Three Prospects Primed To Rise After Week 1

College football prospects that are on the rise in the NFL Draft after a big first week of college football action.

Chris Spooner | Sep 8, 2021

Three Prospects Primed To Rise After Week 1 /

The college football season kicked off in earnest this week, and we’ve already had plenty of drama. If this week was indicative of what we’re going to see for the rest of the season, buckle up! College football is back, and it’s back in a BIG way!

After just one week -- two if your team played in the fabled Week 0 -- we’ve had a College Football playoff contender in Oklahoma need to survive a scare from Tulane. Washington, the reigning Pac 12 champion, didn’t survive their shock against FCS powerhouse Montana. We’ve seen incredible performances, and we’ve witnessed the heartbreak of injury and defeat. Week 1 had everything you could ask for, and then some!

The season may have just started, but it’s never too early to think about how a player’s performance may impact their NFL Draft stock. We’ve seen outstanding play over these two weeks, along with some confounding performances from some of the top prospects. It’s been a long year, and we’re going to keep things positive this week, taking a look at three prospects who significantly helped their 2022 NFL Draft stock.

Three Up

Zach Charbonnet - RB, UCLA

Zach Charbonnet continues his impressive start to the year after carving up LSU in Week 1. — Zach Charbonnet continues his impressive start to the year after carving up LSU in Week 1

In my last piece, I mentioned that we would talk about Week 0 performances later, and that time has arrived! The first player to highlight in our look at players who may have seen a rise in their NFL Draft stock takes us out west to UCLA. The Bruins kicked off college football in Week 0 with a matchup against Hawaii.

The former Michigan running back exploded onto the scene in his Bruins debut to the tune of 106 yards rushing and three touchdowns, with a 14-yard reception thrown on for good measure. All of this on just seven total touches. Charbonnet lit up the Warriors’ defense and exhibited great patience running behind his line. Charbonnet showed great vision finding the holes his linemen opened up for him, and his burst through the whole and nice long-speed allowed him to capitalize.

It was an impressive performance but left many wondering, “Was this because Charbonnet is that good, or because it was against Hawaii?” Charbonnet put those fears to rest and told the world he’s a legitimate prospect this week. The SEC is seen by many as the pinnacle of College Football competition, and Charbonnet had arguably a more impressive game this week against SEC powerhouse LSU.

The Bruins running back carved up the vaunted LSU defense to the tune of 117 yards and a touchdown, once again throwing on one reception -- this one for 35 yards -- for good measure. Against a much better defense, Charbonnet once again showed he has the skills to become a player we’re talking about in the middle rounds of the 2022 NFL Draft, if not before.

Matt Corral - QB, Ole Miss

Matt Corral had a big game against Louisville and looks to continue his rise in the NFL Draft with question marks at the quarterback position depth. — Matt Corral had a big game against Louisville and looks to continue his rise in the NFL Draft with question marks at the quarterback position depth

In the cap to Week 1, Ole Miss took on Louisville, with quarterback Matt Corral staring at a chance to establish himself as a legitimate contender in the 2022 NFL Draft quarterback class conversation. With some head-scratching performances by prospects at the top of the class -- which we’ll have more on in a moment -- Corral had a prime opportunity to make some waves. Corral seized the chance in a BIG way.

With down performances by Spencer Rattler and Sam Howell earlier in the week, Corral took his chance and ran with it. While the stat box may not reflect it, Corral was nearly perfect on the night on his way to 381 passing yards and a touchdown on almost 69% completion percentage. Corral, ever the dual-threat, also added 55 yards and a touchdown with his legs on the way to dismantling the Cardinals’ defense.

While the stats are great, Corral may have had an even better game than they suggest. According to CFBNumbers, Corral had an Expected Points Added per play of nearly 1, with an explosive play rate of just over 44%. Corral was on fire in their game against Louisville, showing some excellent poise in the pocket. Going through progressions has been a big knock-on Corral, but he showed that ability against the Cardinals. His precision was also on-point for the most part, giving scouts a lot to think about in a week where the big names faltered.

Jermaine Johnson - EDGE, Florida State

Jermaine Johnson II (#11) from Florida State made one hell of an opening statement last night against Notre Dame. Here he uses his natural arm length, and good hand placement to stack and shed his opponent.

I am definitely intrigued. pic.twitter.com/0Ic486MVJG
— Nick Price (checkmark) (@PriceCheck3) September 6, 2021

The matchup between Florida State and Notre Dame may have highlighted the college football schedule in Week 1. It had everything you can want as a fan of football -- and humanity. The game featured a touching tribute to legendary Florida State coach Bobby Bowden by the FSU band. Quarterback McKenzie Milton stole the show -- and the hearts of fans everywhere -- when he completed his comeback from a devastating leg injury to play his first game in more than 1,000 days.

On the field, the game was thrilling from beginning to end, featuring missed field goals, overtime, and a dominating performance from Florida State EDGE prospect Jermaine Johnson. In a testament to the depth of the Georgia defensive line, Johnson was buried on the Bulldogs roster before transferring to Florida State. In his first game in garnet in gold, Johnson made quite the impression on the football and scouting worlds.

In Johnson’s first action for Florida State, he immediately popped off the TV and was one of the most impactful players in the game. Johnson finished the game with seven tackles with 2.5 tackles for loss and a sack. While that stat line is impressive, it doesn’t do Johnson’s performance justice. Johnson was everywhere on the field against the Irish. When he wasn’t getting home on the quarterback, he impacted his decision-making with his pass-rush prowess.

Even more impressive than the pass-rushing for Johnson was how he affected the game in other ways. The biggest knock on most pass-rushing EDGE prospects is how they perform against the run. Johnson was a significant factor in the run game, wreaking havoc on the Irish offensive line and running backs. Additionally, Johnson showed that he’s a high-motor player, chasing down plays several yards downfield on many occasions. It was a banner day for the Bulldogs transfer and a declaration that there’s one more prospect to think about in the 2022 NFL Draft EDGE class.