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Rob Rang
NFL Draft Analyst
The nine conference championship games slated for Friday and Saturday night will provide plenty of early round NFL Draft talent, but at this point in the season, scouts are focusing less on the established blue-chip prospects and more on potential Day 2 and 3 steals.
So, with all due respect to Penn State edge rusher Abdul Carter (the top-rated prospect playing this weekend) or the arms race in the SEC title game between Georgia’s Carson Beck and Texas’ Quinn Ewers and Arch Manning, let’s dig a little deeper and identify some prospects who might truly catapult their draft stock this weekend.
[Related: Picking the winners of every conference title game]
Here are my favorite five to do so, listed in the order of their games.
Jackson Woodard, OLB, 6-3, 230, UNLV
It goes without saying that most watching the Mountain West championship game Friday night (on FOX at 8 p.m. ET) between UNLV and Boise State will be focusing on the Broncos’ projected first round running back Ashton Jeanty — and Woodard will be, as well. The reigning Mountain West Defensive Player of the Year racked up a season-high 14 tackles against Jeanty and the Broncos in a back-and-forth 29-24 loss back on Oct. 25, and the stakes are even higher in the rematch.
Woodard is one of a handful of former Arkansas Razorbacks who elected to follow their former defensive coordinator Barry Odom to Las Vegas, transferring to the Rebels and immediately proving to be a star. Woodard was wasted on the bench in Fayetteville, registering just 16 tackles in three seasons there. He flourished once with the Rebels, however, earning First Team All-Mountain West honors last season, finishing second in the league with 117 total tackles and leading UNLV with nine tackles for loss.
This season he’s been even better, registering 114 tackles in two fewer games with an eye-popping 17 tackles for loss. Better yet, he’s shown significant…
Source link : https://www.foxsports.com/stories/college-football/2025-nfl-draft-5-prospects-who-can-boost-stock-championship-weekend
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Publish date : 2024-12-05 15:05:00
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