NFL Draft: Players to Watch in Saturday’s Bowl Games

Saturdays Bowl Games promise the start of an exciting period of the college football season: Bowl Game Season. The match-ups alone make this one of the best parts of the season, but it helps when schools have big time players getting their final shot to prove themselves before they leave to play on Sundays.

It’s the most wonderful time of the year, and five bowl games kick off on Saturday. Here is a list of prospects that you should know about to watch and start preparing for the NFL Draft. 

The Cure Bowl

Opponents: Tulane Green Wave (6-6) Vs ULL Ragin’-Cajuns (7-6).
Preview: Orlando, Florida. 1:30 PM ET on CBSSN.
Prospects List:
Tulane TE Charles Jones (RS-Sr)
Tulane CB Donnie Lewis Jr (RS-Sr)
Tulane S Roderic Teamer Jr (Sr)

The Sun Belt generally doesn’t have many prospects, but the American Athletic Conference is doing a good job to seriously strike up a conversation to start addressing the Power Six. None of these prospects are considered elite, but could end up being decent late round picks or impact un-drafted free agents. 

Charles Jones is a good blocking tight end that could impact in a power run scheme. He has very good size and doesn’t offer too much to a passing game. He does have 8 receiving touchdowns in his career. Unfortunately for him, he has also struggled to stay healthy, missing 13 games over his four years to ankle and foot injuries.

Donnie Lewis has done well for himself in his career at Tulane, intercepting 7 passes and defending 36 in his 43 games at the university. He has decent size, but is somewhat limited athletically and will struggle with faster receivers. He is a good tackler though, and can offer support in the run game. 

Roderick Teamer is the teams second leading tackler this season, and overall a decent player. Teamer could end up on a special teams unit and make his way into a starting rotation in a zone defense. 

New Mexico Bowl

Opponents: Utah State Aggies (10-2) Vs North Texas Mean Green (9-3)
Preview: Albuquerque, NM. 2:00 PM ET ESPN
Prospect List:
Utah State TE Dax Raymond (RS-Jr, Declared)
North Texas LB E.J. Ejiya (RS-Sr)

Dax Raymond is a guy who took a lot of people by surprise when he declared almost immediately after the regular season came to a close. After inspecting his tape, I found him to be a mid-round prospect with a little bit of an injury history that can be overlooked by his athleticism on the field. He is very athletic, possibly the fastest tight end in the class. He will have one more game to showcase his skill-set in front of NFL Scouts on the field. 

E.J. Ejiya is a tackling machine. This past season, he accumulated 113 tackles, 23.5 of them for loss, and 9 sacks. He finished his career with 16 sacks and 39 tackles for loss from the middle linebacker spot. Teams will certainly be taking a look at this man as he has some athleticism that could be useful at the next level. 

Las Vegas Bowl

Opponents: Arizona State Sun Devils (7-5) Vs Fresno State Bulldogs (11-2).
Preview: Las Vegas, NV, 3:30 PM ET on ABC.
Prospect List:
Fresno State WR KeeSean Johnson (RS-Sr)
Arizona State OT Casey Tucker (RS-Sr)
Arizona State IDL Renell Wren (RS-Sr)

KeeSean Johnson will be the player who gets the most media coverage at this game, since Arizona State’s WR N’Keal Harry will be skipping it. Johnson is a solid collage receiver, and has produced magnificently at this level. Johnson owns 273 career receptions and 24 touchdowns, and was a reliable option all four years of his collegiate career. Johnson projects as a later round pick, but could potentially raise his stock in this game and, potentially, the combine. 

Arizona State’s Renell Wren is one interior lineman that will be on many draft boards, more as a mid round prospect. Wren eats space well and tackles when given the opportunity. Will definitely be a solid back-up in the league for years to come. 

Casey Tucker is a potential late round pick that could impact a team down the stretch. I haven’t personally seen film on him yet, but I will be in this game. I hear he’s a very strong individual with a forward lean problem. 

The other Bowl Games

The other two bowl games of the night, the Camellia Bowl and the New Orleans Bowl, don’t feature any guys that we expect to talk about in the draft class. You can still see the previews to those games below, as our team at Full Press Coverage tirelessly works to bring you all of the football coverage you can digest or need. 

Camellia Bowl Preview.

New Orleans Bowl Preview.