Quick Draft Dish: 2014 Bowl Season

BOWL SEASON PART ONE

R&L CARRIERS NEW ORLEANS BOWL

LA-LAFAYETTE VS. NEVADA

Ø  LA- LAFAYETTE SR RB ALONZO HARRIS is a solid, late-round prospect. Harris has good size and speed. He has solid burst. He splits carries with up and coming prospect SO RB ELIJAH MCGUIRE.

Ø  LA-LAFAYETTE SR TE LARRY PETTIS has good size. He catches and blocks well. He however is not very gifted athletically.

GILDAN NEW MEXICO BOWL

UTAH STATE VS. UTEP

Ø  UTEP SR QB JAMEILL SHOWERS is a practice squad/camp body player at this point. Showers originally signed at Texas A&M, but transferred after he couldn’t beat out Johnny Manziel. Showers has good size and escapes the pocket well. He isn’t very accurate, especially on deep passes. He has adequate arm strength.

DIVISION-II CHAMPIONSHIP

CSU-PUEBLO VS. MINNESOTA STATE-MANKATO

Ø  CSU-PUEBLO SR QB CHRIS BONNER is an intriguing third day option at quarterback. Bonner has great size (6’7” 235 pounds) and a huge arm. He plays in a pro-style offense, which is always a positive for me. He is accurate on the short-to-intermediate passes. His negatives, that I can see, are his level of competition and deep ball accuracy. He rolls the pocket well, but doesn’t have much in the way of speed. I hope to get to see him in an all-star game, but if it happens, it will likely be in the NFLPA game or the Medal of Honor Bowl.

ROYAL PURPLE LAS VEGAS BOWL

COLORADO STATE VS. UTAH

Ø  UTAH JR RB DEVONTAE BOOKER is rising up my draft board. Booker has sneaky speed and very good hands. Booker has solid cut back ability and is an okay pass protector. His biggest asset is his ability to gain yards after contact.

 BOWL SEASON PART TWO (12/28/14)

POPEYE’S BAHAMAS BOWL

CENTRAL MICHIGAN VS. WESTERN KENTUCKY

Ø  CENTRAL MICHIGAN SR WR TITUS DAVIS is a solid prospect. Davis has decent size (6’2” 190 pounds). He is a hands catcher. He has some shiftiness to him. Davis has good balance and solid speed. I don’t think he is a polished route runner. Davis has accepted a Shrine Game invite.

HAWAI’I BOWL

FRESNO STATE VS. RICE

Ø  RICE SR WR JORDAN TAYLOR is a day three prospect at this point. Taylor has a good frame (6’4” 215). He is a solid route runner and has good hands. Taylor does not have top end speed. He missed several games this season with an injury. He has a Shrine Game invite.

ZAXBY’S HEART OF DALLAS BOWL

LOUISIANA TECH VS. ILLINOIS

Ø  LOUISIANA TECH SR OLB HOUSTON BATES had a whale of a game against the Illini. Bates recorded 4.5 sacks against his former school (He was a graduate transfer). Bates has decent size. He abused some lesser offensive tackles in this game. Bates doesn’t have top level get-off speed. He is likely a practice squad guy.

QUICK LANE BOWL

RUTGERS VS. NORTH CAROLINA

Ø  NORTH CAROLINA JR WR QUINSHAD DAVIS suffered what looked like a bad leg injury late in the fourth quarter. Davis had a down junior campaign, after very good efforts in his freshman and sophomore seasons. I hope he is able to bounce back before his senior season begins.

BITCON ST. PETERSBURG BOWL

NC STATE VS. UCF

Ø  NC STATE SR OLB RODMAN NOEL has impressed me the few times I have watched the Wolfpack this season. Noel has great size (6’4” 225 pounds) and length. He moves well down hill and in space. He is limited as a pass rusher. He could excel on special teams at the NFL level. His brother is NBA player Nerlens Noel.

DUCK COMMANDER INDEPENDENCE BOWL

SOUTH CAROLINA VS. MIAMI-FL

Ø  MIAMI-FL JR OT ERECK FLOWERS is a big, physical, and mauling tackle prospect. Flowers has athletic feet. He can get to the second level quickly. This was my first extended look at Flowers and he should be rising up my board.

Ø  SOUTH CAROLINA JR RB BRANDON WILDS by all indications will be returning to Columbia for his senior season. To the surprise of no one, SOUTH CAROLINA JR RB MIKE DAVIS has declared for the NFL draft.

BOWL SEASON PART THREE (1/8/15)

NATIONAL UNIVERSITY HOLIDAY BOWL

NEBRASKA VS. SOUTHERN CAL

Ø  NEBRASKA SR WR KENNY BELL is a solid NFL prospect. Bell has decent speed and good hands. Bell gets off the press very well. He is a solid route runner. He has been very productive in his career. He has accepted a Shrine Game invite

RUSSELL ATHLETIC BOWL

OKLAHOMA VS. CLEMSON

Ø  CLEMSON SR QB COLE STOUDT showed more in this game than in any other opportunity he was given this year. Stoudt has solid arm strength and athleticism. He is a poor decision maker. He lost his starting job earlier this year to true freshman Deshawn Watson. Stoudt is a camp arm in my opinion. He has accepted an invite to play in the NFLPA game.

ADVOCARE V100 TEXAS BOWL

ARKANSAS VS. TEXAS

Ø  TEXAS SR DE CEDRIC REED is a very good run defending defensive end. Reed has great size to anchor an end. His frame could even allow him to add more weight to play end in a 34 scheme. Reed diagnoses quickly. He has solid power. He is an adequate pass rusher. I was surprised that he had not accepted an all-star game invite until I found out he played the entire 2014 season with a torn meniscus. He is having surgery to fix it, but this likely knocks him out of the pre-draft process. It also may affect his final draft ranking.

FRANKLIN AMERICAN MORTGAGE MUSIC CITY BOWL

NOTRE DAME VS. LSU

Ø  NOTRE DAME JR OT RONNIE STANLEY is a really good prospect. Stanley has long arms and great strength. Stanley is a great run blocker with the athletic ability to get to the second level. His great length helps him be a very good pass blocker. Stanley has a chance to go in the middle-to-late portion of the first round.

BELK BOWL

LOUISVILLE VS. GEORGIA

Ø  GEORGIA SR OC DAVID ANDREWS is a solid, yet unspectacular prospect. Andrews is good in the run game, with enough athletic ability to get to the second level. He is a late round or priority free agent, in my opinion.

CAPITAL ONE ORANGE BOWL

MISSISSIPPI STATE VS. GEORGIA TECH

Ø  GEORGIA TECH SR OLB QUAYSHAWN NEALY is a very good coverage linebacker. Nealy is solid in man-to-man and zone coverage. He struggles to disengage from blocks in the run game. Nealy is limited as a pass rusher. I think these factors will prevent him from being drafted very high. Nealy is playing in the Shrine Game.

OUTBACK BOWL

AUBURN VS. WISCONSIN

Ø  AUBURN SR DT GABE WRIGHT is a very inconsistent defensive tackle prospect. Wright flashes potential on some plays and gets completely wiped out on others. He has quick hands and displays good power. He has pass rush ability. I hope when he gets to the Senior Bowl, he shows up consistently.

GOODYEAR COTTON BOWL CLASSIC

MICHIGAN STATE VS. BAYLOR

Ø  BAYLOR SR QB BRYCE PETTY has not looked the same since hurting his back earlier this season. He statistically had a great game, but his mechanics have been off. Petty is already 24 years old, and that age entering the draft as a QB, is usually a bad sign. Petty will play in the Senior Bowl.

Ø  BAYLOR JR OT SPENCER DRANGO and JR DE SHAWN OAKMAN surprised many by announcing they would return for their senior seasons

BUFFALO WILD WINGS CITRUS BOWL

MISSOURI VS. MINNESOTA

Ø  MINNESOTA R-SO TE MAXX WILLIAMS, with the injury to OREGON JR TE PHAROAH BROWN, is head and shoulders above any other tight end prospect in this draft. Williams has great size, hands, and athleticism. He can be a terror in the middle of the field. Williams isn’t much of a blocker, but that won’t hurt his final grade. He could come off the board in the 20-50 range.

ROSE BOWL GAME PRESENTED BY NORTHWESTERN MUTUAL

OREGON VS. FLORIDA STATE

Ø  OREGON SR OT JAKE FISHER is a solid day two prospect. Fisher has good feet. He can anchor down when he gets bull rushed. Fisher is athletic enough to climb to the second level. He neutralized FLORIDA STATE JR DE MARIO EDWARDS. Fisher missed multiple games with a leg injury this season. He is playing in the Senior Bowl.

ALLSTATE SUGAR BOWL

ALABAMA VS. OHIO STATE

Ø  OHIO STATE SR CB DORAN GRANT is a late round corner prospect. Grant plays the boundary corner position for the Buckeyes. He did a solid job when matched up against ALABAMA JR WR AMARI COOPER. Grant has solid recovery speed. He doesn’t seem to care much about tackling. Grant will play in the Senior Bowl.