We're halfway through the college football season and, not surprisingly, there has been some movement in our preseason Top 50 Big Board. And while there are few certainties in life, the top of the board is one of them: USC quarterback Caleb Williams is the No. 1 overall prospect and it's not really close. And that's after the worst game of his college career on Saturday night in South Bend against Notre Dame in a game in which the Trojans were never in it.
Yes, it looked like Williams was pressing at times, and trying to do too much at others. But unlike some prospects, there isn't a lot of trying to project what he can do because he's done it for almost the entirety of his college career. So is the Notre Dame game a concern? Sure, it can be instructive to figure out why Williams struggled but I don't think it's indicative of anything more than one poor outing.
It happens, even to the best players on the planet.
In fact, as Rick Spielman, longtime Vikings general manager and my co-host on the With the First Pick Podcast, pointed out recently, Saturday's performance aside, Williams is better now than Patrick Mahomes was during his final year at Texas Tech. I mention Mahomes, of course, because that's the easiest and most accurate comparison for Williams, and why it's hard to imagine a situation where he's not taken first overall.
Perhaps the only other notable name in the top 5 is Brock Bowers. And it's not that he doesn't deserve to be there, but he's a tight end, and history suggests that drafting one high can be problematic. But Bowers is a tight end in name only; he lines up all over the formation, runs like a wide receiver and you could argue (quite easily) that he has dragged the Georgia offense up and down the field a handful of times already this season.
1. Caleb Williams, QB, Southern California
2. Marvin Harrison Jr., WR, Ohio State
3. Ola Fashanu, OT, Penn State
4. Drake Maye, QB, North Carolina
5. Brock Bowers, TE, Georgia
Notre Dame left tackle Joe Alt has improved on his 2022 campaign and has solidified his place as one of the best players in this class, and Penn State pass rusher Chop Robinson might be the highest of high-motor players coming off the edge. He is so much fun to watch unless you're tasked with trying to block him.
6. Joe Alt, OT, Notre Dame
7. Dallas Turner, EDGE, Alabama
8. Jer'Zhan Newton, DL, Illinois
9. Chop Robinson, EDGE, Penn State
10. JC Latham, OT, Alabama
We've talked this fall about UCLA edge rusher Laiatu Latu on the podcast, and he's having a great '23. The biggest issue he'll face during the pre-draft process will have to do with medical; he missed the 2020 season, back when he was a Washington Husky, because of a neck injury, and retired before 2021 before getting medical clearance to resume his career. He's been lights out for the Bruins and a Day 1 talent.
Just below Latu below is LSU wide receiver Malik Nabers who has been unstoppable over the first six weeks of the season; his size, speed, route running and contested-catch ability all translate to the next level and he's certainly in the thick of the WR2 conversation.
11. Jared Verse, EDGE, Florida State
12. Kool-Aid McKinstry, CB, Alabama
13. Patrick Paul, OT, Houston
14. Laiatu Latu, EDGE, UCLA
15. Malik Nabers, WR, Louisiana State
16. Kalen King, CB, Penn State
17. Rome Odunze, WR, Washington
18. Emeka Egbuka, WR, Ohio State
19. Amarius Mims, OT, Georgia
20. Keon Coleman, WR, Florida State
We've talked repeatedly on the podcast about how deep this quarterback class is, and we finally get to QB3. Like WR2, this race remains wide open, but it's hard not to love how well Michael Penix Jr. is playing. He's elevating the play of that entire offense (it certainly helps to have some dudes at wide receiver, two of whom made their way onto this list), but more importantly, he consistently throws on time, with anticipation, and is incredibly accurate on deep throws.
To keep the WR conversation going, if you love big, physical, fast tackle-breaking playmakers, Western Kentucky's Malachai Corley and South Carolina's Xavier Legette fit the bill. Both can take over games, both are threats on all three levels, and both are going to hear their names called early next spring.
21. JT Tuimoloau, EDGE, Ohio State
22. Nate Wiggins, CB, Clemson
23. Leonard Taylor, DL, Miami
24. Michael Penix Jr., QB, Washington
25. Malachi Corley, WR, Western Kentucky
26. Jordan Morgan, OT, Arizona
27. Xavier Legette, WR, South Carolina
28. Maason Smith, DL, LSU
29. Taliese Fuaga, OT, Oregon State
30. Cooper DeJean, CB, Iowa
31. Kingsley Suamataia, OT, BYU
32. Bralen Trice, EDGE, Washington
Ohio State cornerback Denzel Burke has been night and day from a season ago; I love his physicality throughout the route, and his teammate, defensive tackle Tyleik Williams, has had a strong start to his '23 campaign too. Williams is just a junior so he could choose to return to school in 2024. Meanwhile, Toledo cornerback Quinyon Mitchell is a senior, and like Burke, he excels at physicality. In fact, he might be the most physical cornerback in this class. He doesn't have an interception yet in '23 but he logged 5 a season ago, including two pick-sixes.
33. Bo Nix, QB, Oregon
34. Denzel Burke, CB, Ohio State
35. Tyleik Williams, DL, Ohio State
36. Kamren Kinchens, S, Miami
37. Princely Umanmielen, EDGE, Florida
38. Xavier Worthy, WR, Texas
39. Quinyon Mitchell, CB, Toledo
Bo Nix came in at No. 33 above and you'll find Spencer Rattler at No. 41 below. Both quarterbacks transferred, overcame adversity, and are better for it. Both also have physical tools that make them legit NFL prospects. I said it earlier this season: Rattler has been a lot of fun to watch, in part because he's so tough, but also because he trusts his arm – and his teammates – implicitly and it shows up in the form of big plays downfield. Does he force some throws, especially late in games (see Georgia and Florida, for examples)? Yep, he does. But unlike Nix – and even Penix Jr., Rattler is doing it without the benefit of an offensive line that can protect him consistently.
A few other notes:
Do not sleep on Ja'lynn Polk; yes, Rome Odunze has been dominant for the Huskies but Polk has been really good this season.
I've talked at times this fall about Shedeur Sanders as a first-round pick, but I continue to hear that he could return to school (it's why I almost left him off the midseason Big Board altogether) where he'll be in the mix for QB1 a year from now.
Gabriel Murphy is the "other" edge rusher at UCLA … except the Bruins line him up everywhere – and he is a game-wrecker over the tackle, in the A or B gap, or even as a 9-technique.
And finally, I had to include Howard Cross III. The Notre Dame defensive tackle is undersized in the traditional sense, but apparently no one relayed the news to him. His measurables don't scream "Top-50 player" but I don't care because my man is regularly disruptive on the interior, whether it's the first snap of the game or the final play of the 4th quarter.
40. Tyler Nubin, S, Minnesota
41. Spencer Rattler, QB, South Carolina
42. Barrett Carter, LB, Clemson
43. Josh Newton, CB, TCU
44. Kamren Kinchens, S, Miami
45. Ja'lynn Polk, WR, Washington
46. TreVeyon Henderson, RB, Ohio State
47. Ja'Tavion Sanders, TE, Texas
48. Jayden Daniels, QB, LSU
49. Shedeur Sanders, QB, Colorado
50. Gabriel Murphy, LB, UCLA
*51. Howard Cross III, DL, Notre Dame
