After stealing the idea from our good friends over at the Chasing The Natty Podcast, the C2C Devy Team got together and decided to give our very own panic meter for some of the bigger disappointments early in the year.
We’ll be rating them on a scale from 1-10, with 1 being not concerned at all and 10 meaning we are FREAKING OUT!
DJ LAGWAY, QB, FLORIDA
The struggles that DJ Lagway has had early this season have been one of the most surprising developments this year. On one hand, Lagway had some of the greatest freshman performances in Florida history last year. He earned 5-star status as one of the most dynamic dual-threat prospects in high school history. He checks all the boxes from a prototypical quarterback build standpoint, and Lagway finished 5-2 as a starter last year despite an ailing hamstring injury that sapped him of his rushing ability.
Those types of results helped build sky-high expectations for Lagway entering his second year, but to call it anything short of a disappointment is an understatement. He’s lost three of his first four games, including a loss to South Florida. His latest loss to Miami was about as ugly as it gets, completing just 52% of his passes for 61 scoreless yards, an abysmal 2.6 yards per attempt, and a 3.7-yard aDOT. An impressive 8.8% big-time throw rate as a freshman has fallen to 3.1% so far in 2025, and his seven turnover-worthy plays this year already match his total for last season.
Some of the blame can be shared across the board from the coaching staff, the supporting cast, and Lagway himself. He was recently spotted wearing a walking boot, raising concerns about the state of his health – but it’s becoming increasingly difficult to continue making excuses for his lack of production. As a result, he’s one of the more divisive players among our rankers:
“Lagway has not looked completely comfortable as a pocket passer this year which is fine, that’s not his game. However, he’s been hesitant and ineffective as a runner on top of that. Whether that’s coaching or some type of injury impact is unclear.“ -AUSTIN NACE
“Something just seems off about Lagway’s start to the year, but I’m willing to rely on the bigger sample size rather than the smaller one. He’s flashed some impressive moments as a passer in the past and his injuries have sapped his potential as a rusher. Im willing to give him some more time to figure it out.” -CORY PEREIRA
RYAN WINGO, WR, TEXAS
Through four weeks of college ball, it’s safe to say the Texas Longhorns look nothing like we expected. Their running game is a revolving door of whoever is healthy, and quarterback Arch Manning, who could also have been a candidate for this list, has had a slow start to his college career. A bona fide WR1 should help ease his transition, but unfortunately, there doesn’t seem to be one in sight.
Ryan Wingo was supposed to be that guy. The big physical specimen had massive expectations after a strong debut last year, but opened the season with three consecutive outings catching less than 50% of the passes thrown his way. Wingo failed to bring in the two contested targets thrown his way and failed to top 35 yards in each of the first three weeks. There was concern about how he would handle a more expansive role after seeing most of his touches manufactured last year, and this start didn’t offer much confidence.
If you want to be optimistic, there is still plenty of blame to place on an offense trying to find its way with a young QB. Wingo’s role is still elite: he’s playing the most snaps on what should eventually morph into a high-powered offense. He also flashed last week with a 90-yard, 2-touchdown performance, although one could argue a matchup with Sam Houston is just what the doctor would order for a struggling offense. Either way, are the signs of life encouraging enough to forgive his poor start? Or is it a red flag for things to come?
For our rankers, the level of concern is starting to heat up:
“Hard to ding Wingo much for all of Texas’ struggles, but he’s one of these players we need to see the next step in development to fully buy in. He still has traits to be excited about and should be the focal point of a high-powered offense during a tough SEC schedule, but his volatility near the top of rankings means any false steps will have him plummeting down the list.” -CORY PEREIRA
TJ MOORE, WR, CLEMSON
Entering the season, TJ Moore was a trendy pick at the back of the first round of Devy startup drafts as a potential breakout player this year. Between size, athleticism, and early production, there weren’t many receivers on a better trajectory than Moore. That’s why his inconsistent start to the year has been somewhat baffling.
There were always elements to Moore’s game that were a little raw. He’s an athletic freak who relied more on traits than refinement, but betting on him to take that next step seemed like a gamble worth making. There were some signs of life this past week, with an 8-catch, 92-yard performance in a losing effort against Syracuse, but it took 16 targets to get there. Moore has pulled in less than 50% of the passes thrown his way, and he’s only reeled in two of his nine contested targets. That wasn’t the strongest part of his game last year, but seeing a step forward in that department felt like a realistic expectation.
It’s fair to say that Clemson as a team has underwhelmed and shares a portion of the blame. That includes quarterback Cade Klubnik, who continues to struggle with anticipation and ball placement. Moore himself is only four games into his sophomore campaign, and his evaluation as a prospect had some needed development baked into the equation. So should we ignore some of the expected ups and downs of his growth? Or are these the early signs of one of the many players who never quite develop beyond their traits?
At this point, our team of rankers isn’t very concerned:
“Moore (and Wesco) have been getting open. Klubnik has just been dreadful and Wesco has been able to break a big one each game so far. Moore may be the biggest buy in college football right now. The stats will catch up, just as they did for Ryan Williams” -AUSTIN NACE
JAMES PEOPLES, RB, OHIO STATE
One of the most polarizing players this offseason was Ohio State’s James Peoples, who was mainly viewed in a positive light as a potential breakout player this year. He was one of the few players mentioned by his fellow Ohio State teammates at last year’s NFL combine, and continued to receive massive hype throughout the season.
Perhaps our first sign should have been the growing hype around CJ Donaldson, who, by most accounts, would be considered a lesser-talented back than Peoples, yet earned the starting role in game one. Or maybe we should have taken the addition of true freshman Bo Jackson more seriously, who has already begun to flash early this season and may be pushing Peoples out of the rotation. Either way, he’s been the least productive of the three backs and could be trending in the wrong direction.
On the other hand, Ohio State hasn’t played the toughest competition outside of their season opener against Texas. That’s led to sparse opportunities for Peoples and more snaps for younger players, such as Bo Jackson. Donaldson has also somewhat struggled in his lead role and feels more like a placeholder rather than someone who will command this backfield long-term. A tougher schedule could lead to more opportunities for Peoples and a path to steal carries from a struggling Donaldson. So should you hold strong with Peoples? Or look for an opportunity to jump ship?
If our rankers’ level of concern is any indication, you should be looking for any opportunities to move on from Peoples:
“Peoples is yet to find his footing against all three out of conference opponents, and with Bo Jackson seeming to catch fire, it seems like Peoples could fall to RB3 on the depth chart, as CJ Donaldson has seemingly secured his job as the short-yardage back.” -JUSTIN MASSIE
DARIUS TAYLOR, RB, MINNESOTA
It’s no secret – the running back landscape in Devy is ambiguous at best. One of the few running managers allowed themselves to get excited about was Minnesota’s running back Darius Taylor. The under-appreciated recruit burst onto the scene as a freshman with some eye-popping efficiency and followed it up with a heavy workload as a sophomore, flashing some potential game-changing receiving ability along the way.
The efficiency as a rusher, though, began to fall off last year, featuring seven games under 5 yards per carry. He carried that into this year, with another sub-5-yard per carry performance against Buffalo in the first game of the season. Taylor was injured in the Gophers’ second game, which has unfortunately become a recurring theme in his short career. His freshman season was cut short by injury, he battled a nagging hamstring through parts of last year, and has already missed a game this season with the same ailment.
At a certain point, it’s hard to keep giving excuses to Taylor, but it’s fair to wonder if he’s ever been fully healthy at any point over the last two years. He has a fairly well-rounded profile that features a good athletic profile, elite production, and a 3-down skillset that resulted in a 50-catch season as a true sophomore. When he’s on his game, he looks like a potential difference maker, but how long can we keep relying on the flashes? Should we be concerned with the wavering efficiency and nagging injuries?
The level of concern is growing amongst some of our rankers, but the majority is staying the course:
“For Darius Taylor, the question is not the talent. It is short term soft tissue injury that does seem to crop up in some form each season. Those have to be a concern, but thankfully he has not sustained a major injury and I cannot completely fade a back of his talent due to a hamstring strain.” -AARON WILCOX
“Even as one of Taylor’s biggest supporters, I’m concerned we haven’t seen that same player who blew up as a freshman. His wavering efficiency and nagging injuries are certainly part of the problem, but he’s running out of opportunity to prove those narratives wrong. Let’s hope this latest injury is a short one.” -CORY PEREIRA
EUGENE WILSON III, WR, FLORIDA
Another year, another polarizing discussion over Florida WR Eugene Wilson. This time, though, he might be running out of excuses.
A lot of his struggles can also be attributed to the similar conversations being had about DJ Lagway and Florida as a whole, but that doesn’t give him many excuses for being out-produced by a true freshman receiver. In fact, true freshman Vernell Brown III currently leads the Gators in receiving and has arguably had more expansive usage than we’ve ever seen from Wilson. That’s always been the argument against Wilson, who seems to be boxed into a schemed, gadgety role that even gave us a five catch, -1 yard, and one touchdown performance in the first game of the season. The hope that Wilson can ever develop into a more refined receiver is fading by the day.
Wilson is still an elite athlete with a solid early production profile, so a strong season this year could still put him in contention for good draft capital. Even though the results have been a mixed bag, his double-digit average depth of target the past two weeks has been a step in the right direction, and Florida as a whole still has a chance to right the ship on an uncharacteristic start to the season. The question is, is that enough to keep holding out hope for Wilson? Or is it time to look for an exit strategy?
“There is still a path to the NFL for Eugene Wilson with his level of athleticism, but will it be viable for fantasy? At this point, it’s trending in the wrong direction and the price of investment isn’t really worth it to find out. There’s always a chance an opportunity in the NFL unlocks his potential – but that’s more of a bargaining chip in trade negotiations than an actual belief.” -CORY PEREIRA
“Unfortunately, Eugene Wilson is more of a playmaker than a well-rounded receiver at this point. He has not had the consistency this season needed for a breakout, and there are questions about his durability. At this point, the experiment may be over.” -AARON WILCOX
