2025 NFL Draft: College Football Game Recaps – Week 15

Penn State quarterback Drew Allar has had a mixed season, but he has NFL ability, and he will get plenty of consideration from general managers if he decides to enter the 2025 NFL Draft. Allar led his team to the Big 10 Championship, but the Nittany Lions defense could not help Allar enough to win the conference championship.

In the first quarter, Allar dropped in a perfect deep ball to tight end Tyler Warren deep downfield, but Warren dropped what should have been a long reception. Allar came back to hit Warren down the seam for a nice gain, and then Allar hit running back Nicholas Singleton down the seam for a 22-yard touchdown. Early in the second quarter, Allar had a poor throw behind a receiver running a crossing route, and it was easily intercepted with a return to the two-yard line. Allar came back to find a receiver wide-open running into the end zone, and threw a strike for a 22-yard touchdown, and used his size and legs for a short touchdown run, powering through a few tacklers.

In the fourth quarter, Allar made a tremendous play on a fourth-and-10, he climbed the pocket and had a defender pulling his jersey. Allar side-armed a frozen rope into the end zone for a 14-yard touchdown. Late in the fourth quarter and down eight, Allar threw a bomb, and the ball placement was slightly overthrown, falling to the cornerback for an interception. It was a poor decision as there was double coverage and a low percentage throw at a time when they could not afford a turnover. Allar completed 20-of-39 passes for 226 yards with three touchdowns passing, one rushing, and two interceptions.

For the NFL, Allar has physical talent with a strong arm, size, pocket presence, and an ability to push the ball down the field. Allar has a lot of development issues that need to be fixed, starting with his footwork. He doesn’t have good feet for stepping into throws and sometimes trusts his arm too much. That leads to some ball placement issues and passes off the mark. Allar can be slow to move his eyes and work through progressions. He will lock onto his primary read and needs to get faster working through progressions. Allar has a lot of ability, but he should return to school to improve before entering the NFL.

There was the potential for a good draft matchup with Oregon left tackle Josh Conerly taking on Penn State edge rusher/linebacker Abdul Carter. However, the Nittany Lions moved Carter around in the formation, so they did not go up against each other very much.

In the first quarter, Conerly showed his quickness and athleticism by getting out in space and hitting a block to help get a run of about a dozen. Later in the first half, Carter had a couple of good rushes against Conerly, getting upfield and putting pressure in the pocket, but Conerly slowed Carter up enough for Dillon Gabriel to get the ball out. Carter did a nice job of getting an open-field tackle flying over from middle linebacker to stop a screen pass. In the third quarter, Carter showed his amazing speed to start the play over the center, and then he exploded to the perimeter to make an open-field tackle on third down.

Overall, this tape will help Conerly. While he allowed some pressure, he did a good job protecting his quarterback and showed the ability to run block. Conerly is not an overpowering bull at the point of attack, but he is athletic to get to spots and uses his quickness to fire to the second level. Conerly could be a starting tackle or guard in the NFL.

The most impressive player on the Ducks offense was wide receiver Tez Johnson. All night, he worked in the middle of the field and consistently generated separation from Penn State cornerbacks. Johnson used his twitchy route-running and quickness out of his breaks to get open for Dillon Gabriel. Johnson finished with 11 receptions for 181 yards and a touchdown.

For the NFL, Johnson is a small slot receiver. Listed at 5-foot-10, 165 pounds, Johnson is undersized, and he could have issues with durability after getting hit consistently by pro defenders. Johnson could be a nice contributor as a day-two or mid-round pick.

Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers hurt his standing with NFL teams when he got rattled in a loss to Georgia earlier this season. Ewers needed to show more composure against a talented defense in the rematch for the conference championship.

On the game’s opening drive, Ewers had an interception that was not his fault. Wide receiver Isaiah Bond ran a curl but gave up on the route, allowing Georgia cornerback Daylen Everette to get an arm in for a deflection. The ball floated in the air, and Everette snatched it for the pick. That interception was Bond’s fault.

Ewers came back to take advantage of Malachi Starks reacting late to wide receiver Matthew Golden along the sideline for a completion. Starks took a bad angle trying to undercut the pass, letting Golden run down the field for 49 yards. That set up a field goal, and Ewers contributed to a second field goal drive in the second quarter. Late in the half, Ewers moved into Georiga territory, but Ewers thought a safety would not come over the top on a receiver running over the top. That false assumption was almost a disaster as the safety easily ran under the pass, but he dropped the interception. Ewers led a few drives for field goals that saw the kicks get missed.

After a quiet third quarter, Ewers made a good decision on a read-option to throw a quick slant to DeAndre Moore Jr., and he took off for a 41-yard touchdown that tied the game at 13. Late in the fourth quarter, with his team down by three, Ewers threw a poorly located pass to a receiver along the sideline and had it intercepted by Everette. Ewers got lucky that Georgia threw a pick soon after, and Ewers led a field goal drive to force overtime. Ewers completed 27-of-46 passes for 358 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions.

For the NFL, Ewers has starting ability with next-level passing talent. Ewers is an accurate passer that throws a very catchable ball. He has a quick release, throws with anticipation, and does a good job of getting the ball out without holding it too long. Ewers can get fooled post-snap. He thinks a defensive back will be in a certain area and does not always see them if they switch and move to an unexpected spot. Ewers was rattled in the first Georgia game, so teams will have concerns about his composure throughout the draft process.

Georgia quarterback Carson Beck entered the 2024 season as one of the top quarterback prospects for the 2025 NFL Draft, but a disappointing season with a lot of turnovers and meltdown performances had teams grading Beck in the mid-rounds.

In the first half, the Texas defense dominated. Their corners had tight coverage and did not give Beck many openings to complete passes. The Longhorns shut down the Georgia rushing offense, and Beck had some rush. Just before halftime, Beck took a deep shot that was easily intercepted, but Beck had a free play because of a Longhorns penalty. That happened again a few plays later as Beck thought he had a free play and took another gamble that was intercepted but called back on a penalty. On the final play of the first half, Beck scrambled to set up a Hail Mary but held onto the ball way too long and allowed himself to be strip-sacked. Texas scooped up the fumble and almost returned it for a touchdown. Beck’s throwing hand was also injured on the hit. At one half of play, Beck was only 7-of-13 for 56 yards with the fumble. Beck was out for the second half with his right elbow wrapped in ice.

Beck should return to Georgia next season to improve. This season, Beck has had inconsistent accuracy, which has led to some of his interceptions. Beck has sometimes played scared, got rattled, and seemed anxious about getting hit. There is no doubt that Beck has a rifle for an arm with effortless power to rip the ball downfield. Beck can tear a defense apart when he has a clean pocket and is calm. Beck is slow to recognize coverage, struggles against the pass rush, and gets tunnel vision.

Georgia cornerback Daylen Everette played really well against Texas in the first meeting, and he followed it up with a big game in the SEC Championship. Everette had the deflected interception in the first half and made a huge play late in the game. In the fourth quarter, Everette had tight coverage on a receiver along the sideline, and Everette outfought Matthew Golden to make the interception. However, late in the fourth quarter, Everette was running with a receiver in the end zone, but his contact was too early, running through the receiver and preventing him from making a touchdown catch. It was a good penalty, and Everette had tight coverage a few plays later to help force an incompletion. That happened again in overtime when Evertte had tight coverage in the end zone to force an incompletion.

Along with the two interceptions, Everette had a lot of tight coverage throughout the game. While it wasn’t a flawless performance, he showed good ball skills, length, and physicality and was able to prevent receivers from generating a lot of separation. This was a strong tape from Everette that will help his draft grade in the months to come.

Defensive end Mykel Williams had a nice game. Early in the first quarter, Williams got up high to bat a pass for an incompletion. He was tough at the point of attack in the ground game and was stuffing his gap. In the fourth quarter, Williams bounced off a pulling guard, pushed away a running back, and chased down a scrambling Ewers for a sack. Later, he added a good tackle in run defense, stuffing the ball carrier for no gain. Overall, this was a good tape that will help Williams’ draft grade.

Arizona State running back Cam Skattebo capped off a tremendous 2024 season with a dominating performance against Iowa State. Skattebo showed talent for the next level as he overwhelmed the Cyclones with long runs and scoring strikes to put the Sun Devils into the college football playoff.

Early in the first quarter, Skattebo showed good vision and instincts to hit a cut-back lane and rip off a gain of 41 yards. That chunk run set up a field goal for the Sun Devils, and midway through the first half, Skattebo charged into the end zone from a few yards out. Early in the second quarter, Skattebo showed superb contact balance, breaking six tackles while rumbling down the field for 47 yards. To cap the drive, Skattebo scored from three yards out. Just before the half, Skattebo added a similar run, bouncing off tacklers and exploding for 53 yards. To finish the drive, Skattebo added another short touchdown run.

In the third quarter, Skattebo added another touchdown, but this time, it was through the air. Skattebo caught a swing pass in the flat and coasted down the field untouched for a 33-yard touchdown. Skattebo ran for 170 yards on 16 carries with two touchdowns. He had two receptions for 38 yards.

For the NFL, Skattebo could be a good No. 2 back. Skattebo is a capable runner and receiver who could be a nice player in a passing-driven offense. Skattebo has excellent contact balance, vision, cutting ability, and good instincts. At the pro level, Skattebo is not overwhelmingly fast or strong. Hence, he might not become a three-down starter. Some team sources said they had Skattebo graded as a day-three backup, and he looks like he could be a good role player in the NFL.

Iowa State wide receiver Jayden Higgins could be drafted in the mid-rounds next April, and he finished his collegiate career playing well against Arizona State. Midway through the first quarter, Higgins ran an out route to get open in zone coverage for a gain of about 15. A few plays later, Higgins got open on a slant for another first-down reception for the Cyclones. Later in the second quarter, Higgins could not get separation on a go route, but Higgins used his size to make a catch in front of the cornerback along the sideline for a gain of 17. In the third quarter, Higgins used his size to block off a cornerback for a back-shoulder completion to get 18 yards and a first down. Higgins finished with 115 yards on seven receptions.

As a pro, Higgins has good size with height and length on the outside. Higgins runs quality routes and has reliable hands. However, Higgins is not a burner and lacks some twitch. He might be a better fit as a No. 3 or 4 receiver in the NFL.