College Football Stock Report: Risers and Fallers from Week 5
The College Football Playoff race just continues to shoot itself in the foot with each passing week.
No. 4-ranked Oregon was upset by Stanford over the last weekend, and the most recent polls have the Hawkeyes of Iowa at No. 3 and Penn State at No. 4. While both programs certainly had reasonably high expectations coming into the year, I don’t entrust that they envisioned themselves facing off this upcoming week as top-5 teams.
The above example is a testament to just how unpredictable this sport is. Sure, some people may call it a “down year” because of Clemson’s struggles and Oklahoma not looking as sharp (just two examples, there’s plenty more), but variability is good every now and then.
One example of when variability is bad is when scouts start studying prospects for the draft. You don’t want to find a player whose motor runs hot and cold throughout the year, and that is this week's theme of the NFL Draft Stock Report-- players who are rising due to consistency, while others fall because of volatility in their play.
STOCK UP | DT Jordan Davis, Georgia
Right now, if you asked me who the overall best team in the country was, I would tell you it’s the Georgia Bulldogs. Not only has the offense been surprisingly effective thanks to their great run game, but the defense has allowed less than FIVE POINTS PER GAME (sorry for yelling).
There’s nothing to dislike on the Bulldogs defense, but for myself, the most impressive area has been the defensive line, spearheaded by senior defensive tackle Jordan Davis.
Davis is a player I might need to hold an "L" on because coming out of summer scouting, I saw a one-trick pony nose tackle who would be a solid run stuffer and third-fourth rounder.
Now, he’s been playing like he deserves to be selected in the top 32. The stats will never jump off of the page with Davis (only ten total tackles and 1.5 sacks so far in 2021), but he looks immensely stronger than he did last year. That power and force he plays with allows him to take on multiple assignments on the opposing offensive line, and then the pass-rushers on the Georgia defense go to work.
Nobody will ever mistake him for a premier penetrator in the middle, but we’ve all seen the way a great nose such as Vita Vea on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers helps his teammates out.
In a weak interior defensive lineman class, Davis picked the right year to have his best season yet. His progress is apparent, and, as mentioned prior, teams that miss out on DeMarvin Leal could get a wonderful consolation prize in Davis.
STOCK DOWN | TE Jalen Wydermyer & OL Kenyon Green, Texas A&M
Speaking of Leal, his team, the Texas A&M Aggies, have had a disappointing season so far. Once considered a sleeper CFP contender, a lot has gone wrong for Jimbo Fisher’s squad.
First, highly touted quarterback Haynes King underperformed in Week 1 and is out indefinitely with a leg injury. Second, they’ve dropped two straight games in SEC play to Arkansas and Mississippi State. Third, two of their top offensive players have been underperforming to start the year.
Tight end Jalen Wydermyer was considered a potential first-round pick over the summer, but his play in 2021 has been discouraging, to say the least. Through five contests, he only has 176 yards and a touchdown.
More troublesome than that is Wydermyer continues to show lazy technique and effort as a blocker. He has a fantastic frame with good athleticism and contains plenty of strength to be a competent in-line tight end, but his biggest flaw as a player is not being corrected.
As for Kenyon Green, who is one of, if not the, strongest offensive lineman in the prospective 2022 NFL Draft class, he has also been quite hit or miss for A&M. He hasn’t been a complete nightmare. He’s currently back to playing his ideal position at left guard, but Kenyon is another guy who, in terms of technique, is rather… green. (I’m here all night, folks!)
In all seriousness, the uber-talented lineman often struggles with balance and can overshoot at the second level at times. Speedier interior and edge guys also have proven bothersome for him.
Both of these guys are way more talented than their play has suggested, and they have the potential to improve and get their stock back up to where it was. Let’s hope they do soon because everyone on that Aggies roster will need to be at their A-game when they host Alabama this Saturday.
STOCK DOWN | Edge Ali Gaye, LSU
This is turning into an SEC-heavy article, so my apologies to all of the fans of teams in separate conferences. Alas, the LSU Tigers are similar to the Aggies because both haven’t quite lived up to their lofty expectations thus far in 2021.
At 3-2, they have an absurdly tough stretch coming up on their schedule, mostly against highly-powered offenses. The team has been inconsistent at pressuring the quarterback outside of non-eligible linebacker B.J. Ojulari (yes, Giants fans, that is Azeez’s brother) and said inconsistency had derailed Ali Gaye’s hype.
Gaye is yet another example of a player whose progress has stagnated in a stacked pass-rusher group for next April. He has two sacks in 2021 and hasn’t been entirely unproductive, but he has not looked as advertised.
With great size at 6’6'' and 250 pounds, Gaye has always been touted as an athletic freak who can play in multiple alignments. I can’t see him standing up in the NFL. Gaye looks best when his hand is in the dirt, but he doesn’t possess the lateral agility nor a quick first step to cut inside when playing the pass.
He focuses a lot on attacking the tackle through his center and has failed to show any versatility in his pass-rush skill set. Hopefully, Gaye can go on a tear soon because he’s quickly getting lost in, as I mentioned, a loaded edge-rusher class.
STOCK UP | WR Jacob Cowing, UTEP
Taking a step back from the Power 5 schools has us down in the Longhorn State at the University of Texas-El Paso to look at one of the more well-rounded and slept on wide receivers in the entire country.
Jacob Cowing is a former 2-star wideout from Maricopa, Arizona, one who committed to UTEP in 2019 and had been a steady contributor during his first two seasons. After being named All C-USA Second Team for his play in 2020, Cowing has emerged as a man possessed for the Miners in 2021.
His stat-line through five games reads like a video game: 24 catches, 585 yards, and four touchdowns. That 24.4 YPC mark is number one in the country, and trust me when I say Cowing’s game will translate to the next level.
He’s not very big (listed at 5’11” and 170 pounds), and he’s not a full-on speed demon, but man, does he separate well. His route-running and timing are impressive, plus he does not struggle to haul in passes.
If you haven’t heard of Jacob Cowing yet, it’s best to start now. His time is coming as one of the better sleeper prospects in the upcoming draft.
STOCK UP | QB Kenny Pickett, Pittsburgh
For as much criticism (warranted or not) that the top of this quarterback class has received, you’d be hard-pressed to claim it has a depth issue as well. Every week, a new gunslinger adds to his resume and tries to make a case to be one of the high-round draft picks. One guy who has been legitimately great all year has been Pittsburgh’s Kenny Pickett.
Pickett has struggled decently over his career up until 2021. So far this year, he looks good. How good, you may ask? Well, he could be a Heisman finalist if he keeps this type of play up. Pickett exceeded his career-high in touchdown passes through only five starts this year, with 19 total.
He’s also thrown only one pick and has put together these types of performances consistently. His touch and downfield accuracy have taken a massive step forward this year. Pickett will never be considered a legitimate first-round caliber player, but he has a chance to be drafted within the top-100 if he keeps THIS type of production up.
STOCK DOWN | OL Dohnovan West, Arizona State
This last stock down of the week is sad for me to write, but Dohnovan West has not been the same player in years past.
A player who made two All-Pac 12 teams in the last two years, West play, has taken a step back in 2021. His pass-protection is still very solid, but he’s a guy who many thought (including myself) would inch into that first-round conversation.
Unfortunately, whether some injuries he has dealt with last year have caught up to him or not, West has been a liability in run blocking. Arizona State is coming off of a big conference win against UCLA, and momentum seems to be in their favor, but West needs to play better. His draft stock depends on it.
Related
- College Football Stock Report: Risers and Fallers from Week 4
- College Football Stock Report: Risers and Fallers from Week 3
- College Football Stock Report: Risers and Fallers from Week 2
- College Football Stock Report: Risers and Fallers from Week 1
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