This section breaks down many college football games each week and highlights how 2017 NFL Draft Prospects have performed. Or look at the 2017 NFL Draft Stock page (link coming soon).
By Charlie Campbell.
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Utah 20, BYU 19
The first play from scrimmage was a disaster for BYU, as Hill had a pass off the mark and his receiver deflected it up in the air. It was picked off and returned 41 yards for a score. It looked like Hill and his wideout weren’t on the same page, as the receiver sat down on the route when Hill led him as if he was going to keep running. Judging by the their reaction, it looked like it was Hill’s mental mistake.
In the second quarter, Hill got loose on a zone read for a 39-yard touchdown run. Dimick later came through with a big play as he beat the right tackle with a speed rush to hit Hill as he was throwing. That sent the ball fluttering up for grabs and Utah was able to pick it off.
Shortly later, Hill made a terrible pass off the mark and it was intercepted by cornerback Reginald Porter. The receiver was to the inside of the defensive back and Hill threw for the back shoulder which caused the ball to go directly to Porter. As a senior signal-caller, Hill should know better than that.
Late in the fourth quarter, Hill engineered a touchdown drive where he threw some good passes before using his feet to finish the possession with a 7-yard touchdown run. The two-point conversion attempt was a quarterback draw, but the offensive line missed their blocks and Dimick helped bust the play to stop Hill short of the end zone.
Hill ended up completing 21-of-39 passes for 176 yards with three interceptions. He ran for 87 yards on 13 carries with two scores. Overall, this was not a good tape for Hill, as he had ball-security issues and poor ball placement that led to turnovers. This tape will hurt Hill’s draft grade.
In the ground game, Lotulelei is very stout. He holds his ground well and BYU couldn’t move him out of his gap. However, Lotulelei didn’t show much in the pass rush. He looks like a nose tackle for the NFL who will come off the field in the sub package. Defensive tackles who don’t contribute in the pass rush have a hard time being first-round picks.
While his interceptions came on poor passes, Nacua still made the play when presented with the opportunity. Nacua has good instincts and does well at reading a quarterback’s eyes.
Arkansas 41, TCU 38
At the end of regulation, Skipper was brought in on field goal defense, and he came through with a huge blocked field goal to ensure overtime for the Razorbacks.
This game gave further evidence that the 6-foot-10, 319-pound Skipper is a right tackle candidate to the NFL. He isn’t a bad athlete considering how tall he is, but Skipper doesn’t have the feet or agility to be a left tackle in the pros. He can get movement in the ground game and is tough at the point of attack, but Skipper is going to need some development to take on NFL speed rushers and counter moves to the inside.
Carraway, meanwhile, had a solid game getting after the quarterback, and could stand to get stronger in run defense.
In the first quarter, Sprinkle got open on a play-action bootleg and he rumbled for about 15 yards. Later, Sprinkle made a superb catch along the sidelines, extending to secure the ball while dragging his feet in bounds for a gain of 25 yards. In the fourth quarter, Sprinkle did have a holding penalty on a third down. He then made an acrobatic leaping catch over a defensive back, and then turned into the end zone with a 19-yard touchdown reception in overtime. Sprinkle totaled 58 yards on three receptions with the score, and Arkansas underutilized him.
Sprinkle (6-6, 256) is well-rounded tight end, but doesn’t really have a dominant trait to be a first-round pick. He could be a solid contributor and would be a nice fit as a No. 2 tight end to pair with a true No. 1. Sprinkle could end up being a day-two selection.
Baylor 40, SMU 13
In the first quarter, Sutton almost made a great touchdown catch on a short fade pass, but he was shaken up after landing hard with his back on the cornerback’s foot. Shortly later, Sutton ran an out and converted a third down with a nice catch. Sutton did that again on a third down with a gain of about 20 on a back-shoulder play where Sutton made a superb catch while falling out of bounds. Sutton drew a holding call and had four receptions for 77 yards in the first half despite his quarterback struggling.
Late in the third quarter, Sutton ran a slant out of the slot and got the safety to bite on a fake. That led him to get wide open for a 20-yard touchdown. It was an excellent route from Sutton. He totaled 112 yards on six receptions with the score. This was a good tape for him, as he showed he could get separation and win on contested catches. Sutton looks like a potential first-round pick for the 2017 NFL Draft.
In the third quarter, Russell lofted in an easy touchdown pass to give Baylor the lead, but then made a poor decision when he threw into double coverage. The free safety was obviously there and Russell had a poorly under thrown ball that floated to the defender. Russell came back to make a nice touchdown run and hit K.D. Cannon for a score.
Russell completed 26-of-47 passes for 261 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions. He ran for 43 yards and a score on seven carries. Overall though, Russell showed that he needs to improve his accuracy, decision-making and pocket passing. Overall, this was an unimpressive performance against an inferior opponent and it will only serve to hurt Russell’s draft grade.
Florida 45, Kentucky 7
Pittsburgh 42, Penn State 39
Early in the first quarter Conner ripped off a run of 24 yards on his first carry of the day as he ran over a safety and carried defenders for a few yards. Later on the drive, he showed his power again, breaking tackles on a run he bounced to the outside. Those were two of the biggest plays on a 98-yard scoring drive.
In the third quarter, Conner had a nice play as a receiver to dodge a blocker and push through a couple of tacklers to get a first down. Showing more receiving skills is necessary for Conner’s NFL evaluation. Conner then dived over the top for a touchdown, but early in the fourth quarter, Conner was stripped of the football and Penn State recovered the fumble around Pitt’s 10-yard line.
Conner helped make up for it with a 12-yard touchdown reception on a shovel pass where he showed a nice burst to weave through the defense. Conner totaled 117 yards on 22 carries with one touchdown. As a receiver, he had four receptions for 29 yards and a score. He looked a lot better than he did in Week 1 with more burst and power. This game should help stabilize his draft stock.
Bisnowatny has some athleticism with quickness and agility, but he needs to add a serious amount of strength for the NFL. Defensive ends speed rushes didn’t work against him, but they got penetration with some bull rushes including a near sack in the third quarter where Bisnowatny was bailed out by his quarterback. In the ground game, Bisnowatny is decent at shielding his man and getting draws, but he does not generate any push or movement. Until he gets stronger, Bisnowatny will have some struggles with NFL defensive lineman. He may need a redshirt season in a NFL strength and conditioning program at the pro level before he is really to compete.
Johnson, meanwhile, had a quality performance against Penn State and was Pitt’s best blocker at opening holes in the ground game for Conner and the other backs. Johnson (6-5, 315) has a good size and build to him for the pro game. Improving his pass protection and handling speed rushers will be the biggest area of improvement for Johnson.
In the second quarter, Wartman-White had some nice plays with a tackle for no gain on a perimeter run and then a tackle for a loss playing off the disruption of his defensive end. However, Wartman-White had Pitt backs run through him on a couple of plays. He also made some clutch tackles and showed good skill to get through trash and hit the ball carrier. Overall, this was a solid tape for Wartman-White, as he showed NFL evaluators that he has made it back after missing all of last season with a knee injury.
Shortly later, Price came close to another sack but forced a third-down incompletion. Price was then unblocked and nailed the quarterback at the mesh point of a zone read run and forced another fumble that Pitt recovered. In the remainder of the game, Price was giving the offensive tackles a lot of problems and was consistently pressuring the quarterback.
Price had three injury-plagued seasons before last year when he broke out with 11.5 sacks. At 6-foot, 255 pounds, Price is a better fit as a 3-4 outside linebacker in the in the NFL. If he continues to be a difference maker in the pass rush, his stock should rise as a senior.
Louisville 62, Syracuse 28
On the first play from scrimmage, Quick burned the Syracuse defense for a 72-yard touchdown. Quick ran out of the slot and faked a corner post before slanting down the middle of the field. Lamar Jackson lofted in a perfect pass to give Louisville the lead. In the fourth quarter, Quick fumbled the ball away after getting gang tackled on a short reception, but luckily for Quick, a teammate recovered the ball. Quick totaled four receptions for 108 yards and the score.
Quick is a speedy slot receiver. He may not have the build to line up on the outside. A big matchup for Quick will be against Clemson in a few weeks as they have some NFL-caliber cornerbacks.
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