With Week Zero in the rearview, the football world now turns its collective attention to Week One. However, we have to look back at what we learned during the week zero games and evaluate the prospects therein.
Each week, I will look back at the top prospect performances from the games I watched the previous week.
WEEK ZERO PROSPECT REWIND
UCONN @ UTAH STATE
UConn had multiple prospects a year ago, including third-round selection Travis Jones. This season, the pickings are slim. The only Husky on our massive watch list is LB Jackson Mitchell. Mitchell is an active player who is always around the football. He finished the game against Utah State with 16 tackles (7 solos). Mitchell also recorded a sack and a forced fumble.
The prospect list is a little more expansive for the Aggies but I am not sure there are any high-end players here either.
I concentrated a fair amount on Utah State LB AJ Vongphachanh. The 4th-year player overruns a lot of plays causing him to be out of position. He finished with seven tackles (one solo), a TFL, and two QB hurries.
LB Byron Vaughns diagnoses well and attacks downhill. He plays more as an edge rusher. Vaughns had four tackles and three hurries.
6th-year offensive tackle Alfred Edwards has a huge upper body. However, he leans way too much and is not very fluid in his lower body. Edwards does start at left tackle for USU.
Last but not least is Utah State QB, Logan Bonner. Bonner is on the Van Wilder plan, entering his seventh collegiate season. He is a solid passer but doesn’t do anything flashy. Bonner is more likely to be a future coach. Or he is going to ply his trade in the XFL or USFL in the spring.
VANDERBILT @ HAWAII
Vanderbilt left the mainland and blew out Hawai’i. The Commodores’ top prospect, LB Anfernee Orji found himself in the right place at the right time. Orji had the ball pop right into his hands for a 28-yard fumble return. He finished with three tackles (two solos) to go along with his fumble return.
I was looking forward to seeing QB Ken Seals but he didn’t win the starting job. Instead, the job belongs to 3rd-year player Mike Wright. Wright is a tremendous athlete in the open field. He outran the entire Rainbow Warriors defense for an 89-yard score. As a passer, Wright leaves a whole lot to be desired. This especially rings true in the accuracy department. With a fair amount of development, there could be something to see down the road, however.
For Hawaii, the top prospect is Ilm Manning. He starts at left tackle but with his size (6’3” 280), Manning will have to kick inside. The CBSSN crew raved about WR/TE Jordan Murray. He was targeted six times but only managed one catch for 12 yards.
Coming up on Saturday will be the debut edition of Small School Scouting. This may also be Sun Belt Scouting depending on the week.