After sorting through the Group-of-Five and Independent teams, we are on to the big dogs of the college football landscape. The Power Five Conferences of the NCAA have the gold-standard teams. Alabama, Texas, USC, Clemson, Ohio State etc… all reside here; with the idea of super conferences looming large we may not have the Power Five much longer, so we should enjoy these classic rivalries and conferences while we still have them.
Finally we’ve arrived at the our last stop, the mighty SEC. The conference has owned college football, five teams from the SEC have won a combined twelve national titles in the last fifteen years. Dominance would be an understatement in regards to what they’ve done to the landscape college football. They churn out talent every season, just this past year 18 of the top 50 NFL Draft picks came from the SEC. This year will likely be no different with 38 players from the conference populating my preseason top 100.
“MIP Scoutings Watchlist” will be dropping twice weekly covering every conference in the NCAA. To check out what you might’ve missed as well as all of our other NCAA football content click here.
Alabama
Will Anderson Jr. Edge
6’4 240 lbs
All due respect to Bryce Young and a handful of fantastic players in Tuscaloosa, but Will Anderson Jr. is head and shoulders above his teammates and just about every other player in the country. After a huge 2021, where he was tops in the NCAA FBS in sacks and tackles for loss (17.5 and 31) he is looking to assert himself as the clear cut best player in the 2023 NFL Draft.
Anderson is an absolute dynamo coming off the edge. He has one of the fastest first steps I’ve ever seen coming off the line of scrimmage. He blends that incredible burst with elite bend and top tier speed, if an offensive lineman doesn’t land their initial punch, it’s all but a guarantee that Anderson will be in the the QBs face.
He isn’t the most physically imposing edge rusher but he has great arm length and excellent hands to help him disengage from blocks. He has a set of pass rush moves that are beyond his years and he uses everything in his arsenal to penetrate the backfield, blowing up plays with regularity.
He has a won’t quit motor whether he’s playing the pass or the run. He uses elite speed and a nose for the football to chase down running backs from behind, ending plays before they get a chance to cross the line of scrimmage.
The biggest and practically only knock on Anderson is his size. He is listed at a generous 240 pounds, which is on the lighter side even for a speed rusher. His lack of size might limit his ability to play with his hand in the dirt at the next level, but he has plenty of time to build strength and fill out his frame.
I try to avoid comparisons unless they’re too close to pass up and this is one of those cases. Will Anderson Jr. is a Von Miller clone, the best edge rushing prospect since Nick Bosa, and barring something extreme, should really be the number one pick this coming April.
Arkansas
Ricky Stromberg IOL
6’3 310 lbs
Treylon Burks may have gotten the lions share of the attention at Arkansas last season, but there was an unsung hero in the trenches by the name of Ricky Stromberg.
Stromberg is not only one of the tallest interior lineman in the NCAA but he’s also one of the most intelligent. He pilots the offensive line, calling out defensive alignments and making adjustments accordingly. He has played both guard and center, giving him some positional versatility.
He has a powerful frame and uses it to create space for running lanes. He has strong hands and when he gets his paws on a defender they have a hard time disengaging. He’s a solid athlete and is able to get to the second level to block linebackers and safeties.
Stromberg has some trouble when it comes to play balance. He has a tendency to lunge and reach when run blocking as opposed to driving through his man. He plays with his pad level a bit too high, it hasn’t burned him much due to his overwhelming skill and strength but when he plays against higher level competition he can be stood up and driven back.
Auburn
Tank Bigsby RB
6’0 215 lbs
Tank Bigsby, the talented Auburn running back might be forever known for not staying in bounds to close out the 2021 Iron Bowl, but he is far more than that and one of the best running backs in the the nation.
Bigsby flirted with the transfer portal for a while before ultimately deciding to return to Auburn for his junior season and I’m sure the Tigers are happy about that. Bigsby is a do-it-all back, able to impact the game in a variety of ways in a variety of situations.
The Auburn back has the size to pound the rock between the tackles and get the tough yards. He isn’t afraid to dip his shoulders and meet contact at the line of scrimmage. When he gets a full head of steam he is a load to being down, churning his legs and fighting for every inch. He doesn’t spend much time dancing behind the line, he uses his impressive acceleration and north-south running style to hit the hole and gain yards.
One of the most impressive runners in the NCAA, especially in the field, he uses a combination of agility and power to evade tacklers and pick up yards after contact. He has a mean stiff arm and is able to stop and start on a dime. He is a decent receiver but his true value in the passing game is as a blocker. He has a knack for picking up the blitz and isn’t afraid to throw his whole body at a defender.
Bigsby isn’t used often as a pass catcher, with only 32 receptions in his career. Adding a little more to his game in that department will go a long way in improving his draft stock. He doesn’t have elite straight line speed, and relies more on his agility and strength to break big plays.
With plans for their star back to be the focal point of the Auburn offense this year I would expect him to have his most productive season yet.
LSU
6’0 205 lbs
LSU has produced more talented wide receivers in the 10 years than just about any other program in the nation. Kayshon Boutte will likely be the next first round draft pick from the bayou.
Boutte wasted no time making his mark at LSU, as a true freshman in 2020 he led LSU in receiving yards and finished second in receptions and touchdowns. He was on pace for a massive 2021, until a leg injury cut his season in half.
Through the 5.5 games he played in 2021 he had 38 receptions for 509 yards and a NCAA leading 9 touchdowns. If you extrapolate those averages out over a 12 game season he would’ve posted roughly 80/1,120/19. If he puts up those type of numbers this year, he will be in contention for the WR1 spot in the 2023 Draft.
Boutte has an NFL ready body right now. He has impressively long arms, a thickly built frame and is strong enough to beat just about any DB trying to press him. He uses top notch acceleration and lateral agility to create space for himself when running underneath routes. He gets up to top speed effortlessly, and when he is in his top gear there are few players in the country who can stay with him.
He is a strong route runner, making sharp cuts and changing direction before defenders even know what hit them. He’s also an extremely intelligent route runner, when he recognizes zone coverage he will find the soft spot and get himself open. He’s got strong hands and uses his body well to box out defensive backs and make the contested catch.
There are three small knocks on Boutte as a whole. The first would be last years injury and if he retains that all-world explosiveness. The second is his alarmingly high rate of concentration drops, and lastly is that he has spent a majority of his career playing in the slot. There isn’t enough game film out there of him lined up on the outside to really know if he can smoothly transition. He is electrifying in the slot, but you would be hard pressed to find a team that drafts a slot-only receiver in the top 20.
Boutte is just one of many talented receivers in the class of 2023. I’ll be excited to see if he can separate from the pack this season.
Mississippi State
Will Rogers QB
6’2 205 lbs
It seemed like nobody was talking about Will Rogers last year and I can’t figure out why. The sophomore Bulldog threw for 4,739 yards and 36 touchdowns while completing a ridiculous 74% of his passes. While those numbers are partly a product of a pass happy Mike Leech offense, the player has to execute.
Rogers greatest strength is his processing ability. In the air-raid offense, he scans the field and works through all of his progressions. He has a confident and quick release when he sees his man get open and spares no time getting the ball where it needs to go.
He has great velocity on his passes, especially across the middle and to the sidelines, the ball gets to the receiver in a hurry without much chance for a DB to get a jump on it. He is obviously accurate, completing 74% of your passes anywhere is no easy feat, let alone in the SEC.
He is an impressive athlete for someone who hasn’t complied many yards or touchdowns on the ground. He uses his legs to move the pocket, extend plays, and scramble out of harms way when necessary.
Rogers has a few points of concern in his game. While he has impressive velocity, he isn’t asked to push the ball down field much. This leads to questions about not only his arm strength but also his inflated completion rate.
He is prone to mechanical breakdowns, not setting his feet and getting 100% into his throws on every passing attempt. As a small-ish QB he has some issues there is pressure in his face and will get “happy feet” when he’s been hit a few times.
Rogers played his first full year as a starter in 2021 so there is plenty of room for growth. He has a lot of intriguing tools and I’ll be curious to see how he performs in his second full year as the starter for the Bulldogs.
Ole Miss
Zach Evans RB
5’11 210 lbs
Zach Evans decided to take his talents to the SEC for the 2022 season after spending the first two years of his NCAA career playing for the TCU Horned Frogs. The move from TCU wasn’t surprising, but him opting to join the meat grinder that is the SEC did come as a bit of a shock. This young man obviously wants to prove that he can produce even against the best competition.
Zach Evans is an explosive runner, with a career average of 7.3 yards per carry he is a threat to break off a long run at any time. He has elite speed at the running back position and has been known to hit his fair share of home runs. He is solidly built at over 210 pounds and isn’t afraid to fight through contact.
He has less than 150 rushing attempt in his collegiate career but he has made the most of them, rushing for over 1,050 yards and 9 scores on his limited touches. He uses a blend of speed, shake and an aggressive running style to get plenty of yards after initial contact.
For as impressive as he is as a runner he doesn’t give you anything in the passing game. He averages just about one catch per game for his career and is a downright bad pass protector. He doesn’t really have a feel for picking up the blitz, and when he does he is easily beat.
You have to question if notoriously soft Big 12 defenses have anything to do with his outrageous yards per carry stats. They play a ton of nickel and dime defenses in the pass happy conference, so he is usually only tasked with beating one linebacker to break off a big gain. Evans only played in six games last year due to injury so his sample size is relatively small.
If he can produce at a high level in the SEC he will be a highly coveted prospect, if he has a down year there’s going to be a lot of questions in regards to his viability as a lead back.
Texas A&M
6’3 205 lbs
Believe it or not, but Texas A&M hasn’t had produced a top 50 draft pick on defense in five years. Antonio Johnson will likely break that slump and find himself among the top defensive backs in his draft class.
Johnson has all the size you would want in your safety. Standing at 6’3 with long arms, there aren’t many 50/50 balls he won’t be able to contest. He is a safety built to take on modern tight ends, with enough speed and size to handle the George Kittle’s and Kyle Pitts of the world.
Johnson was incredibly productive in 2021 with 79 tackles, 9 TFLs, a sack, a forced fumble, an interception and 6 PBUs. He was seemingly all over the field at all times, and it was his first year as a full time starter. His beat football could be ahead of him with another year of experience under his belt.
He has shown the ability to play both safety spots, come down in the box and even split out to the nickel and dime spots when necessary. He is one of the better safeties in the country in man coverage and he is just as impressive in zone coverage, using his great length and closing speed to shut down his zone.
He is a strong tackler and uses perfect form to wrap up and take down ball carriers. Arguably his greatest strength is his play instincts, he is always around the ball when playing the run and seemingly knows what routes his man is running when in coverage.
Johnson can be baited with play action and tendency breakers. He keys in on what an offense does best and when they go against the grain he is already fully committed to what he’s seeing pre-snap. Johnson plays it pretty safe in zone coverage, opting to stay home and swat the ball down as opposed to jumping routes and going for the interception. He won’t give up many big plays, but he also won’t make them.
Johnson has the talent to be the top safety on the board in 2023, but he has a few things to prove this season. If he continues his well rounded production and improves in a few areas he’s going to be a very hot commodity.