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College football primer – Getting in early on potential draft risers

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6 hours ago

November 23, 2024

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College football primer – Getting in early on potential draft risers

Good Morning New York Giants fans!

Happy Saturday and welcome to Week 13 of the college football season.

Life has changed for the Giants since this time last week, or at least it’s officially changed. Any other needs or priorities have been pushed to the side as the Giants are officially in the market for a new franchise quarterback with the release of Daniel Jones.

We reoriented this piece a couple weeks ago to concentrate more on the non-quarterback positions while Jones’ future was in limbo. We’re going to keep the current format for now, but I want to use the spotlights as a lens to look at quarterback prospects where I can.

I also want to use this piece as a way to highlight prospects who are currently flying below the national radar, but could be major draft risers. Candidly, one of my big regrets over the last couple drafts has been being aware of Puka Nacua and Tyrone Tracy (and their upside), but not having or making the time to profile them. So I’m going to try to bring some attention to those types of players where I can.

And with both of those things in mind, let’s get to the football!

Tyleik Williams (iDL, Ohio State)

(2) Ohio State vs. (5) Indiana – Fox, noon

I’m spotlighting Williams here because there’s a chance he could be available for the Giants’ second round pick, and help take some of the load off of Dexter Lawrence.

That said, this is really a “hey, watch this game!” callout. Not only is Ohio State obviously deep and talented, this is a fantastic chance for Indiana QB Curtis Rourke to catapult himself up draft boards.

But back to Williams.

Aireontae Ersery (OT, Minnesota)

Minnesota vs. (4) Penn State (CBS, 3:30 p.m.)

For the second week in a row, I’m using Penn State to spotlight a somewhat unheralded offensive tackle.

Ersery has been Minnesota’s starting left tackle for the last two seasons and presents a really intriguing blend of size (6-foot-6, 325 pounds), length, and the athleticism necessary to play tackle in the NFL. He’s an easy mover who plays with both power and quickness, and is capable in both pass protection and run blocking.

Ersery will almost certainly be drafted highly thanks to his traits, but is still something of a developmental prospect. He’s relatively new to the game of football and is in his 7th year playing the game. He’ll need work in maintaining consistent pad level and hand usage, but his upside is tremendous. It wouldn’t be a surprise — at all — to hear his name called on the first night of the draft.

Maxwell Hairston (CB, Kentucky)

(3) Texas vs. Kentucky — ABC, 3:30 p.m.

We’ve noted before that the Giants seem to pay attention to the Kentucky Wildcats. After all, they selected Wan’Dale Robinson in 2022 and Dru Phillips this past draft. That could mean that the Giants already have their eye on Hairston, and that could be doubly true after the arrival of Shane Bowen.

Hairston is a long, quick, and instinctive zone corner who could be a natural fit in Bowen’s defense. He’s a lean corner at 6-foot-1, 185 pounds, but excels in off and zone coverage. He has great awareness and is very quick to close and slam passing windows shut. He also plays with a ballhawking mentality, with 5 interceptions (two returned for a touchdown) as well as 6 passes defensed in 2023. Those numbers have plummeted in 2024, but that likely as more to do with offenses simply avoiding him this year.

The Giants need a ballhawk in their secondary, and Hairston’s familiarity with Dru Phillips could also help improve the secondary’s communication and assignment integrity.

Texas has some great weapons and this should be go-to scouting tape for Hairston, particularly if he gets matched up on speed demon Isaiah Bond.

Jalen Royals (WR, Utah State)

Utah State vs. San Diego State – CBS Sports, 3:30 p.m.

You can be forgiven if you have no clue who Jalen Royals is. After all, we don’t spend much time talking about the Utah State Aggies, and Royals was unrecruited coming out high school. However, he could be on everyone’s radar once the draft process gets into full swing.

Royals was a 3-sport star in high school, lettering in football, basketball, and track. That spread of experience gives a really good hint as to the kind of athlete he is. Royals sports a dense Deebo Samuel-like (or Victor Cruz) frame at 6-foot, 205-pounds, with very quick feet and speed that’s (reportedly) in the low 4.4s or high 4.3s. Royals is also a solid route runner with good body control, ball tracking, and soft hands. His athletic ability allows him to be a threat across the field, with the ability to stretch the field or turn shallow passes into big plays.

It’d be nice to see Royals against a higher level of competition, and we’ll get the opportunity after the season as he’s been invited to the East-West Shrine Bowl as well as being selected to the Reese’s Senior Bowl.

Not everyone will have access to CBS Sports, but if you do, Royals is worth checking out.

Danny Stutsman (LB, Oklahoma)

Oklahoma vs. (7) Alabama — ABC, 7:30 p.m.

Stutsman is an intriguing prospect who could see his draft stock rocket upward over the course of the draft process. He looks like an old school downhill thumping linebacker at 6-foot-4, 240 pounds, but his physical profile belies impressive versatility.

He’s a highly productive defender who lines up all over the second level of Oklahoma’s defense, playing inside and outside linebacker on both the strong and weak sides. Stutsman isn’t quite athletic enough to cover the most athletic tight ends (and running backs) in the NFL, but he has enough coverage ability to match up with most of them. Likewise, he has the size and strength to play downhill and fill gaps in the run game. He has enough quickness and range to redirect and cover screen or swing passes, has some experience rushing the passer, and is also used as a quarterback spy.

Stutsman can be a bit too aggressive and run himself out of plays, which is something he needs to continue to work on.

Alabama’s offense offers a fantastic opportunity to scout pretty much every area of Stutsman’s game. In particular, he’ll likely be tasked with matching up with Jalen Milroe throughout the evening.