Week two of the college football season has passed us now and things are starting to heat up. We have new draft stock risers and fallers this week and some players are starting to climb big boards across the league. Players at the top of my big board continue to dominate, but once again I’ll be focusing on players I haven’t yet mentioned.
Draft Risers:
1. Jeffrey Simmons, DL, Mississippi State:
Simmons has seemed lost in this class full of dominant defensive linemen. That is, unless you’ve watched Mississippi State this year. Simmons jumps off the screen with a huge, strong frame and an impressive amount of power. He also has good speed and burst, and he is quick off the snap, providing an interior pass rush that NFL teams will love. Aside from his speed and athleticism, Simmons’ strength allows him to have one of the best bull rushes out of anyone currently in college football. He is good against the run but needs to work on his leverage. Simmons is climbing boards already due to his diverse ability to get to the quarterback and he certainly put on a show against Kansas State on Saturday.
2. Karan Higdon, RB, Michigan:
Higdon dominated for Michigan on Saturday and even though it was against a weaker Western Michigan, he showed he has all the tools to potentially be a first-round pick in the draft. He had 156 yards and one touchdown on 13 carries and looked unstoppable. Higdon got a little bigger this season and he has the speed, burst, and agility to give defenses nightmares. He doesn’t go down easily as he is very adept at breaking tackles. Higdon could very well be the first running back taken off the board in April.
3. Taylor Rapp, S, Washington:
Rapp has been really good for two straight weeks now putting in dominant performances against Auburn and North Dakota. Rapp is a hard-hitting safety who loves to come downhill to make plays. He also has great feet and hips to be reliable in pass coverage against receivers or tight ends. Rapp has been a disruptive force so far this year at safety for the Huskies and scouts continue to rave about him. He’s making a case to be a first round pick and the first safety taken in the 2019 Draft.
Draft Fallers:
1. Nick Fitzgerald, QB, Mississippi:
Nick Fitzgerald has had a rough 12 months going from a season-ending injury last year, suspended for the first game this year by the team, and now a very rough performance in his first game this season. On Saturday against Kansas State, he had a 40% completion percentage, 154 yards on 27 passes, one interception, and two touchdowns. Fitzgerald did run well, however, piling up 159 yards on 19 carries. As an NFL prospect though, he did not get the job done. Fitzgerald’s accuracy is poor, he lacks the field vision to properly go through his reads, and he often misses wide open receivers. These are traits that a quarterback needs at any level, especially the NFL, and simply running well or improving his stats won’t change any opinions in NFL circles without improving these traits.
2. Jake Bentley, QB, South Carolina:
Bentley was a highly-sought after Quarterback recruit coming out of high school and ever since entering college football he has been seen as a future first-round pick in the NFL. Starting last year and leading up to this season, many had the true junior quarterback as being a first-round pick in the upcoming 2019 Draft. But Bentley has certainly not impressed so far this year. Bentley appeared to have good traits that he just needed to improve upon so he could leave college early and enter the draft. But after two weeks of his 2018 campaign, his game seems to have glaring holes. South Carolina has a great roster on offense this year with big play-making receivers and a tough offensive lineman who protects well. But Bentley is the one falling short and causing an ineptitude on offense.
Bentley doesn’t have a strong or accurate arm, missing open receivers or not putting the right touch on throws. He lacks patience to stay calm in the face of pressure, abandoning his technique and rushing poorly thrown balls. And he doesn’t have the fortitude to step up in big games, i.e. this past weekend against a Georgia team that South Carolina matched up with well on paper. Bentley still has one year of eligibility left after this season, and at this point, he needs to use it and really work on his game before he can be considered as an NFL quarterback.
3. Trey Adams, OT, Washington:
This has nothing to do with Adams’ traits or abilities as an Offensive Tackle, this is simply since Adams has the potential to miss the entire 2018 season due to a back injury. Adams has already missed the first two games of the season with no timetable to return. As a 6’8” Offensive tackle, concerns about back injuries will scare away every single NFL team. We’ve seen it before and we will see it again, a player dropping drastically in the draft because there are concerns about injuries moving forward. Even if Adams can return later this season, I still expect NFL teams to shy away from him at least in the first round.
Small School Prospect Spotlight:
Kelvin McKnight, WR, Samford:
McKnight has been unstoppable so far this year in two games racking up 20 receptions, 334 yards, and 4 touchdowns, including a 14 reception, 215 yard, and 2 touchdown performance against Florida State this past week. McKnight is a good route runner with a lot of intelligence, burst, and agility. He has reliable hands that snag the ball out of the air. McKnight is certainly on the radar of every NFL team after such a great performance against FSU. He will likely be selected in the NFL Draft come April.
Big Match-ups This Weekend:
1. LSU vs Auburn:
This the best match-up this week and one of the best so far in this young season. There is a ton of NFL-level talent on both sides highlighted by Auburn’s QB Jarett Stidham and LSU’s Greedy Williams and LB Devin White. The three of them landed in my preseason top 12 rankings and they’ve proven already this year that they belong there. Stidham has been good but not spectacular in his first two games, but if he has a big game on Saturday against this LSU defense, he’ll be talked about a lot more.
2. Alabama vs Ole Miss:
Alabama is loaded with talent as always and will have a handful of players selected in the draft again this year. But Ole Miss has two big time prospects in WR A.J. Brown and OT Greg Little, who both made my preseason top 10. Alabama best 2019 draft prospects come in the form of a couple monsters in defensive lineman Jonah Williams, Defensive Tackle Raekwon Davis, and Line Backer Mack Wilson. Alabama has steam-rolled its first two opponents and Ole Miss has struggled, but going against such a great opponent might make Ole Miss step up. Regardless, there is plenty of future NFL talent on the field in this one to keep your eye on.
3. Ohio St vs TCU:
Of course Nick Bosa is the big headliner in this game, as he probably will be for every Ohio State game this year, but Ohio State has plenty of other big talents on the field and TCU will display some big talent as well. Ohio State’s “other” DL Dre’Mont Jones has been impressive this year and seems to have been over-shadowed by Bosa. But make no mistake, Jones is a first-round talent also. cornerback Kendall Sheffield, Ofensive Tackle Isaiah Prince, and WR Parris Campbell are other Ohio State players to watch, and TCU’s defense displays DE Ben Banogu and LB Ty Summers. Banogu has looked good so far this year displaying good pass rushing skills and almost living in the backfield. This game should be competitive, plus it’s always fun to watch Bosa rush the Quaterback.