Preview 2007
The Top 64 Pro Prospects - Second Round
So
who are the 64 best pro prospects who'll be eligible for the 2008 draft?
Who are the ones to keep an eye on all season long as they go under the
microscope? Here are the potential next level stars who'll be in the
hunt for a draft spot among the top 64, or in the first two rounds.
Remember, there's a difference between being a pro prospect and a top
college player. Some players have all the measurables and end up
projecting to be better at the next level.
Top 64 Pro Prospects
1 to 32 ... Possible First
Rounders
33. B.J. Raji, DT
Boston College
The 6-3,
335-pound Raji was close to taking off early for the NFL, but came back
and is now in a salary drive for next year, when he'll likely go in the
first two rounds. Big, quick and tough, he made 26 tackles with three
tackles for loss as one of the rocks of the run defense. The 6-3,
335-pound Brace made 20 tackles and two tackles for loss with two
recovered fumbles.
34. Will Arnold, OG LSU
The only question mark going into the season is his health. He’s
6-4, 319 pounds and strong, holding down the left guard job over the
first half of last year before having problems with knee and ankle
injuries. When he’s right, he can be dominant.
35. Ken Iwebema, DE Iowa
Iwebema missed most of
the second half of last year with a shoulder injury and only made 27
tackles with three sacks. When he's right, the 6-4, 267-pound senior is
among the best all-around ends in the Big Ten with excellent pass
rushing skills and good strength against the run. Extremely consistent
in all areas, his return instantly makes the line better.
36. Adarius Bowman, WR Oklahoma State
The 6-4, 220-pound former transfer from North Carolina has the speed
and talent, along with the athleticism to play on the OSU hoops team, to
go to the next level right now, but he chose to come back for his senior
season and should be one of the nation's most productive receivers after
catching 60 passes for 1,181 yards and 12 touchdowns highlighted by a
jaw-dropping 13-catch, 300-yard, four score performance against Kansas.
As good as he was, his production dropped off in a big way over the
second half of they year and only finished the season with two-100-yard
games.
37. Alex Boone, OT Ohio State (Jr.)
The 6-8, 325-pound Boone is a rock of a tackle with first-round draft
pick upside if he can have one more consistent year. His massive size
makes him tough for pass rushers to get around, while he has the feet to
stay with the speed defenders. Considered by some to be the best Buckeye
line prospect since Orlando Pace, all eyes will be on him this year.
38. Dan Connor, LB Penn State
Paul Posluszny was the heart and soul of a terrific defense,
and now the torch will be carried by the 6-3, 233-pound Connor, who'll
move from the outside in. As good as Posluszny might have been, and as
great he was over the second half of last year, Connor was better from
pillar to post with a more consistent 113-tackle season with five sacks,
and nine tackles for loss. He was also the more complete defender than
his more heralded running mate with better range and more production in
pas coverage. Part of that was because he played on the outside, and
part of that is because he's really, really good. Expect another 100+
stop season, and the possibility of hitting the 400 career mark (he'll
need 126 to get there).
39. Fili Moala, DT USC (Jr.)
More of a space-eater at 6-4 and 300 pounds, Moala doesn’t
get penetration like line-mate Sedrick Ellis, but is quickly becoming
one of the better run defenders in the Pac-10. He started ten games in
2006, making 20 tackles and seven tackles for loss, setting the stage
for a strong second half to his Trojan career.
40. Felix Jones, RB Arkansas (Jr.)
At 6-0 and 207 pounds, he has the size to go along with a gaudy
7.6-yard-per-carry average with 1,168 yards and six touchdowns. A
speedy, quick back, he won't come up with a whole bunch in the way of
power, but he's a nightmare when he gets to the outside and gets in
space. He's an All-America caliber kick returner who'll get even more
work in the offense as both a runner and a receiver, after catching 15
passes for 107 yards and three touchdowns.
41. Kirk Barton, OT Ohio State
A rock on the line for the last three seasons, the 6-6, 310-pound
senior is one of the nation's elite pass blockers and has been as steady
as any lineman in the Big Ten. While he's not the NFL prospect that Alex
Boone is on the other side, he’ll still make a lot of money at the next
level.
42. James Laurinaitis, LB Ohio State (Jr.)
The 6-3, 244-pound junior
came from out of nowhere to become one of the nation's best defensive
players, winning the Nagurski Award, with a team-leading 115 tackles
with four sacks and five interceptions. Originally a starter on the
outside, he flourished in the middle where he showed fantastic toughness
and leadership. A monster hitter with three forced fumbles, he was all
over the field making play after consistent play. Many will try to make
him into another A.J. Hawk, and while he doesn't have anywhere near the
same athleticism, he should be almost as productive by the time his
career is over.
43. Ryan Clady, OT Boise State (Jr.)
The world got to see just how good the left tackle is in the
Fiesta Bowl, and now the 6-6, 319-pound junior is starting to get the
attention that WAC fans knew he deserved all along. A punishing run
blocker, he's also tremendous in pass protection with a great
combination of size, quickness and strength.
44. Phillip Wheeler, LB Georgia Tech
Wheeler finished second on the team with 89 tackles and led the
way with nine sacks and 14.5 tackles for loss. He's a hard-hitting
disruptive force who's as good in pass coverage as he is at getting into
the backfield. Athleticism, speed and tackling have never been a
problem, and now with his experience inside and out, always being in the
right position won't be, either.
45. Roy Miller, DT Texas (Jr.)
The 6-2, 295-pound junior is
a strong run stopper and a nice presence in the backfield making
39 tackles, 3.5 sacks, and six tackles for loss starting six times and
seeing action in every game. He’s a brick wall in the middle.
46. Shannon Tevaga, OG UCLA
He’s the team’s best overall lineman and a strong candidate
for post-season honors. At 6-3 and 316 pounds, he’s big and powerful
with the nasty streak to overwhelm opponents at times, particularly on
running downs. A starter in 31 consecutive games, Tevaga is the
undisputed leader of this unit.
47. Travis Beckum, TE Wisconsin (Jr.)
A former defensive end, the 6-4, 221-pound junior made a quick
transition to the offense as he led the team with 61 catches for 903
yards and five touchdowns. A matchup nightmare, he's fast, strong and
athletic, but he's been more of a large wide receiver than an actual
tight end. Now he's looking to become more of a blocker, but if he's
making catches like he did last year, no one will notice what he's doing
for the running game.
48. Jasper Brinkley, LB South Carolina
Back for a possible All-America season in the middle is the
6-2, 262-pound senior, who led the team with 107 tackles to go along
with five sacks and 14.5 tackles for loss. He was a superstar JUCO
transfer and more than lived up to the billing showing great range while
cleaning up all the messes from a porous defensive line. The 85 solo
tackles along would've made him the team's leading tackler by 34 stops.
Easily the team leader, the team got a big break when he decided to come
back for his senior year.
49. Simeon Castille, CB Alabama
Castille turned into one of the SEC's best shutdown corners.
At 6-1 and 189 pounds, he's a big defender who beats up receivers and
makes plenty of plays with six interceptions, six broken up passes,
three recovered fumbles and 4.5 tackles for loss. He's also great in run
support, finishing fourth on the team with 71 tackles.
50. Mario Manningham, WR Michigan (Jr.)
A case could've been made that 6-0, 181-pound Manningham was the best
player in college football over the first half of the season before he
suffered a knee injury against Michigan State. After starting off the
year with five catches for 71 yards and a touchdown in wins over
Vanderbilt and Central Michigan, he exploded with three straight
100-yard games and eight touchdown catches in four weeks, including a
113-yard, two-score effort in the pivotal win over Wisconsin and a
four-catch, 137-yard, three score performance against Notre Dame. He
returned late in the year, but wasn't quite the same despite catching 12
passes for 165 yards against Ohio State and USC. Most known for his last
second touchdown catch to beat Penn State in the 2005 classic, he's a
big-play target with sub-4.4 speed. Now he has to prove he can hold up
51. Ali Highsmith, LB LSU
Even though he’s a little small
at 6-1 and 225 pounds, he’s versatile and very fast. Able to play
either outside linebacker position, his 4.5 speed makes him a natural on
the weakside where he's able to roam as a pass rusher and help out in
pass coverage with the ability to cover any back.
52. Chad Henne, QB Michigan
With 7,777 career passing yards, 70 touchdown passes and just 28
interceptions, Henne has come up with a tremendous career and
should grow into the best NFL quarterback prospect from Michigan since
Elvis Grbac (remember, Mr. Brady wasn't thought of as a top prospect).
He's 6-2 and 224 pounds with a rifle arm and a willingness to put the
ball in places to make plays he probably shouldn't. Coming off a
tremendous 22 touchdown, 2,508-yard season with just eight
interceptions, he's primed to become an All-America caliber passer with
a great line in front of him and great receivers to work with.
53. Eric Young, OT Tennessee
It's time for Young to break out. He's 6-4, 305 pounds,
strong and very talented, but he hasn't lived up to his immense promise
yet. He started every game at right tackle and had a decent season, and
now he needs to have a dominant one despite missing spring ball with a
shoulder problem. He'll start out on the right side again, but he could
move over to the left side to replace top lineman Arron Sears.
54. Colt Brennan, QB Hawaii
The 6-3, 196-pound Brennan is the absolute, 100%, NFL-caliber real deal
running a high-octane offense at peak efficiency. After throwing for
5,549 yards and 58 touchdowns with 12 interceptions, he'll have to be
even crisper and sharper with plenty of holes on the line and new
running backs who won't take the heat off like Nate Ilaoa did. His NCAA
record-setting stats are ridiculous: nine games last year with 400 yards
or more, finishing up with 559 against Arizona State, two or more
touchdown pass in every game, with eight games with five or more, and
most amazingly, a 72.6 completion percentage. For his career, he's
thrown 93 touchdown passes and 9,850 yards, and he can run with 520
yards and eight touchdowns. He's a superstar in full command of the
offense as the perfect marriage of talent and system.
55. John David Booty, QB USC
Booty begins this season as the undisputed leader of the
Trojan offense. In his debut as Matt Leinart’s successor, the
All-America candidate threw for 3,347 yards and 29 touchdowns, while
getting picked just nine times in an All-Pac-10 season. However, he
didn’t win the Heisman or a national championship in 2006, and a couple
of tipped passes at the end of losses to Oregon State and UCLA won’t
soon be forgotten. Yes, the bar for USC quarterbacks these days is in a
different solar system. Booty actually has a stronger arm than Leinart,
has good feet in the pocket, and brings a war chest of knowledge,
leadership and poise that comes with being a fifth-year player.
56. Xavier Adibi, LB Virginia Tech
Vince Hall will get most of the headlines this year, but
Adibi isn't far behind when it comes to talent and production from his
spot on the strongside. While not huge at 6-2 and 226 pounds, he's all
over the field in pass coverage with nine big plays against the pass,
three interception, three sacks, 6.5 tackles for loss, and 82 tackles.
His game is all about speed, and while he'll get pushed around by more
physical blockers, he's unstoppable in space.
57. John Greco, OT Toledo
There might not be a better blocker in the MAC than the 6-5,
318-pound Greco, a star on the line for the last three years. The leader
of the offense as a team captain last season, he made the successful
move from the right side to the left without any trouble using his
experience and strength to become an even better run blocker. Everything
will revolve around him.
58. Kirk Elder, OG Texas A&M
The 6-5, 307-pound Elder will start at quick guard after an
All-Big 12 season. The line's star with 34 straight starts, he's great
against the pass and a road grader against the run. It'll be a shock if
he's not one of the league's best blockers yet again and an All-America
caliber performer.
59. Matt Ryan, QB Boston College
Ryan was the best quarterback in the ACC last year,
completing 62% of his passes for 2,942 yards and 15 touchdowns with ten
interceptions, and he did it with a broken foot for most of the year.
The 6-5, 218-pound senior ran for four touchdowns, but he's not exactly
a runner and he doesn't exactly fit what the coaching staff might want.
Even so, Jeff Jagodzinski is a huge Ryan fan, going out of his way to
praise him this spring. Ryan's a great decision maker, tough as nails,
and has a great future at the next level. No, he's not going to tear off
and make any big runs, but he's mobile in the pocket and does a great
job of avoiding the rush
60. Lawrence Jackson, DE USC
While Jackson is coming off a woefully disappointing season
that took him nine games to register a sack, he has the size and speed
off the edge to make 2006 a distant memory. With a fat signing bonus at
stake, the 6-5, 265-pounder now has the motivation to make a salary run
with a rebound season in 2007.
61. Tom Zbikowski, S Notre Dame
The 6-0, 210-pound senior
was extremely fast to begin with, and then he went from being a bulky
boxer to a lean, mean, pure defensive back, and the new frame appeared
to pay off big this spring. A huge hitter and an intimidating force,
making 79 tackles last year and 220 in his career, he should be all over
the field even more, now that he's even quicker, and he needs to be
better against the pass after breaking up just two passes and failing to
come up with an interception. He's also a star punt returner.
62. Chase Coffman, TE Missouri (Jr.)
The 6-6, 245-pound Coffman, who led the team with 58 catches
for 638 yards and nine touchdowns, is a strong enough receiver to be
used as a big wide receiver at times. A matchup nightmare with soft
hands, tremendous route running ability and the strength to fight off
defenders, he's a great go-to target.
63. Wallace Gilberry, DE Alabama
The 264-pound senior will have even more responsibility
against the run this year. While he's good at getting into the
backfield, with 3.5 sacks and 10.5 tackles for loss, he doesn't do it
enough and despite his 43 tackles, is just average against the run. He
needs to step up his overall play to help the anemic pass rush.
64. Vince Hall, LB Virginia Tech
The 6-0, 240-pound Hall, who plays in the middle, led the ACC
in tackles last year with 129, and has 241 over the last two years,
while also showing off impeccable timing when it came to get into the
backfield making two sacks, eight quarterback hurries and 10.5 tackles
for loss. Even though he didn't do too much against the pass last
season, he's shown good quickness and instincts in pass coverage
throughout his career. With his big-hitting style and skills, he'll make
several All-America teams.
Top 64 Pro Prospects
1 to 32 ... Possible First
Rounders
