2025 NFL Draft: College Football Game Recaps – Week 2

This game had the potential for an excellent draft matchup, with Tennessee edge rusher James Pearce Jr. taking on N.C. State left tackle Anthony Belton. Pearce could be a top-20 pick next April, and team sources said that Belton would have been a day-two pick at worst if he had decided to enter the 2024 NFL Draft. Unfortunately, Pearce lined up predominantly over the right tackle. As a result, both Belton and Pearce were impressive in this game.

Pearce was active on the opening drive, looping inside on a stunt to the inside and starting a tackle for a loss after going unblocked. Later in the first quarter, Pearce unleashed a lightning spin move to blow by the right tackle, and that instant pressure forced a third-down incompletion. Shortly later, Pearce won with a speed rush but could not redirect to the quarterback, and he missed the sack when Grayson McCall stepped up in the pocket. Throughout the night, Pearce was putting consistent pressure on McCall as Pearce was whipping the right tackle. While it was not a big statistical night for Pearce, he was a constant presence in the backfield, harassing the quarterback.

Belton was phenomenal against Tennessee. He was absolutely vicious on some blocks, knocking defenders backward and pummeling them into the turf. He did that on a number of rushing plays to open up his gap for his back. In the pass rush, Belton was almost incident-free, mirroring speed rushers and anchoring against the bull rush. There was one bad play on the stat sheet, but it wasn’t Belton’s fault. Belton had his defender blocked, but Grayson McCall climbed the pocket and ran into the defender’s reach with poor ball security. The defender slapped the ball out with the Volunteers recovering. Belton showed some serious power to knock defenders to their knees and then finish them off with violence by divining into them and smashing them to the turf. This tape gave Belton the look of a future NFL starter and will help him be an early-round pick next April.

One of the top safety prospects for the 2025 NFL Draft is South Carolina’s Nick Emmanwori. Emmanwori was all over the field against Kentucky and was a cog in the Gamecocks, shutting down the Wildcats offense. Emmanwori showed he is an NFL starter in run defense and pass coverage.

In the second quarter, Emmanwori had a clutch tackle downfield to keep a run from being broken for a huge gain. Emmanwori continued to contribute to tackles in the ground game. On the first play of the fourth quarter, Emmanwori put the game away with a pick-six. Emmanwori was in the deep zone and watched the quarterback’s eyes before undercutting a receiver down the seam for the interception. Emmanwori weaved through would-be tacklers to dart into the end zone.

There is a lot to like about Emmanwori for the NFL. He is a huge safety asset for tackling power backs at the second level and going toe-to-toe with big tight ends down the seam. Emmanwori also has tremendous instincts, vision, and feel in zone coverage. He covers a lot of ground and could be capable of playing man coverage on tight ends. Not many safeties grade out as first-round picks, but Emmanwori has that kind of potential for the 2025 NFL Draft.

Kentucky has a future pro defensive back in cornerback Maxwell Hairston. South Carolina struggled to pass the ball consistently, and Hairston was a contributor with sound coverage. In the third quarter, Hairston flew off the edge and dodged a block from a freshman running back to get a strip sack that South Carolina was lucky to recover. Unfortunately, Hairston went into the locker room shortly later because of a left shoulder injury, but he was able to return to the field during garbage time. This tape will be a solid performance for Hairston’s draft grade.

Both teams have defensive tackle prospects for the NFL, with Kentucky’s Deone Walker and South Carolina’s T.J. Sanders. Neither one was impressive in this game. In the first half, Walker needed to get off blocks to get in on tackles in run defense or as a rusher. Walker flashed more in the third quarter, showing good motor skills to get in on tackles outside of his gap. Late in the second quarter, Sanders peeled off a block to grab a running back from behind. Sanders also had a nice rush to create some interior pressure. Both of them need to play better in the weeks to come.

Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers entered this season as a potential first-round pick, and this was a statement game that will help Ewers’ effort to be selected on the draft’s opening night. Ewers carved up a talented Michigan defense, throwing some precision passes to lead his team to points. Throughout the game, Ewers made several good decisions to throw passes away or spike the ball to protect points and avoid turnovers that could have gotten Michigan back in the game.

In the first quarter, Ewers had an excellent play rolling to his right to buy time and then finding an open receiver in the end zone for a touchdown from about 25 yards out, but a holding penalty negated the scoring strike. On the next drive, Ewers would not be denied as he climbed the pocket and lofted in a well-placed pass to the back of the end zone to an open tight end for a touchdown. Later in the first half, Ewers had a third-and-goal situation where he rolled out and wisely through the ball into the turf as nothing was open, and he protected the easy field goal to put his team up 17-3. After a Michigan fumble, Ewers made a clutch play and rolled out to throw a perfect strike to the front corner of the end zone for a touchdown with only a few seconds remaining in the half. Ewers was nearly flawless and had his team up 24-3 at the half.

In the third quarter, Ewers added a short touchdown pass as Michigan failed to react quickly enough to pre-snap motion, and that let the running back get open for an easy score for Ewers. Versus Michigan, Ewers completed 24-of-36 passes for 246 yards with three touchdowns.

Overall, this was an excellent tape from Ewers. He showed a quality arm capable of making all the throws. He had functional mobility to maneuver within the pocket, and Ewers made superb decisions to take care of the football. This tape will help Ewers be a first-round pick next April.

Michigan tight end Colston Loveland is one of the top tight end prospects for the 2025 NFL Draft, but Loveland had an ugly game taking on the Longhorns. Late in the second quarter, Loveland made a critical mistake after catching the pass. He wasn’t holding the ball securely and just dropped it for a crucial fumble. Early in the third quarter, Loveland had a reception but couldn’t hold onto the ball while getting hit. It was a tough catch, but one that he should make. In the next play, Loveland went high to climb the ladder to make a leaping grab for a first-down conversion. Later in the third quarter, Loveland kept running when the quarterback thought he would stop his route, which led to an easy interception for Texas. It wasn’t clear whether it was Loveland’s fault or the mistake of the Wolverine’s new quarterback. In garbage time, Loveland (8-70) made a nice leaping catch along the sideline. Overall, this tape is going to hurt Loveland. He showed poor hands on a few occasions, including a critical fumble. This performance won’t help Loveland to grade out as a first-round pick.

Michigan has several first-round talents on the defensive side of the ball, but they were quiet against Texas. Defensive tackle Mason Graham did not have a big impact, and ditto for tackle Kenneth Grant, end Rayshaun Benny, and linebacker Josaiah Stewart. Graham had a few nice penetrations into the backfield and shared a tackle for a loss with Stewart, and Grant had a blocked pass. Still, overall, these front seven defenders could not stop the Longhorn’s ground game or do enough to stop Ewers from firing passes downfield. Cornerback Will Johnson was avoided as well. Overall, this tape will not help any of the Michigan defensive prospects in their draft grades.