A juggernaut of showdowns in week ten makes week eleven look weak not filled with top-notch matchups between ranked opponents though still whips up a nice slate of underrated games starting your Saturday early.
A great lineup of early kickoffs makes the purchase of DVR well worth it with SEC showdowns between Florida at South Carolina and the Deep South’s oldest rivalry between Georgia and Auburn both getting started at noon. North Carolina State looks to play spoiler to the disappointed Seminoles as does the quiet Mississippi State facing off against the goliath of college football in Alabama.
Here are some players to watch and matchups to highlight this weekend with a focus on draft-eligible players.
By: Christian Page
No. 11 Florida at South Carolina // Saturday at 12 p.m. EST on ESPN
Starting off slow but now performing well accompanied by some gut-wrenching losses, South Carolina has found some rhythm after losing its head coach for the year. Florida continues to come away with victories with its only loss coming on the road in Baton Rouge.
One of the more stable players on South Carolina is senior left tackle Brandon Shell (#71). Shell enters the noon kickoff with his projected 45th career start being the most experienced South Carolina lineman. Shell is a massive presence that is a polished pass protector and is athletic enough to pick up quick pass rushers on the edge, which is what he will be dealing with this weekend versus the extremely quick-footed Alex McCalister (#14) of Florida. Potentially projected to be beaten out by highly-touted freshman end prospect CeCe Jefferson, McCalister created a name for himself putting together a nice junior campaign currently stating out with 25 total tackles, 9.5 tackles for loss, seven quarterback hurries and 6.5 sacks. McCalister shows tremendous flexibility to bend off the edge creating a path to the quarterback and contains enough speed in pursuit to finish the play. Shell versus McCalister is one of the more underrated yet highly anticipated positional matchups this weekend.
The battle between potential top ten pick Vernon Hargreaves (Florida, #1) and superstar wide receiver prospect Pharoh Cooper (South Carolina, #11) is an intriguing matchup that we have looked forward to this season. Hargreaves playing lockdown duty in last season’s matchup holding Cooper to just four catches for 40 yards, Cooper is out for revenge being held out of the endzone in both of his appearances versus the Gators. Hargreaves is an adept corner that does everything well most notably not losing separation battles and anticipates well when the ball is in the air. Just 5’11 and 207 pounds Cooper doesn’t have a huge size advantage over the 5’11 192 pound Hargreaves but tends to always win the physical battle between the elite corners in the conference. Both play with a physical mentality and big play factor ability making this a must see matchup Saturday afternoon.
Georgia at Auburn // Saturday at 12 p.m. EST on CBS
Both teams approach this game with injury hardships and disappointed résumés compared to preseason rankings. This game is a battle between the border states and a win on the overall record is just a luxury compared to the extension of bragging rights to take on throughout the rest of the calendar. Georgia looks to avenge the almost unprecedented road loss to Auburn in 2013 though dominating the Tigers 34-7 last season in Athens.
Getting accustomed to left tackle a season ago in his first year as the full-time starter, junior prospect Shon Coleman (#72) of Auburn has had a consistent 2015 protecting the blind side to a couple of Auburn quarterbacks. Long, athletic and quick on his feet, Coleman is one of the more athletic tackle prospects in the SEC. Coleman is a grabber with strong hands and adequate quickness off the snap to control his matchup in a phone booth. Coleman’s quickness will be tested this weekend against the speedy Georgia edge rusher prospect Jordan Jenkins (#59). Jenkins, still struggling to overcome a groin injury, is a quick defender off the edge but does solid work with his ability to power rush opposing offensive tackles. Playing more of a true defensive end than teammate pass rusher Leonard Floyd (#84), Jenkins will battle it out with Coleman in an attractive matchup duel.
From one tackle prospect to another, Georgia’s John Theus (#71) has had a quietly effective season for the Bulldogs. Theus’ biggest strength is in the run game locking up defenders with great upper body strength not letting his matchup control him off the snap. Theus is an OK pass protector being able to maintain stability enough to give whomever is playing quarterback time to deliver the football. Theus may be best suited at guard at the next level because of his ability to excel in the run game sporting his less than desired narrow base in protection, but we will get a good look at his quickness and strength when facing off against the now healthy edge rusher Carl Lawson (#55) who has been a difference maker for the Auburn defense returning from a hip injury two weeks ago.
North Carolina St at No. 16 Florida State // Saturday at 12:30 p.m. EST on ACC Network
Though losing two of the past three matchups, North Carolina State has held its own versus the always-higher ranked Seminoles, at least in the first half, in the back-to-back losses. Both teams had productive showings last weekend on the defensive side of the ball yet one was victorious and the other fell flat in a potential ACC Championship Game trip.
Having the chance to experience watching North Carolina State live, I got to witness the almost tangible poise and pocket awareness of one of the top senior quarterback prospects Jacoby Brissett. Brissett (#12) has played close to flawless football this season for the Wolfpack sporting an impressive 14-2 (two rushing touchdowns) ratio with 1,798 passing yards and a 64 percent completion rate. I’m convinced that Brissett can make every throw in the book being an accurate passer on intermediate routes and dropping dimes with pillow soft touch on downfield throws leading his receivers to the endzone. The calm and at times almost too patient pocket passer, Brissett projects to deal with continuous pressure from Florida State edge defender DeMarcus Walker (#44) who has gained draft momentum continuing to pursue the quarterback and getting his hands on the ball in anyway possible.
Florida State defenders Reggie Northrup (#5 ILB) and Lamarcus Brutus (#42 FS) may not be as well known to many compared to other star defensive players, but with their impressive 2015 senior campaigns the two have turned into two of the more feared defenders in the ACC. Northrup made an incredible recovery from ACL surgery this offseason to currently leading the Seminoles defense with 69 total tackles. Northrup is an explosive athlete with noticeable instincts always being around the ball making impact plays for a defense that has just been average when held to the Florida State standard. Safety Lamarcus Brutus has come on strong this season after potentially getting the short end of the stick to start in fall camp but rose to the occasion becoming one of the more productive products on defense. With 2015 serving as his only season as the full-time starter, Brutus has some ladders to climb in the draft world, but every stepping stone counts as his run support ability will be tested Saturday with a couple of solid runners for the Wolfpack.
No. 2 Alabama at No. 17 Mississippi State // Saturday at 3:30 EST on CBS
With some questioning the placement of the College Football Playoff Committee’s ranking of Alabama in the previous week, the Tide proved to all that they have the ability to contend for another national title after an impressive home win over the then second-ranked LSU Tigers. Mississippi State has quietly managed to maintain its 2014 credibility with losses only coming to LSU and Texas A&M this season. Mississippi State held things close in the last meeting in Starkville falling short of the Tide 20-7.
The Heisman hype surrounded Mississippi State quarterback Dak Prescott (#15) last season at this time as the Bulldogs were carrying an undefeated record into Tuscaloosa. From a scout’s eye, Prescott has had a better 2015 season than his heralded 2014 campaign as he has improved on his pocket awareness, anticipation, going through progressions and accuracy. If any indication of last week’s showing versus LSU, Alabama’s front seven will game plan to attack Prescott and his dual threat ability that is know to spurn the Tide and Kirby Smart’s defense in recent memory (i.e. Cam Newton, Johnny Manziel, Nick Marshall, Cardale Jones).
Prescott will look to expose the Tide secondary with his giant of a target De’Runnya Wilson (#1) who pitched a nice game in his last showing versus Alabama. Wilson’s physical edge out-muscled Alabama cornerback Cyrus Jones (#5) last season who has had a fair share of up and down games over his college career. Neither are considered to be highly rated draft prospects at the time (both in the fourth to sixth round range), but a good showing in this evening kick is a chance to add some positive attributes to increase their draft value.
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