Another week of college football and another week of NFL draft storylines developing. There were a lot of skill players that stepped up this week and it seems to be a theme in college football every week. It seems like the strong wide receiver NFL draft classes will continue forever.
The 2025 NFL Draft Wide Receiver Class will be strong Again
This years receiver class looks to be getting even stronger as the weeks go by. Ole Miss’ Tre Harris has continued to dominate with 403 yards in just three games. He looks like he has continued to work on his route running and his breaks. He is on track for over 1,700 yards after having just over 900 each of the last two seasons. Harris has really become Jaxson Darts’ go to receiver.
Missouri’s Luther Burden III had a slow start to his season having just seven catches for 64 yards in his first two games. He had his breakout against Boston College with 6 catches for 117 yards and looking like his old self. Even with the slow start he is still WR1 for me and probably the NFL as well.
Tai Felton for Maryland has also continued his assault on college defensive backs. He is sitting at 27 catches for 447 yards and four TDs in three games. As I mentioned in my previous article those in the draft community were told that Kaden Prather was going to breakout and be a potential first round pick and he has played ok, but Felton has just been a different beast and if he keeps it up I could see Felton being the one pushing for a first round pick. Big media is going to need to catch on with him soon.
Another guy I mentioned last week was Jack Bech, a former LSU receiver that flashed in 2021 and big things were expected in 2022, but he fell out of favor and transferred to TCU where he actually put up worse numbers in 2023. He seems to have rediscovered himself and TCU is also using him as a big slot at times. He has already bested his last two seasons combined. He is listed at 6’2 215, but plays almost like a tight end at wide receiver. He’s just too big for more defensive backs to cover and while he’s not a burner, his speed is ok and he knows how to get open and use his body as a shield.
Kobe Hudson from UCF is not the undisputed #1 receiver for UCF after taking a “back seat” to Javon Baker last season. Although he had his best season in 2023 with 900 yards receiving he was the #2. He’s showing this season so far that his production wasn’t due to playing with Baker. He has been making some insane catches so far this season and has showed some development as a downfield threat.
There Has Been Some Movement In The Running Back Group
As has been discussed this 2025 NFL draft running back group looks to be one of the deepest positions in the draft class, but of course there is always movement of guys moving up and down. Starting with Oklahoma States Ollie Gordon. Its a complete mystery as to what is going on with him early this season. Entering the season he was seen by some as RB1 and at least RB3 by everyone. His struggles so far have to have dropped his stock. Right now he might be RB4 or 5. Of course there is still plenty of season left for him to reclaim his spot.
RJ Harvey is on a tear this season for UCF and he is on track to beat his numbers from last season. Which is even more surprising since UCF brought in a couple running back transfers that were starters at their last schools. Peny Boone for example rushed for 1400 yards at Toledo last season has been relegated to RB3 this year. A lot of people in draft media haven’t talked about how good he is. His stock for the NFL draft should be going up.
Jarquez Hunter seems to have found his way out of his early season funk where he had less than 70 yards rushing in his first two games. Hunter was a surprise return for 2024, many expected him to enter the 2024 NFL draft. He had a bit of a breakout this past weekend against New Mexico with 152 yards on 20 carries. Due to hype on other players, Hunter has become a kind of forgotten man in the running back group. He has the talent to be a day two pick if he can keep on track the rest of the season and stay healthy.
Interceptions Are The Name Of The Game!
There were also some big interceptions this week, interceptions that might boost players stock. Xavier Scott from Illinois has already collected three interceptions and is playing pretty well in his second year as a starter. Just a junior Scott could return to school in 2025 with the corner class looking really deep.
Shavon Revel the corner from East Carolina who finally saw some late hype before the start of the season has started this season off with two interceptions already with one being a pick-6. He has had the flash plays, but he has also given some stuff up as well. As the season goes I would like to see him clean that stuff up a bit especially with some of the smaller schools he’s playing against. The splash plays though were what was lacking from his film last season.
Safety Billy Bowman from Oklahoma who had six interceptions last season is off to a good start this season as well and got his first of the season this past weekend against Tulane. The play showed his incredible ball skills and concentration since it was a ball that got tipped twice, yet he was still able to concentrate and catch it. His play against the run this season has improved and that was something I wanted to see from him as he looks to enter the NFL next season.
Two underrated defensive backs coming into this season that play for the same school are Dante Trader and Jalen Huskey for Maryland. Trader a former Lacrosse player had his first interception of the season this past weekend. He is a all-around safety that plays a physical game. Huskey is a transfer from Bowling Green and is in his first year at the FBS level. His BG film from last year was pretty good and even had four interceptions. He has two this season so far and has played well overall. He is just a Junior though and could return for his senior year.
It Was A Sack Party This Weekend
A couple guys who had big nights this past weekend were Antwaun Powell-Ryland from Virginia Tech and Bradyn Swinson from LSU. Powell-Ryland had a breakout season last year with 9.5 sacks and was looking to come into this season and be one of the top edge rushers for the 2025 draft. He started the season slow with just half a sack thru the first two games, but he showed up big this past weekend against Old Dominion with a total of four sacks! Swinson started out at Oregon where he had a total of three sacks in three seasons and had just two in 2023. Against South Carolina he collected three in one game. If he keeps playing well his stock could go up. Right now he is a late day three pick with upside.
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