It’s Week 8 of the college football season and there are a bunch of exciting matchups on display. With that in mind, we’ve produced this list of five NFL Draft prospects that you need to keep a close eye on.
Marvin Harrison Jr – WR, Ohio State (6-4, 205, Junior)
The biggest matchup of the weekend takes place between #3 Ohio State and #7 Penn State. There are a bunch of NFL Draft prospects on both sides, but none are more noteworthy than Marvin Harrison Jr. The son of the NFL Hall of Famer has been electric for Ohio State since arriving on campus. In 2022 he took over as their leading receiver, earning Unanimous All-American honours in the process.
Harrison has looked excellent so far this season too, racking up 604 yards and five touchdowns in his six outings. He has topped 100 yards in four of those games. Harrison is comfortably the best wide receiver in the 2024 class and is firmly in conversation to be the first non-quarterback off the board. Seeing how he does this weekend against an excellent Nittany Lions defense should be great fun.
Chop Robinson – EDGE, Penn State (6-3, 254, Junior)
On the other side of the ball in that game will be Penn State edge rusher Chop Robinson. The former four-star recruit began his career at his home state Maryland, before transferring to Penn State ahead of the 2022 season. A Feldman’s Freaks List member, Robinson has been clocked running a 4.47 40-yard dash at 254 lbs and is capable of bench pressing 400 lbs.
Robinson has been a consistently disruptive pass rusher since joining Penn State, amassing 66 pressures on 367 pass rushing snaps over the last two seasons. He has also been earning his fair share of NFL Draft hype, with some suggesting he could even be taken as early as the top 10. If he is to warrant that sort of selection he will need to show up against top competition like the Buckeyes.
Benjamin Yurosek – TE, Stanford (6-4, 242, rs-Senior)
There are a bunch of talented names in this year’s tight end class. One of those to keep a close eye on is Stanford’s Benjamin Yurosek. After exploding with an incredible Week 1 performance that saw him rack up 138 yards and a touchdown on nine receptions, Yurosek has been kept fairly quiet through recent weeks. He has actually failed to register a single catch in two of his four games since that win over Hawaii.
You can’t overlook his skillset though. Yurosek has the tools that translate well to the NFL, with good athleticism as well as outstanding body control and reliable hands. He definitely needs to work on his blocking but he has a very projectable profile. This weekend he will face off against UCLA and it will be interesting to see if he can get his production back on track.
Joe Milton – QB, Tennessee (6-5, 235, rs-Senior)
There has been a lot of talk about the depth of this quarterback class. One name that was earning plenty of hype during the offseason was Tennessee’s Joe Milton. The former Michigan quarterback boasts some elite traits, with outstanding arm strength and a good athletic profile. The question was whether he could translate that to production on the field in his first season as a starter.
It is safe to say that Milton has struggled so far. He is completing just 61.5% of his passes and averaging just 6.9 yards per attempt. His 100.3 passer rating from a clean pocket ranks in just the 55th percentile amongst historic college quarterback seasons. This weekend he faces off against Alabama. With five-star freshman Nicholas Iamaleava waiting in the wings, Milton needs to put in a good performance here to save his draft stock and potentially his starting role.
Dallas Gant – LB, Toledo (6-3, 230, rs-Senior)
Gant might not have the profile of others on this list, but he is beginning to make a name for himself at Toledo. The former four-star recruit began his career at Ohio State. He spent four seasons with the Buckeyes, but was unable to make his way into a starting role, leading to a transfer to Toledo ahead of the 2022 season. Gant has been a key part of the Rockets’ defense ever since and is having an excellent 2023 season.
He has contributed 29 defensive stops in seven games. He has also developed into one of the most reliable tacklers in the FBS, logging just two misses on 60 attempts so far this season. Gant has also shown himself to be a reliable presence in coverage, allowing just 60 yards on 13 targets. This weekend’s matchup with Miami (OH) should be a close-fought affair and Gant could boost his stock further with another good outing.
