SEC Prospect List under the “Tiers” write-up
The current plan for the “Devy” series that is following up the most recent “Redraft” series is for this series to have four episodes.
SEC Breakdown
Big Ten Breakdown
ACC/B12+Misc. Breakdown
Tier 1 & 2 Revisit for Devy
I wanted to highlight that last part in particular. My Devy Rankings do not contradict the tiers that I have in this assessment — and if they ever happen to it is because of being on the fringe of tiers not having different criteria — but these tiers are purposefully broad to focus less on a purely “Devy” mindset and more from a future NFL Drafts perspective, just one that only highlights QB, RB, WR, and to a lesser extent TE.
While the 3-Part conference series has over 200 players in the top 3 tiers already, Tier 3 is comprised of primarily players who fall under categories like longshot, high floor & limited ceiling, or all ceiling with no proof. There are 67 players (all QB/RB/WR) currently in my more limited Tiers 1 & 2. On the fourth part of the series, I’m going to re-cap the important tiers going age-by-age, but after that I will organize those tiers into positional rankings. So at the end of this series, I will have a listed WR1, WR2, RB1, RB2, etc., at least as I currently feel when I record that fourth episode.
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(The tier write-up is a bit lengthy, but covers the next two posts as well, and the next two posts will only update the player list below, unless I include a copy/paste from a promotional post.)
Tiers
As mentioned above, these tiers are very broad. At the QB position, Tier 1 is more broad than at any other position. Tier 1 focuses on all College QBs who seem to be entering a favorable position to be a first round QB. I don’t believe “favorable” necessarily means likely, but compared to how unlikely it is in general to become a Round 1 QB, these QBs are in relatively likely or favorable positions to do so.
Tier 1 at the other positions highlights more of the “elite,” though even this can get a bit shaky at both positions. That said, I currently have only 4 RBs in Tier 1, and only 7 WRs in Tier 1.
As you might expect, the opposite is true for these positions in Tier 2; QB Tier 2 is a bit smaller, because we’re looking for the clear candidates who are NOT currently on that favorable trajectory, at least not yet or not entirely. For example, while John Mateer has great tools, he is the first member of QB Tier 2 here because he does have some red flags in his gameplay particularly against tougher competition, and his breakout came against a mostly Mountain West schedule. The Mountain West schedule without more error-proof play in particular is what pushes Mateer to be Tier 2, even if this is a rare grade.
Tier 2 at RB/WR is far more broad, and primarily covers the players that are on a trajectory to be on (at WR) or near (at RB) Day 2 or better in the NFL Draft. As is normally the case with tiers, some players are on the fringe of Tier 1, while others are on the fringe of Tier 3, but for these positions in particular I bring that up because that is a very wide gap — at RB/WR, the range between Tier 1 and Tier 3 in this exercise is absolutely massive.
Tier 3 for all positions should be considered more long shot players, though particularly at the QB position, the issue isn’t that no one from this tier might become relevant, simply that it would be hard to bet on who it might be. Importantly, I do look for traits that can drive upside in my Tier 3 selections; if a fringe players is seen as having high upside, he is obviously more likely to make the list because of that chance to move up.
I did not cover him on any public list to my knowledge before Week 1 of his breakout season, but Brian Thomas Jr. prior to his breakout is a perfect example of a player who would be in Tier 3. Brian Thomas Jr. was an excellent recruit, had some production but not enough to get into Tier 2, and had off-season buzz suggesting he was the most likely to be the #2 behind Malik Nabers. Combined with being young enough to still be an early declare, all of these factors showcase how a player who is clearly below the Tier 2 line can become one of the players to highlight in Tier 3.
If you are unfamiliar with this field, Depth Chart positioning in particular is a factor weighed into this analysis that some might be unaccustomed to, but these Spring and Summer battles for College Football that has far more turnover are good places to identify who amongst a group of candidates might be best positioned to breakout in 2025.
GCQ+ is a QB distinction created because even though later drafted RBs/WRs are long shots, they do at least fairly often get chances. Any QB who is more of a “good college quarterback” than an NFL Draft pick I label with GCQ. “GCQ+” indicates a QB who I do believe could be drafted, but I see that draft stock as being overwhelmingly likely to be in a non-Starting QB position. The players in Tier 3 are longshots, but most-if-not-all of them do have considerable upside to be Day 1 picks.
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SEC PROSPECT WATCHLIST — WHO TO KNOW
With that said, here is the SEC List. “26,” “27,” and “28” indicate years the prospect is first eligible. Italics indicate a potential early declare. Feel free to comment on any omissions or potential errors in Draft Class. Everything is accurate to the best of my knowledge.
QBs (9)
(5) D.J. Lagway, Florida (27) ; Arch Manning, Texas (26) ; Garrett Nussmeier, LSU (26) ; Keelon Russell, Alabama (28) ; LaNorris Sellers, South Carolina (26)
(1) John Mateer, Oklahoma via Washington St. (26)
(3) Jackson Arnold, Auburn via Oklahoma (26) ; Deuce Knight, Auburn (28) ; Austin Simmons, Ole Miss (26)
GCQ+: Taylen Green, Arkansas (26) ; Marcel Reed, Texas A&M (26)
RBs (24)
(2) Caden Durham, LSU (27) ; Nate Frazier, Georgia (27)
(8) Jadan Baugh, Florida (27) ; C.J. Baxter, Texas (26) ; Harlem Berry, LSU (28) ; Fluff Bothwell, Mississippi St. via South Alabama (27) ; Ahmad Hardy, Missouri via UL-Monroe (27) ; Peyton Lewis, Tennessee (27) ; Shekai Mills-Knight, Ole Miss (28) ; Jaydn Ott, Oklahoma via California (26)
(14) DeSean Bishop, Tennessee (26) ; Jeremiah Cobb, Auburn (26) ; AK Dear, Alabama (28) ; Rahsul Faison, South Carolina (26) ; Jerrick Gibson, Texas (27) ; Alvin Henderson, Auburn (28) ; Kaleb Jackson, LSU (26) ; Jamarion Miller, Alabama (26) ; Lev’eon Moss, Texas A&M (26) ; Roderick Robinson, Georgia (26) ; Braylen Russell, Arkansas (27) ; Taylor Tatum, Oklahoma (27) ; Tre Wisner, Texas (26) ; Richard Young, Alabama (26)
WRs (37)
(2) Cam Coleman, Auburn (27) ; Ryan Williams, Alabama (27)
(9) Zachariah Branch, Georgia via USC (26) ; Vernell Brown III, Florida (28) ; Kaliq Lockett, Texas (28) ; Jerome Myles, Texas A&M (28) ; Eric Singleton Jr., Auburn via Georgia Tech (26) ; Talyn Taylor, Georgia (28) ; Dallas Wilson, Florida (28) ; Eugene Wilson III, Florida (26) ; Ryan Wingo, Texas (27)
(26) Aaron Anderson, LSU (26) ; Nic Anderson, LSU via Oklahoma (26) ; Mazeo Bennett Jr., South Carolina (27) ; Germie Bernard, Alabama (26) ; Lotzeir Brooks, Alabama (28) ; Barion Brown, LSU via Kentucky (26) ; Deion Burks, Oklahoma (26) ; Terry Bussey, Texas A&M (27) ; Malik Clark, South Carolina (28) ; Kevin Coleman, Missouri via Mississippi St. (26) ; Kevin Concepcion, Texas A&M via N.C. State (26) ; Mario Craver, Texas A&M via Mississippi St. (27) ; Caleb Cunningham, Ole Miss (28) ; Jaime Ffrench, Texas, (28) ; Jalen Hale, Alabama (26) ; Nyck Harbor, South Carolina (26) ; Isaiah Horton, Alabama via Miami (FL) (26) ; Cayden Lee, Ole Miss (26) ; Mike Matthews, Tennessee (27) ; DeAndre Moore Jr., Texas (26) ; Emmett Mosley V, Texas via Stanford (27) ; Malcolm Simmons, Auburn (27) ; Braylon Staley, Tennessee (27) ; Michael Terry III, Texas (28) ; Elijah Thomas, Oklahoma (28) ; Noah Thomas, Georgia via Texas A&M (26)
TEs (10)
Ethan Davis, Tennessee (26) ; Jack Endries, Texas via California (26) ; Trey’Dez Green, LSU (27) ; Luke Hasz, Ole Miss via Arkansas (26) ; Miles Kitselman, Tennessee (26) ; Lawson Luckie, Georgia (26) ; Eli Stowers, Vanderbilt (26) ; Seydou Traore, Mississippi St. (26) ; Jordan Washington, Texas (27) ; Dae’Quan Wright, Ole Miss (26)
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Once again, player specific notes can be found on this week’s edition of the Fantasy for Real podcast (I think it is a good one), and if you are a read-only member and need more specific Devy notes prior to the 4th Show in this series, keep in mind that not too much has changed from the extensive post-Draft show we did around Late-April or Early-May.
Thanks,
C.J.
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