Week five of the college football is here and unfortunately it’s slate of games is not the greatest. Fortunately, for NFL fans at least, even if you have no interest in particular games you can at least watch to check out draft prospects.
Last week one of the games that made the list, Penn State vs. Iowa, ended up being a great game. Penn State ended up winning the game 21-19. Their star was once again running back Saquon Barkley who carried the ball 28 times for 211 rushing yards and a touchdown. Barkley also caught 12 passes for 94 yards. That’s an incredible performance even for a guy who always plays well. Barkley is a special player.
That will be a match-up for any of this week’s games to live up to. Here are a couple that are worth checking out:
#2 Clemson at #12 Virginia Tech, 8 pm on ABC
Through three quarters last week against Boston College, Clemson had a battle on its hands. The score was tied at seven heading into the final quarter. Then they exploded, dominating the fourth quarter 27-0. The final score was 34-7.
Virginia Tech is off to a good start this year, the Hokies are 4-0 with a win over a ranked team, West Virginia, under its belt.
Clemson has one of the best defenses in college football. Guys like Christian Wilkins and Clelin Ferrell draw a lot of praise and rightfully so. One guy that doesn’t get metioned as often is defensive end Austin Bryant(pictured above).
Bryant is a 6’4” 265 lbs. junior. In Clemson’s week four game against Auburn, Bryant took over the game. He logged four sacks. He also had one last week against Boston College. If he can keep his momemtum going he could end up being a high draft pick.
Virginia Tech has a talented defense as well. Cornerbacks Adonis Alexander and Brandon Facyson both look like they could be NFL players. The best player that Virginia Tech has is linebacker Tremaine Edmunds.
Edmunds was a very productive player in 2016. He recorded 106 tackles, 18.5 tackles for loss, four and a half sacks, three pass break-ups, one interception and one forced fumble. The 6’5” 250 lbs. junior looks like one of the better linebackers in the draft class.
Ole Miss at #1 Alabama, 9 pm on ESPN
This is a game that you watch solely to watch draft prospects because Ole Miss doesn’t stand much of a chance, but you never know in college football.
Alabama has looked dominant so far in 2017, no suprise there. Ole Miss is 2-1 with their loss coming last week to Cal.
One interesting thing about Alabama so far is their running back situation. Ben Scarborough has received the most carries but the more productive player has been Damien Harris. Harris has more yards and touchdowns. It will be interesting to see if Scarborough continues getting more touches.
On defense the Crimson Tide are loaded with future NFL players, most notably are safeties Minkah Fitzpatrick and Ronnie Harrison, defensive tackle Da’Ron Payne and cornerback Anthony Averett.
The guy to watch on Ole Miss is defensive end/ 3-4 outside linebacker Marquis Haynes. Haynes is a little undersized to play defensive end at the next level at 6’3” and 233 lbs., but he’s been a great pass rusher in his college career. He’s collected 25 sacks in his 40 games that he’s played.
I really hope you enjoyed the article! Follow me on twitter @CHayes95 and join the discussion on the Lions’ subreddit!
