilson told FOX 26 Sports on Tuesday. "I was just walking around (with) my cousin, going to work out. And I just dropped my phone and took off running."

The incoming junior has every right to be excited. In this century, Rivals has only ranked two Texan high schoolers as the nation's best in their respective classes: Adrian Peterson and Vince Young. Both had accomplished careers. Peterson is probably regarded as the best running back of his generation. Young had a legendary college career that included quarterbacking the University of Texas to a national championship.

"It's crazy to be compared to those guys," Wilson said. "It's too early to be doing all that. It's just a humbling feeling just to be compared to guys like that."

Of course, this is the initial list by Rivals. The list could change over time. But Wilson intends to keep his place on top and add to his honors.

"I'm just going to go out and work harder," Wilson said. "I'm not number one on every site. I'm just number one on Rivals. So now, I've got to show everybody else I'm number one on everywhere else."

Wilson already has been offered scholarships by most of the biggest names around. He reports that his offer list includes the likes of Alabama, LSU, Texas, Texas A&M, UCLA, USC, Tennessee, and Michigan.

Three other Houston-area football players made the initial 2017 Rivals Top 100: Cy-Fair TE Brock Wright (Notre Dame commit), Langham Creek RB Toneil Carter, Wilson's Episcopal teammate Walker Little, and Stafford WR Hezekiah Jones (Baylor commit).