Scout’s Notes: My Favorite Small School Prospects

For the most part, to put it plainly, if there is NFL talent somewhere in the college ranks, NFL teams will find it and bring that prospect into the league. However, sometimes these non-FBS prospects are underappreciated by NFL teams as well as the media because they didn’t play at the top level of competition.

I’ve gotten a chance to watch a lot of small school prospects this year, and while guys like Ben Ijalana, Edmund Gates, and Cecil Shorts have been hyped as some of the top small school prospects, here are some of my favorites (in no order) in this year’s draft:

Kenrick Ellis, DT, Hampton
-Built like an ideal nose tackle in the NFL, being around 330-340 pounds, you wouldn’t expect Ellis to be able to be very fluid in space. In reality, he played like a linebacker for Hampton, showing great movement for his size, tackling technique, and the ability to shake blockers so well. He was kicked off South Carolina earlier in his college career, so character could push him out of the 1st round, but don’t expect him to fall past the middle of the 2nd.

Markell Carter, DE/OLB, Central Arkansas
-Very aggressive, athletic, attacking rusher in college, Carter will need to bulk up and develop more pass rush moves if he hopes to be a long term starter in the NFL as a 3-4 outside linebacker. Still, he has the initial burst, quickness, and frame to develop into a starter, and he could be a great value in the later rounds of the draft for a 3-4 defense.

David Mims, OT, Virginia Union
-Offensive tackles with Mims’s size, hand strength, punch, and potential don’t come around that often. For example, look at when the Patriots took another massive, potential-based tackle in Sebastian Volmer from Houston a few years back, a player Mims compares to favorably. Also, another comparable guy is Jared Veldheer, last year’s D2 left tackle prospect taken by the Raiders who played well as a rookie. Mims could be a steal in the middle to late rounds of the draft.

Eric McBride, ILB, Richmond
–Not a fit for a majority of teams in the NFL, McBride has the coverage ability and instincts to be a great inside linebacker in a Cover 2 defense like the Lions, Colts, Bucs, and Bears run. Because only a handful of teams could use him and he’s not a great athlete, he may struggle to get drafted, but he could be a long term starter in the NFL as a Cover 2 linebacker.

ZaVious Robbins, WR, Hardin-Simmons
–While I don’t mean to promote him more than any other player on our draft board, I know ZaVious has the talent to play in the NFL long term. ZaVious hails from a D3 program where he, as you’d expect, dominated over his career, and has recently tested out with 4.31 speed and a 43″ vertical. His size (around 5’8, 165) is a concern for teams, but he has the quickness, explosiveness, reliable hands, and versatility to make an NFL roster. He’s finally starting to get some NFL interest after he’s been on our draftable board since mid-season.

Josh Portis, QB, California (PA)
–A two-time transfer (from Florida to Maryland, then Maryland to California (PA)), Portis will need to answer level of competition, cheating accusations early in his college career, an arrest for using a stolen credit card and overall character questions before a team will make him a late draft pick. But based on his athletic ability, arm strength, and potential as a quarterback, Portis could be a late round, developmental quarterback prospect. He already had a workout with the Dolphins, and was interviewed by many teams at the NFL Combine.