Welcome back to Part VII of the series, where I will highlight guys that should be added to your supplemental draft queues. Today’s theme: Bowl Game Heroes pt. II
I will try to lay out some expectations and roughly where I would target the player in the supplemental draft (assuming it’s the standard 15 rounds). As a devy analyst, I will try to give an honest perspective on their NFL aspirations. It would be best if you, the reader, kept in mind when these articles are written that the players who are partially driven by opportunity could quickly lose that variable with a transfer portal addition. I can no longer tell which players are under 5% rosters; Fantrax has rolled over the database to the next year.
I need to make a statement first about Bowl Games. This is the equivalent of pre-season football on the NFL level. Over 2,000 players are in the portal, and the NFL draft quality players are sitting out to preserve their health. There is generally nothing to gain from playing in the bowl game. It’s deeper players, the third and fourth stringers, on the roster getting their shot and trying to increase their stock for playing time next year. Bowl game performances should be taken with a grain of salt because of the lack of talent that’s usually left on the field from both sides of the ball.
QB Miller Moss, USC
- 6’2″ / 200 lbs.
- Entering 3rd year
- NFL Projection: Day 3
- Supplemental Draft Range: Round 5+
‘Oh wow, a Lincoln Riley QB, we’re really shooting from deep today.’ Gotta throw some layups in. This is not supposed to be a shooting from a deep article series. Moss finally got his full start.
Like every other newly starting QB during bowl season he did not look good in the first quarter, looked very uncomfortable and frantic in the pocket. He finished the day with 23 of 33 for 372 yards and six TDs with an INT. I do think his statistical performance was inflated with some play calling, like designed rollouts.
I think Moss deserves and has proven that he can be a Power 4 starting QB. He shows some anticipatory throws, he floated a nice 50/50 ball in the second quarter with superb ball placement to Tahj Washington (A WR I don’t think I ever want catching 50/50 balls). Moss showed tight window throws as well.
Louisville’s defensive stats were a bit inflated this season from a weak schedule. USC makes the jump to the Big Ten; their offensive line was already disintegrating against the Pac-12 and even against G5 teams. Moss will need to show us he can operate out of structure. I don’t foresee the OL problem getting fixed in a season.
Fortunately, he is tied to a top-tier playcaller and some of the best young weapons in college football. Let’s see if he can settle in and show some consistency against what should be a tougher lineup of defenses. This company often states the historical success of Lincoln Riley and his QBs once they go to the NFL, this factor cannot be ignored and makes Miller Moss a priority add in the off season. Add him to the queue.
RB Jadarian Price, Notre Dame
- 5’10” / 206 lbs.
- Entering 3rd year
- NFL Projection: Day 3 Hopeful
- Supplemental Draft Range: Rounds 8+
Notre Dame’s passing offense has been disappointing for two years in a row under HC Marcus Freeman. I’m of the opinion it does not take a big step forward in 2024 and leans on the run game.
Price ruptured his Achilles tendon as an early enrollee in 2022, and missed the entire true freshmen season. In 2023, He didn’t get much playing time this year, playing behind NFL-bound Audric Estime, and his Achilles injury took a lot of time. Price has gotten a few carries this year, but I assume most of the season was getting worked back into the offense and getting acclimated back into the game.
The backfield will likely be split between second-year player Jeremiyah Love and Price. The head start has to go to Price. He looked fully healthy in this bowl game and dominated on the ground. The ND line was winning in the trench, but Price was still the better runner. Both Price and Love have the pass-catching ability, but the edge has to go to Love; his routes are on par with WRs. We are giving a slight seniority edge to Price combined with the run-it-down-the-middle play calling Notre Dame loves. I think Price has the overall edge, and both are Day 3 running backs to me. Add Him to the Queue.
QB Hank Brown, Auburn
- 6’4″ / 200 lbs.
- Entering 2nd year
- NFL Projection: Day 3 HOPEFUL
- Supplemental Draft Range: Rounds 13+
If you’re a loyal listener to Back 2 Devy, I have talked about him three times in the last year. Brown is from Lipscomb Academy in Tennessee under Super Bowl QB turned HC Trent Dilfer (now the UAB head coach). He was a 3 star prospect QB52 in the composite, Lipscomb Academy went 13-0 and was a top 15 Highschool in the nation. He passed for 3,264 yards, 47 touchdowns, and only three interceptions as a senior. His high school tape matched everything he did in the Direct TV Holiday Bowl.
Redshirt freshman QB Holden Geriner received opportunities before Brown and ended up throwing one of six for eight yards and an INT. Brown received the final two drives of the game and made the most of it, going 7/9 and 132 yards. Brown is poised, works through progressions well and has top tier ball placement, his overall accuracy is amazing.
The issue is that he’s kept clean, mobility is not a tool he poses, and I haven’t seen enough in the face of pressure to feel comfortable evaluating him as an out-of-structure passer. Currently, Auburn QB Payton Thorne is set to start, but Hugh Freeze made these comments post-game when asking about the future at QB. “It’s wide open,” said Freeze. “There’s something to that. I’m constantly evaluating players, staff, everything. If we see that my evaluation has been wrong? Then, we have to change gears and reevaluate to make us better. That’s the steps we should make.”
Brown is the best passer on that team today. I can’t ignore the veteran presence that Thorne possesses. Freeze also has a recent preference for QBs with mobility (Malik Willis, Kaidon Salter, Thorne); we did get pocket passer Stephen Calvert from 2018-2019. The safe assumption is that Thorne retains QB1 status.
As a program, Auburn’s first season could’ve been worse, and they are bringing in some amazing talent in this year’s freshmen class. Brown should be in a legitimate QB battle this off-season, but I believe Brown should be a Power 4 starter as a pocket passer with NFL upside. If he wins, I’d look to take him after Round 5. We might need to wait another year to see it. Add him to the Queue.
