Spotlight’s brightest night
Title game opportunity for top players to impress NFL
Former LSU linebacker Patrick Queen is a good example of howa huge performance in anational championshipgamecanhelp a player boost hisNFLdraft stock.
Queen was a rising prospect throughout last season and capped it by being the defensiveMVPof the CollegeFootballPlayoff championship victory against Clemson. About three and half months later, Queen was selected in the first roundby theRavens atNo. 28 overall.
No. 1 Alabama and No. 3 Ohio State head into the national title gameMonday night with a slew of future NFL players. The matchupswill not only determinewhowins a championship, but could also influence where some of their stars are drafted.
“Youdowant to look into a player’s ability to play in the clutch and in the bigmoments because obviously when you’re putting together a football team, anNFLroster, your goal is to be playing inthe playoffs,” saidJim Nagy, Senior Bowl executive director and a former NFL scout. “So you want to look at the consequential games. The games that really matter.”
Alabama center Landon Dickerson, who is out with a knee injury, and guard Deonte Brown have already accepted invitations to the Senior Bowl on Jan. 30, Nagy said. HeismanTrophy- winningreceiverDeVonta Smith, star running back Najee Harris and tackle Alex Leatherwood have also been invited.
For Ohio State, center Josh Myers, running backTrey Sermon, linebackersTuf Borland and Barron Browning, and defensive end Jonathon Cooper plan to take part in the Senior Bowl, Nagy said.
Invitations have also been extended to defensive tackle Haskell Garrett and linebacker PeteWerner.
There are perhaps 20 players who could potentially be drafted in April after playing for theCrimson Tide andBuckeyes.
Quarterbacks
Ohio State’s Justin Fields was amazing against Clemson, throwing six touchdown passes and showing off accuracy and arm strength all over the field.
He also displayed poise and toughness, playingmostof thegameafter taking a nasty hit to his side.
Thatcameafter aninconsistentandtruncated season that has called into question Fields’ status as thebest availableQBbehind Trevor Lawrence.
“There’s a lot of buzz around the league about ( BYU’s) ZachWilson being the No. 2 pick in the draft behind Lawrence,” said DaneBrugler, adraftanalyst forTheAthletic. “Fields, with what he did, it changed that a little bit. He’s making teams kind of go back and reconsider.”
The Alabama defense has had some bumpy moments, but it is still the most talented group Ohio State has faced, starting with SEC defensive player of the year PatrickSurtain III. Thejunior will probably bethe first cornerback drafted ifhedeclares.
Plus, Fields will be tested by Alabama schematically.
“Give ( Tide coach) Nick Saban 10 days to figure you out and to find yourweaknesses, that’s terrifying,” saidMatt Miller of NFL Draft Scout.
Alabama quarterback Mac Jones is amongthesecondtier of quarterbacks in the upcoming draft that includes Florida’sKyle Trask andmaybeSMU’s ShaneBuechele.
Jones has been superb, but he doesn’t have athletic traitscomparable to Fieldsand Lawrence.
Jonesis surroundedbytop- endtalent, and offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian has done a good job of scheming receivers open and creating mismatches.
“He’s a very, very difficult evaluation because howdo you separate him fromjust an elite situation,” Brugler said of Jones.
Especiallyonthe heels offormerAlabama star Tua Tagovailoa’s rookie NFL season, whichwas solid but far fromspectacular.
Wade’sworld
OhioState cornerbackShaunWademade the All- America team, but thatwas a generous evaluation based on reputation and last year’s play when he was a nickelback and slot corner.
His move to the outside this season has been spotty at best and indicative of Ohio State’s cornerback play in general. Now, he gets to face Smith, a sure first- rounder, and the gemstone of Alabama’s prolific passing game.
“If I’m Alabama and Steve Sarkisian, I’m getting DeVonta Smith on ( Wade’s) side of the field as much as humanly possible because no one has been able to stop him,” Miller said.
Brugler saidWade’s futuremight still lie at safety.
“At thesametime, ifhe goesout thereand performs at a high level against Smith, then all of a sudden that’s a different conversation,” Brugler said. “But based on what we’ve seen from ShaunWade this year, it just doesn’t seem like a realistic possibility.”
In the trenches
Alabama defensive tackle Christian Barmore is a third- team All- Americananda third- yearsophomore, soheisnosure thing to enter the draft.
The 310- pounder has not played at a consistently high level thatwouldmakehim a lock first- rounder. Still, Brugler said the defensive line class is thin at the top of this draft and Barmore has a chance to be best of the bunch.
Barmore will face a good test in Ohio State’s interior line. All- America guard Wyatt Davis and Meyers are likely Day 2 draft picks with bottom of the first- round potential.
Sermon delivers
OhioState running backTreySermonhas gone on a remarkable late- season tear with 636 yards rushing in his last three games. He should expect to see a lot of linebackers DylanMoses and Christian Harris, the top two tacklers for the CrimsonTide.
Nagy said Sermon looked like a potential starting NFL running back before injuring his knee last season while at Oklahoma.
“He’s gotten his opportunity ... and he’s taken full advantage of those, but to do it against a Nick Saban defense in a national championshipgamewould justbe that next level for him,” Nagy said.