Fall weekends at Philip Rivers’ house have long been about NFL football on Sundays for obvious reasons.

That is changing a bit with the emergence of Rivers’ oldest son Gunner, who is now one of the nation’s top junior quarterback prospects.

“It’s slowly shifted,” said Philip Rivers, the longtime pro quarterback turned head football coach at St. Michael Catholic in Fairhope. “We will still be big into the NFL, just watching the Colts and Chargers and guys that he knew or I played with, though there aren’t many still playing. I think this is where it starts to turn with all the recruiting stuff. You meet some of these people. You go on campus, and you are more in tune more on Saturday afternoons to what is happening.”

In two years as a starter for his dad at St. Michael, Gunner Rivers already has passed for 7,024 yards and 65 touchdowns. With two full seasons remaining, Rivers has a shot at several AHSAA records, including the career passing total of 11,024 currently held by former Piedmont QB Jack Hayes.

“He’s had a good offseason,” Philip Rivers said of his son. “He’s gotten bigger and stronger. He’s up to about 210 and a shade under 6-4. He’s really worked at it. He’s had a great offseason with our team, and we’ve had some fun. It’s all sped up now, but he still has two years left.”

Gunner Rivers is ranked as the top Class of 2027 prospect in the state and the No. 23 overall prospect in the nation by 247Sports. The 247 Composite rankings have Rivers as the No. 3 prospect in the Alabama behind only Alabama EDGE commit Jabarrius Garror of Vigor and Hueytown defensive lineman Donivan Moore.

Rivers’ college offers already include Auburn, Boston College, Miami, South Carolina and his dad’s alma mater, N.C. State. However, a college commitment doesn’t seem imminent.

“He has taken it all in stride,” his father said. “I’ve been thankful for how he’s handled it all. He is so steady and even keeled so it’s been good. He could walk in tomorrow and tell me something different, but I would think we get through this season and maybe early next year or next spring he will decide something.

“We’ve been on campus at some places, but really we are just now starting to build some relationships, and I think that’s important. It’s about the people you are going to be around for the next four years and how they can develop you along with the school and where you will be living. We are taking our time. He is taking his time and really being present here. That is what is most important to him.”

Gunner’s two college visits so far have been to Texas and Alabama. He told AL.com he has no strong pull to any college just yet. When asked about N.C. State, he did say, “They will be in the mix for sure.”

As a junior, he led St. Michael to the Class 4A state semifinals. He completed 63 percent of his passes for 3,947 yards and 36 touchdowns and was a finalist for Class 4A Back of the Year.

“I have played with several great quarterbacks,” St. Michael receiver and recent South Alabama commit Brody Jones said. “Gunner came in as a freshman. I was a sophomore. We clicked instantly, the chemistry between us. The way he can put the ball in the right spots all the time is amazing. He’s a great quarterback.”

Cardinals’ running back Noah Moss, who also committed to South Alabama this week, said Rivers’ football IQ is what jumps out most to him.

“He can read a defense like no quarterback I’ve played with before,” Moss said. “It’s something crazy.”

Rivers said his summer so far has been about building chemistry with his team and working to touch up small details in his mechanics.

The Cardinals will play a jamboree game Aug. 15 at Alma Bryant before hosting Bayside Academy in the season opener on Aug. 22.

“We just have to keep working,” Gunner Rivers said. “We can’t look at the past. We have to start all the way over and go through every game. You can’t just say, ‘Oh yeah, we have to beat Jackson.’ We have to win every single game.”

Jackson beat St. Michael twice on the way to winning the 4A state title last fall. The two teams meet again in Jackson on Oct. 3.