This may be a little late, but the three best games of the day are covered.
Today is the best chance for Auburn quarterback Cam Newton to make a case a legit NFL prospect. Many are already projecting him to be a first-round pick due to his developmental upside. A bad game against Auburn today may be enough to force Newton to return to Auburn for another year – unless the NCAA says otherwise.
One Auburn player ready for the pros is defensive lineman Nick Fairley. Some will wonder if Fairley is a one-year wonder. If a team is going to use a top 10 pick on Fairley, it's a justifiable concern. But he's had flashes this year where his game could be categorized between Ndamukong Suh and Gerald McCoy.
Friday NFL Draft watch notes
One player not living up to the hype is Alabama linebacker Dont’a Hightower. He may be second on Alabama with 63 tackles, but it’s been an up-and-down year for Hightower as a prospect. He hasn’t shown a lot of intensity as a player and you have to question his effort some. It might be smart for Hightower to return for another season and cement himself as a first-round pick.
If you haven’t seen a Colorado game this season, today is your chance to see arguably the best cornerback duo in the nation.
may not have any interceptions on the year, but his play shouldn’t be discounted. Smith may line up against physical Nebraska receiver
in a great matchup. Smith’s corner partner is
. He’s not quite as physically gifted as Smith, but he’s a heady player with good timing. (update: Apparently Paul is not playing.)
It’s pretty amazing what Oregon has done with its talent. It’s likely no upperclassmen from the Ducks will be picked in the first three rounds of the draft next year. If redshirt sophomore
enters the draft, he projects to grade out in the same late first- early second-round area like
.
In the next ranking update, expect to see Oklahoma running back DeMarco Murray ahead of Nebraska’s Roy Helu Jr. Helu has cooled off since running for 307 yards against Missouri on Oct. 30. More so, he hasn’t come along as a pass catcher this season like Murray. Neither is a feature back at the next level, so the extra things Murray can do puts him ahead of Helu.
If Nevada upsets Boise State today, Wolfpack pass rusher
will be a big reason why. Moch is again near the top of the NCAA in tackles for loss with 19.5. He was handled pretty easily by Boise last season and is looking for a big game to wind down his college career. Moch will be attractive to a lot of 3-4 teams in need of a linebacker.
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