Every year, we have players who were underrated, lesser known, or even completely off the radar to start the season. I wanted to highlight some guys who have not, to this point, had significant widespread attention on them yet as prospects. These players are certainly gaining some attention now.
It is still early in the 2024 college football season, and there is no doubt that there could be some of these players who ultimately flop, especially considering the small samples we have so far. Nevertheless, these are now devy relevant players we should be paying attention to with early season breakouts.
Eli Holstein- QB Pitt (2026 Draft Class Eligible)
Since winning the job coming into the 2024 season, Holstein has looked great. He boasts excellent size at 6’4″, 225 lbs., and was a promising recruit, initially landing at Alabama before his transfer to Pitt.
Holstein’s efficiency in starting his true sophomore season has been nice, leading the team to four straight wins and four straight games where he passed for three touchdowns. He also has displayed unexpected mobility and rushing ability, which have boosted his fantasy status to a top ten fantasy scoring quarterback in college football.
Brendan Sorsby- QB Cincinnati (2025)
After some success in his second season in Indiana, Sorsby took to the transfer portal and landed as Cincinnati’s starter. Despite an ankle injury limiting him recently, he has had a respectable season thus far. He has eight passing touchdowns and no interceptions, and even has three rushing touchdowns so far.
At 6’3″, 228 lbs., he has an adequate frame for a pro quarterback. He also possesses the arm talent, accuracy, and ability to put touch on the ball as a passer to make the jump to the NFL at some point.
Jeremiyah Love- RB Notre Dame (2026)
Love had the attention of many devy and C2C drafters coming into college as a freshman in 2023, but he was not necessarily a priority for drafters this 2024 offseason . He was an intriguing versatile recruit coming into a system that can produce good NFL prospects at the running back position.
While he did not necessarily break out as a true freshman, he did work his way into their rotation frequently in his first collegiate season. Love has taken that next step this season, continuing to improve on his freshman season numbers.
Watching him play, the burst has always been present but now we are witnessing this more often on the field. He has receiving abilities which could be a great boost to his draft stock, though the rushing quarterback presence in this passing attack at the moment is unlikely to maximize Love’s receiving skills. Love has gained the necessary weight to shoulder a fair workload if needed. Exciting times may be ahead for Love and he certainly is an emerging player.
Dylan Sampson- RB Tennessee (2025)
Sampson has been largely underrated, though on the radar for some entering this season. I wanted to write up Sampson’s profile on the 2024 Devy Guide because I was a fan. Even so, he has exceeded expectations so far this season.
Some success should be expected with the competition Tennessee has faced thus far this season, but he has been fabulous overall. He has been efficient as a rusher, capable (this year and in previous seasons) as a goal line rusher, and functional as a receiver. Having now reached 201 pounds, Sampson seems to be setting himself up for a promising future and legit NFL draft attention.
Kaleb Johnson- RB Iowa (2025)
I typically would hesitate to value an Iowa running back in devy leagues, but Kaleb Johnson just needs some respect. He was almost completely forgotten after a poor 2023 season. He flashed as a true freshman, and was someone I happily rostered in C2C leagues last season, just to be disappointed.
Johnson has broken out in four games this season, seemingly getting better game after game despite seeing a solid level of competition. He has the size at 6’0″ and 225 pounds for a large workload and is showing that his burst has improved which is very much needed after a more sluggish 2023 season. He has a ways to go as a receiver, but he is now at least on the devy radar again with his early rebound 2024 production.
Ja’Quinden Jackson- RB Arkansas (2025)
Jackson has been acknowledged as a breakout candidate for multiple previous seasons while at Utah. He was an interesting dual-threat quarterback recruit landing at Texas, ranked number three behind Bryce Young and Hudson Card among recruits. Of course, he ended up switching positions and eventually earned some involvement at Utah. It never truly came together for him at Utah, but he was always efficient, averaging at least five yards per carry every season with a career 5.8 yards per carry mark.
Jackson is excelling this season despite competition starting to ramp up. He has been very impressive while handling a heavy workload this year. While he has a more challenging schedule ahead and we should expect his efficiency to dip some, he at least warrants some attention. Jackson is another back who has not demonstrated much in the receiving game, but at a minimum, he has the potential to be quite an effective rusher.
Tre Harris- WR Ole Miss (2025)
This one may be cheating, but I must include Harris in this article. It is not that he was off of devy radars completely, but he just never seemed to get the consistent respect he deserved. He was a very productive player at Louisiana Tech.
Harris established great chemistry with Jaxson Dart in 2023 at Ole Miss despite injuries hampering Harris through part of the 2023 season. Harris has built off of that with a ridiculous 628 receiving yards through four games to start the 2024 season. This pace will obviously slow down when the schedule gets more challenging, but Harris is clearly a top wide receiver in college football at this time and a major riser if you did not have him high coming into the season.
Tai Felton- WR Maryland (2025)
I was not familiar with Felton’s game entering the 2024 season. I had never watched him, and he had a slow start with minimal production his first two seasons with some actually sneakily solid production in 2023.
Now he has drawn 9, 15, 16, and 15 targets in each of his first four games. Felton is averaging 33 fantasy points per game. That is just outstanding production, and he is doing it at a respectable 14.7 yards per reception. Felton appears most comfortable as an underneath and intermediate receiver at this stage, with capable ball skills and hands. He certainly now has my attention as a notable devy riser.
Ryan Wingo- WR Texas (2027)
Wingo was not a household name in devy drafts, though some folks were in on him, and he was being drafted in all standard C2C leagues. He was controversial among fantasy rankers entering college despite being highly ranked among recruiting services.
I changed my opinion on Wingo this offseason prior to the season. There was steady hype and praise for him during the spring practices and game. When the head coach loves you and makes it a point to get you the ball as a true freshman in a crowded receiver room, that gets our attention.
Wingo is fun after the catch and part of the allure of his game is that he is a great weapon with the ball in his hands with excellent size. Despite a deep receiving room at Texas, Wingo has seen a good amount of playing time for a true freshman, and is trending up and could easily become a household name in this class.
