Summer Scouting

(I would like to preface this article by saying absolutely nothing in here was created by AI. This makes me better than Yahoo Sports that has laid off good employees and is using AI to create their articles.)

I understand that not everyone in this league is as big into college football and the draft prospects as I am. This is why I will do a yearly 'Summer Scouting' post detailing a name at every position that you should be looking out for during the season, and possibly for the draft. As a little note, college is very volatile and a name or two I mention could easily have down years, or even decided to stay another year and try to develop more. The focus will be on players that are eligible and likely to declare for the draft this season. That means there will not be any mention of Arch Manning, Jeremiah Smith, or Ryan Williams.

LaNorris Sellers, South Carolina Quarterback

LaNorris Sellers is entering his 3rd year in college as a redshirt sophomore (being redshirted means you are not going to play for a year, almost always for developmental reasons, and it gives you an extra year of eligibility.), and people are expecting very good things from him. Sellers might give people flashbacks of Anthony Richardson because of his tremendous athleticism, and sub par passing ability. Standing at 6'3 and about 230 pounds, Sellers breaks tackles at a rate of an agile running back or an Ashton Jeanty. With 47 missed tackles forced, Sellers is a monster in the run game and can evade sacks at a high level. Sellers also has a rocket for an arm, and can launch deep passes for days with nearly all of his big time throws coming on passes 20+ yards down the field (Big time throw being defined as a pass with excellent ball location and timing, either deeper down the field, and/or into tight windows).

This sounds a lot like Anthony Richardson I understand, and Sellers also has accuracy problems like AR did, and will need to take a leap with his passing to be a highly regarded prospect. The 2500 yards and 18 touchdowns aren't necessarily impressive for the college game, but including the 650 rushing yards and 7 touchdowns make his season look better. Sellers will have help in the receiving room as Nick Harbor is a very good college player and decent draft prospect, giving him a reliable target. Sellers is an electric athlete with a great arm making him an entertaining player, and my player to look out for during the upcoming college football season.

Honourable Mentions: Cade Klubnik, Drew Allar, Dante Moore

Makhi Hughes, Oregon Running Back

If you know me, you know I was going to force in a player for my Oregon Ducks. Makhi Hughes transferred from Tulane (Green Wave easily the best logo in sports), after putting up two seasons with at least 1350 rushing yards totalling 22 touchdowns in those two years. Two very impressive years for Hughes but he faces a new challenge as he transfers into the BIG10 conference with other great programs like Michigan, Ohio State, Penn State and several others, and the increase of talent could pose a problem for him early on. Hughes is more of a power back type of players as he had 1400 rushing yards this past season and over 1000 of those yards came after contact. Adding on, he had 61 missed tackles forced making him a tough player to tackle as is, and posted a respectable 31 explosive runs in 2024 (runs 10 yards or more). The one issue with Hughes is that he isn't an explosive or dynamic athlete. He can read blocks well, makes quick decisions, and cut better than average, but his general athleticism and speed is not as high as you would want, but is still a talented football player. There is a fairly good chance that Hughes struggles early on at Oregon as multiple players on the offensive line went to the NFL and 80% of the current players will be new starters. There could be problems with blocking, timing, and snaps early on, but once the team gets it together, look for Hughes to be a difference maker for the Oregon Ducks.

Kaytron Allen and Nick Singleton, Penn State Running Backs

This is a two-for-one because these guys play for the same team and made the surprising decision to stay at Penn State last year. These two create a dynamic duo that was impossible for teams to stop last year. The two combined for 2207 rushing yards and 20 touchdowns as Penn State made it to the semi-final in the College Football playoffs. Kaytron Allen is the power back of the two and is nicknamed the 'Fat Man' and has been described as "bringing the boom" in his runs. Kaytron is similar to Makhi Hughes, as they are both bruisers, but Allen is the bigger and stronger back but that also takes away a little athleticism.

That is where Nick Singleton comes into the mix as the more agile, speedy, pass-catching running back that provides what Allen doesn't. Singleton pretty much checks every box you could want in terms of athleticism. Allen used to be a track star, running a sub-11 second 100 metre dash and a sub-23 second 200m, which shows up on the field. Allen has the short yardage acceleration to make him lethal, and has the long speed to breakaway runs and not get caught. Two years ago, Singleton's 40 yard dash time was 4.39 making him an elite runner as these two create a dynamic duo similar to the Monty-Gibbs duo in Detroit, and look out for them to lead the Nittany Lions far in the College Football Playoffs this year.

Honourable Mentions: Jayden Ott, Jonah Coleman, Jeremiyah Love

Jordan Tyson, Arizona State Wide Receiver

Jordan Tyson had to take a little bit of a backseat last year with the tremendous rushing season that Cam Skattebo had. Despite that Tyson still had 75 catches, over 1100 receiving yards and 10 touchdowns which was 34% of the team passing/receiving yards that year. Tyson was a reliable target because of his crisp route running ability and the explosiveness to make his cuts and breaks even more effective, creating open windows even against very tight coverage. Tyson has fantastic hands, and routinely brings in passes even through big contact from defenders looking to knock the ball out, making him a reliable target. On deep passes, he is able to adjust to the ball and make easy over the shoulder catches without slowing down too much, making them look easy. Last on the positive side, Tyson is more than a willing blocker. Former NFL wide receiver Hines Ward is the WR coach at Arizona State, and he has the "no block, no rock" philosophy. If you are not willing to block on run and pass plays, you will earn no targets. Tyson ranked 5th in blocking snaps among FBS wide receivers, making him a willing blockers but standing at 6'1 and 195 pounds, he sometimes doesn't hold up well. Lastly, Tyson has some health concerns, tearing multiple ligaments in his knee in 2022 and then broke his collarbone in 2024 meaning he has missed dozens of possible games making his scouting report a small sample size so far. Tyson is a fantastic talent and if healthy should be an entertaining wide receiver this year and one to even look out for in the draft.

Denzel Boston, Washington Wide Receiver

The Washington Huskies moved from the Pac-12 into the BIG10 conference last season which increased the level of talent faced each game, and with most of their elite talent leaving for the draft in the last couple years (Michael Penix, Rome Odunze, Jalen Mcmillan, and multiple offensive linemen) they have started to struggle as a program. Despite the mediocre Quarterback play, Denzel Boston shines through. Washington likes to focus on running the ball with Jonah Coleman, but when passing the ball Boston is a reliable target. Boston excels in intermediate route running, and can create separation through his twitchy-ness allowing him to fool defenders. In addition, his long strides can help him build up more speed than defenders expect him to have. This allows him to create more separation after breaks and allows him to eat up off coverage. Boston thrives in the red-zone as he understands how to use his body and frame to seal off defenders from a chance at the ball and his large catch radius makes him a prime target. Boston routinely makes catches away from his body making it more difficult for defenders to play the ball, which is something some receivers struggle with. In terms of some weaknesses, Boston struggles against press coverage, as bigger corners often push him off his spot and stop him from building up momentum. Washington might not have the best passing attack, but Boston should still shine through most weeks.

Honourable Mentions: Evan Stewart, Carnell Tate, Eugene Wilson

Kenyon Sadiq, Oregon Tight End

Am I just biased because I cheer for Oregon? Yea 100% but Kenyon Sadiq is the real deal. Sadiq had to sit behind recently drafted Terrance Ferguson last season but still showed flashes of being a very productive Tight End. Sadiq is a tad small for a TE at 6'3 and 245 pounds, but has elite athleticism for the position. Very explosive athlete that can easily separate from linebackers, but also create separation vertically against safeties. Not many TEs have that sort of athleticism and speed. To go along with his athleticism, Sadiq is a very talented route runner that thrives at all levels of the field, and can be lined up all over the field. Can put him in the slot and can beat nickel corners, or even out wide getting by press coverage with his good release off the line. In addition, Sadiq has very good hands, catching nearly every pass thrown to him, and is above average in contested situations making him a reliable target for his QB. The biggest weakness for Sadiq is his slimmer frame making him an easy target in pass and run blocking scenarios. Sadiq is a willing blocker which is good, but being as slim as him just limits how effective he can be as a blocker, and in the NFL players will be able to blow by him. Will also get beaten badly on run blocks, making him mainly a receiving threat unless he improves his general technique. Sadiq looks to have a really big year as the Tight End 1 for Oregon and with the unfortunate injury to Wide Receiver Evan Stewart, he looks to be the focal point of the receiving game.

Honourable Mentions: Eli Stowers, Oscar Delp

Every Saturday during the school year there are entertaining college football games, and I encourage everyone to watch more college football if you have the time to do so. These prospects should show out during the year, and I picked players from bigger programs so they are more likely to play in prime time games. If you want to learn about more prospects I love the NFL Stock Exchange podcast/youtube channel they are one of a few people I listen to and they are very good at what they do. I hope you enjoyed a quick look at a few prospects for the upcoming year, and I hope it convinces you to watch more college football because it can be just as entertaining if not more entertaining than the NFL.