This section breaks down many college football games each week and highlights how 2021 NFL Draft Prospects have performed. Or look at the 2021 NFL Draft Stock page.
By Charlie Campbell.
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Michigan 49, Minnesota 24
Bateman totaled 101 yards on nine receptions against the Wolverines. It was a solid start to the year, but not an overly impressive one. Bateman has quality size for the next level and is polished, he is not explosive or twitchy as a route runner. He also is not a burner, so he might fit better in the NFL as a No. 2 receiver.
Hutchinson opened the third quarter by coming close to another sack, and he made a touchdown-saving tackle inside the 10-yard line just a short time later, tripping up the back before he could get free. On the next play, Hutchinson pushed the left tackle out of the way, swallowed up the back, and then slammed him into the turf. Those were two key plays in a four-down goal-line stand that seaedl the win for Michigan.
Hutchinson could be a riser over the course of the season, and he had fabulous first game of ths year. The 6-foot-6, 300-pounder is strong at the point of attack and is able to overpower offensive linemen. He does an excellent job of using his hands and upper body strength to get off blocks. On top of his size, length and strength, Hutchinson has a burst to close and shows an ability to bend that is not common for a defender with his size. Hutchinson could be store for a huge year which could cause his draft stock to skyrocket.
Paye looks massively improved as a pass rusher this year. He is fast off the edge and is doing a better job of using his hands and feet at the same time. Paye has good size alongside surprising speed and athleticism. This was an excellent tape that will really help Paye’s draft grade.
Notre Dame 45, Pittsburgh 3
On the opening drive of the game, Weaver slapped down the hands of Eichenberg and ran around him to chase Ian Book out of the pocket. Eichenberg was lucky he didn’t give up a sack on the play. In the third quarter, Eichenberg was beaten by a move to the inside after getting knocked off balance with a speed-to-power rush that flushed Book out of the pocket. If Book weren’t so quick to escape, that would have been a sack given up by Eichenberg.
Eichenberg as the ability to be an edge protector at the next level, but this game illustrated that he is not a first-round elite pass protector. He has enough quickness to glide with speed rushers nad the size and strength to anchor. In the ground game, he is scraper who manipulates defenders and turns them away from getting in on tackles. Eichenberg is not a true bull in the ground game who will blast defensive lineman off the ball though. He does have strong hands to sustain his blocks well and fights through the whistle. Overall, Eichenberg looks solid, but his peformance against Pittsburgh supported the idea that he has a second-day skill set.
Alabama 48, Tennessee 17
Multiple team sources have compared Waddle to Kansas City Chiefs star receiver Tyreek Hill. Waddle’s explosive speed and game-changing ability had some evaluators believing he could go in the Mo. 10-15 range of the first round of the 2021 NFL Draft, and those scouts called Waddle a better prospect than former teammate Henry Ruggs. A few teams had Waddle, lower saying they felt that he needed to become more of a polished receiver and less of a gadget player, but one director of college scouting said Hill was not a polished route runner when he entered the NFL and the explosive gadget players are being utilized better by coaches than some similar prospects in the past. Sources at seven different teams said they thought Waddle would go in the first rounf, and a few believed that Waddle would go as top-16 pick next April. His season-ending injury puts all of those estimations in jeopardy.
Evaluators love Smith’s polished and well-rounded play. His refined route-running, reliable hands, yards-after-the-catch skills, and overall receiving ability have many calling him a natural football player. Smith, however, is very thin for the next level, which has some grading him as a late first-round or early second-round pick. Smith is listed at 6-foot-1, 175 pounds, which is very undersized for the NFL. Even though some have him on the bubble of Round 1 and Round 2, the expectation from all seven sources is that Smith is more likely to be picked in the first round of the 2021 NFL Draft.
Smith got the better of the Alabama defensive linemen, oweverall, winning on the majority of his blocks. He showed good strength and an ability to anchor while being able to slide with speed rushers. Smith did not dominate, but he was impressive and looks like he could be a plug-and-play competitor at the pro level. This contest will help Smith to be an early-round pick in the 2021 NFL Draft – as long as medical reports don’t cause him to slide.
At the beginning of the second quarter, Surtain made a leaping pass breakup in the end zone on which he had tight coverage and played the ball well. Tennessee tried another deep ball downfield along the sideline against Surtain later in the first half, and he was able to slap that away. In the second second half, Surtain came hard downhill to make a tackle for a loss on a bubble screen. All those plays were impressive and put on display his size, length, ball skills, sufficient quickness to run downfield, and physicality.
Targeting Surtain eventually paid off for the Volunteers when he gave up a 27-yard touchdown. The receiver ran a go route along the sideline, and while Surtain was close, the receiver managed a little separation with a perfect pass lofted in over his outside shoulder for the score. Surtain’s coverage on the play wasn’t awful, but it does illustrate that he can have issues with twitch and explosion.
Ohio State 52, Nebraska 17
Fields laid out a perfect deep ball on his second possession, hitting Garrett Wilson in the end zone in stride for a 42-yard touchdown. It was a perfect strike that could not have been thrown any better.
Later in the first half, Fields made a beautiful anticipatory throw, which hit an open Chris Olave for a gain of about 30 yards. Olave was open in the end zone just a bit later, so Fields lofted in a well-thrown pass to him, but Olave couldn’t hold on while taking a hard hit. Olave tried to make the leaping grab, but the ball sprang loose when his legs were taken out from under him and he made a hard landing on the turf. While it wasn’t an easy play, Olave should have held on for what would have been a 43-yard touchdown. Fields threw a bad pass on his next attempt, firing the ball into a crowd of three defenders. Fields was very lucky the Nebraska safety did not intercept the ball.
In the third quarter, Fields used his legs to extend Ohio State’s lead. He had dropped back to pass, but finding nothing open, he rolled to his left before breaking downfield. At the sideline, Fields used a wicked spin move to dodge a tackler, letting Fields dart into the end zone for the 16-yard score.
Fields took a bad sack that was almost a safety a bit later. He held onto the ball too long and did not fire a pass off when the pocket started to collapse. Things continued to get worse for Ohio State when Olave took a hard hit to the head that knocked him out of the game, but Fields came back to loft in a short touchdown pass to Jaxon Smith-Njigba.
Fields completed 20-of-21 passes against Nebraska for 276 yards and two touchdowns passing. He also picked up 54 yards and a touchdown over 15 carries. Overall, Fields got his season off to a good start. He threw the ball accurately to all levels of the field and showed good timing, precision, anticipation, and pocket presence. It was not a flawless performance, and Fields has areas of emphasis for the next level. He has to get the ball out faster because he can occasionaly hold the ball too long. While Fields has quality field vision, he could stand to get faster at working throughhis progressions and needs to speed up the process for the pro level.
Overall, this was a good tape for Davis. He was a bull at the point of attack, consistently generating movement in the ground game. Davis is a strong guard who can push defenders off the line of scrimmage with sheer power. He has a nice ability to bend at the knee, sustains his blocks well, and has good hand placement. Davis could be worthy of being a late first-round or second-round pick in the 2021 NFL Draft.
Clemson 47, Syracuse 21
Lawrence started hot, throwing his first touchdown of the evening on his opening drive – from about 25 yards out. It was third-and-8 when Lawrence threw the strike on an intermediate curl route that his receiver ran into the end zone from about 10 yards out. Lawrence and the Clemson offense were not as sharp for a lot of the second quarter, but nearing halftime, Lawrence threw a perfect deep ball to Amari Rodgers for what should have been about a 50-yard reception, but Rodgers could not control the ball well, landing on the ground just in front of the end zone. Lawrence shrugged it off and threw a touchdown a few plays later when he found a wide-open tight end for a 17-yard touchdown.
Sloppiness reared up on Clemson on the next possesion when Lawrence threw a pass behind Amari Rodgers. The ball tipped off Rodgers’ hands and floated to Syracuse defensive back Garrett Williams for an interception. Williams returned the interception for a 38-yard touchdown. It was a poorly thrown pass by Lawrence with bad placement and the first pick-six of Lawrence’s collegiate career. He ended up completing 27-of-43 passes for 289 yard with two touchdowns and an interception.
This was not a game of domination from Lawrence, but this tape won’t hurt him significantly. He threw the ball well, overall, showing his powerful arm, excellent deep ball placement, accuracy, and pocket presence. Lawrence’s junior year is doing nothing to dissuade evaluators from the lofty projection of Lawrence being the likely No. 1 pick in the 2021 NFL Draft.
Etienne took 16 carries for 86 yards and three touchdowns, plus caught three passes for 20 yards. The fumble hurts Etienne and raises more ball security concerns for the next level, but he remains a candidate to go as high as the middle of the first round to early in the second round during the 2021 NFL Draft.
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