With the news coming out today that Dylan Moses will miss the entire season due to a torn ACL, I had to do a bit of reshuffling. I had Moses ranked very highly at the 22nd spot to be exact and I think this injury is definitely a huge blow for Alabama. With this in mind I just didn’t think it would have been valid to have a guy missing the whole season touted highly this close to the start. So after making some changes here is 40-31.
40. Jordan Love QB Utah St.
2018 stats and/or awards: 64.0% 3567 yards 32 TDs 6 INT, 7 rushing TDs
#10 in passer efficency rate in NCAA
#8 in Passing TDs in NCAA
Now here’s a guy (shoutout Cris Collinsworth) who is catching some buzz as of late as a potential first round prospect. In watching a bit of tape on him, I see why it’s there. Not only does he have the size and mobility to succeed, but his footwork in the pocket is very crisp. These tools in addition to his good accuracy give me good reason to believe that this isn’t the last time we hear of Jordan Love’s name as a top QB in college.
39. Jaylen Waddle WR Alabama
2018 stats and/or awards: 45 catches 848 yards 7 TD’s 18.8 yards per reception, 16 punt returns for 233 yards 1 TD and 14.6 yards per return
#2 in SEC in punt return yards and yards per return (also #9 in NCAA in this category)
I had a really tough time trying to distinguish between Waddle and Henry Ruggs, another fantastic Alabama WR. Both guys have electric speed and are major problems when they get the ball in space. I gave Waddle the edge and ranked him here because of the way he trended towards the end of last season. In the final 4 games against Auburn, Georgia, Oklahoma, and Clemson, Waddle had 11 catches for 231 yards and 2 TDs. That is a great way to end a freshman campaign and I can see more of the same if not more production coming in 2019 from the speedster.
38. Lavert Hill CB Michigan
2018 stats and/or awards: 14 total tackles, 1.0 TFL 1 INT 4 PD
This stat line definitely doesn’t catch any attention but if you go deeper you will see Hill has been a key piece to why the Michigan secondary has produced at a high level for the past 3 seasons. Up until that brutal Ohio St. game Hill had only allowed a passer rating of 59.0. To finish the season Hill led the Big 10 in yards per cover snap allowed by just allowing 0.64. With speedy freshman Daxton Hill coming in to replace David Long, the Michigan secondary looks to keep out churning lock-down seasons.
37. Kenneth Murray LB Oklahoma
2018 stats and/or awards: 155 total tackles, 12.5 TFL, 4.5 sacks, 2 PD
Led Big 12 in total tackles (#2 in NCAA)
One of the few bright spots of the Oklahoma defense last year was Kenneth Murray’s intensity and tackling ability from the linebacker position. Murray is a quick in addition to being able to tackle soundly. Without him leading the defense last year, that unit might not have been good enough to get to their 2nd straight CFP appearance.
36. Essang Bassey CB Wake Forest
2018 stats and/or awards: 73 total tackles, 2.5 TFL, 1.0 sack, 1 INT, 15 PD
#2 in PD in ACC (#8 in NCAA)
Bassey goes under the radar playing at Wake Forest, but his production speaks for itself. PFF gave him an overall coverage grade of 84.9 this past season as he proved he can run with most receivers in college football. His ball skills are impressive to say the least and if he can start turning these pass deflections into turnovers, he is going to develop into a top NFL prospect.
35. Walker Little LT Stanford
2018 stats and/or awards: All Pac-12 First Team
The big left tackle from Stanford has been a force to reckoned with ever since he won Pac-12 Offensive Co-Player of the year. The guy is literally everywhere on 2019 preseason all-American/all Pac-12 teams. KJ Costello finished with the 2nd most passing yards for a season last year and some of the credit definitely has to go to Little for being an anchor on that line.
34. JK Dobbins RB Ohio St.
2018 stats and/or awards: 1053 yards 10 TDs, 4.6 yards per carry, 26 catches 263 yards 2 receiving TDs
The lead back at Ohio St. wasn’t able to continue his insane production from 2017 (specifically his 7.4 yards per carry). However, with Mike Weber now with the Cowboys this will be Dobbins chance to be a full time 3 down back for Ohio St. With Justin Fields running zone options it should be really interesting to see if that takes some of the pressure off of Dobbins.
33. AJ Dillon RB Boston College
2018 stats and/or awards: 10 games 1108 yards 10 TDs 4.9 yards per carry
An ankle injury early in the season really caused Dillon’s production to take a huge spike to *checks notes* 1108 yards on the ground. Seriously if this is a down year for Dillon, I really cannot wait to see a fully healthy, more experienced back be in the discussion as one of the most talented offensive players in the ACC.
32. D’eriq King QB Houston
2018 stats and/or awards: 63.5% 2982 yards 36 TDs 6 INTs, 111 rushes for 674 yards 14 rushing TDs
#7 in NCAA in passer efficiency rate
#6 in NCAA in passing TDs
It took until his junior season to finally earn a starting job, but did D’eriq King ever deliver. In just his first season he clearly established himself as the best QB in the AAC and as one of the most electrifying dual threat QBs in the nation. An efficient passer who can run through a defense is a combination you love to see from a QB. His matchup this Sunday against Oklahoma will be very interesting to see as it is his first true test on a national stage.
31. Colin Schooler LB Arizona
2018 stats and/or awards: 119 total tackles, 21.5 TFL, 3.5 sacks, 2 INT, 4 PD, 1 FF
#2 in TFL for Pac 12 (#6 in NCAA)
#5 in solo and total tackles for PAC-12
Schooler had a fantastic season last year in addition to these stats he also led the entire PAC-12 in total QB pressures with 25. While Schooler has been great, his defense and team in general has not been so great. It will be interesting to see if Schooler can help elevate this team back to being a force in the PAC-12.
If you want to check out the previous 10 entries on this list, click here.
