Sure, luck means a lot in football. Not having a good quarterback is bad luck.
– Don Shula, former coach
Byrum Brown (USF) — You might say Brown’s dip last season was inexplicable. On closer inspection, however, it wasn’t as bad as I previously thought. It was a blowout in USF’s first game vs. BC, and Brown scored only 19 points. The second game was against Bama, and he scored 14, then 30 vs. SMiss, 21 vs. Miami, and then nine vs. Tulane, where it looks like he got injured because that was his last game of the year. So, my point is the numbers make it look worse than it was.
Bryson Barnes (Utah State) — When you look at Barnes, yes, he wasn’t the starter all year last year, but when he did start (first three games, last two), he did exceptionally well. There was a dud vs. USC, which was expected (2.2 points scored), but the other four starts yielded results of 30, 24, 45, and 43 points. Those are some monster scores if you ask me. In particular, look at his rushing usage in his last game. He ran 24 times for 185 yards and a TD vs. CSU. Spencer Petras is gone, so say it with me now: Spencer Petras is GONE. It’s time to ride in Logan, UT, once more.
Austin Simmons (MISS) — A major projection here, but what is notable about Simmons is that in a program that typically brings in transfers everywhere, his head coach decided not to at QB this offseason. That could change in the spring, but for now, Simmons is tabbed to be the starter for Kiffin in 2025. Unfortunately, we didn’t get a preview of what Simmons can do since Jaxson Dart played in the bowl game. However, early signs in spring are good. As a refresher, Simmons was a reclassified player, and I believe he was originally supposed to be a C/O 2025 (!) player if you can believe that. Could he be a wonder kid? I guess we’ll see…
Sawyer Robertson (BAY) — Robertson scored 25 points or more eight times last year despite not starting until week three. That’s a strong return in 8/11 appearances. In theory, Robertson will be better in year two. Baylor needs a bounce-back year in 2025 as a whole, and that can sometimes be a boon for player production. At the very least, if Robertson repeats what he did last season, he’ll justify a mid-round selection.
DeWayne Coleman (ARMY) — This player is here because of what Bryson Daily did last season. Overall, Army will unlikely field another CFF viable asset in 2025. We don’t know much about Coleman either, but he’s worthy of a pick at the very end of a draft as a low-risk lottery ticket.
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