2025 NFL Draft: College football recap, Week 9

Two transfers showing well in new home; WR1 battle continues

It certainly wasn’t the most compelling batch of games we’ve ever seen this past weekend, with ranked matchups quickly turning into blowouts while a couple of top-five ranked Big Ten teams had minor scares against non-ranked foes.

first-ranked Oregon ran through No. 20 Illinois 38-9 in a game that was never close. The Ducks soundly controlled things on both sides of the ball all four quarters.

Third-ranked Penn State won over Wisconsin 28-13 despite their quarterback going down with injury late in the first half. The Nittany Lions trailed 10-7 at halftime and it was a one-point game late in the third quarter. The defense clamped down and a couple of timely long scoring drives closed out the action.

Similarly, No. 4 Ohio State’s offense experienced failure to launch in this game, which kept unranked Nebraska hanging around the whole afternoon. The Buckeyes couldn’t run the ball with efficiency and only ran 47 total plays. Nebraska had a fantastic game plan to take the air out of the ball and kill clock to keep the game close throughout. The Cornhuskers took the lead early in the fourth quarter before the Buckeyes’ defense finally shut things out to the tune of 13 tackles for loss.

Fifth-ranked Texas had their hands full with No. 25 Vanderbilt in Nashville. The Commodores are feisty and a nuisance to highly ranked teams. We can firmly state that this is the best Vanderbilt team in some time. However, it wasn’t quite enough this past Saturday. Even with a late score, Texas was still able to overcome 27-24. The Texas offense has shown their flaws in recent weeks, with the lackluster play of quarterback Quinn Ewers and an offensive line hitting some speed bumps. They’ll get a bye week to get things right as they approach the end stage of the season.

Eighth-ranked LSU was victim to a big-time comeback from No. 13 Texas A&M after they were sparked by a mid-game quarterback change from Conner Weigman to Marcel Reed. Reed, the better natural athlete and runner, threw up 31 second-half points. Although, much of the game was given away by LSU’s second-half turnovers, to which there were four of them. Reed only threw the ball twice for 70 yards, while Weigman was ineffective. It was an epic collapse and failure to protect a multiple-score halftime lead. Simply protecting the football likely gets the Tigers a win if the situation is replayed.

Twelfth-ranked Notre Dame rocked No. 24 Navy 51-14. The Midshipmen were athletically outclassed. Navy accumulated six turnovers while the Irish didn’t turn the ball over once. It was a losing formula in plenty of ways. The game was never competitive.

Speaking of never competitive… No. 15 Alabama took No. 21 Missouri to the woodshed to the tune of a 34-0 beatdown. Missouri threw for 72 yards on 24 attempts including three interceptions. Star receiver Luther Burden III had three receptions for three yards in the game. Nothing was working on offense for the Tigers and it got ugly.

Of course, a weekend full of games presents players who stepped up to the plate and helped their 2025 NFL Draft stock. Let’s discuss a few players who are helping themselves after their Week 9 performances.

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Ole Miss Edge Princely Umanmielen has a day against Oklahoma’s worn-out offensive line

Every player on Ole Miss’ defensive line ate against Oklahoma on Saturday — a 10-sack performance by the team against what has been an awful Oklahoma offensive line in 2024. One of the draft-eligible catalysts for that defensive line operation is Florida transfer Princely Umanmielen. He was dinged up with injury against LSU a week ago, but he came back looking like his normal explosive self this week.

The defensive line class is exceptional in 2024 and Umanielen is right in the mix as a top 100 pick. He’s a very athletic player with a specialty in getting after quarterbacks. He’s tracking for 10 sacks in the SEC this season despite the missed game.

Jeff Brohm offense reviving Louisville WR Ja’Corey Brooks

Alabama transplant Ja’Corey Brooks needed a bit of a career revival, and he’s getting that at Louisville in 2024 after his offseason transfer. Brooks has become a go-to target in the Cardinals’ offense and is putting up big numbers in the ACC. Brooks is right on track for a 1,000-yard season and he hasn’t been held to below 70 yards in a game this year. A 10-touchdown season is within reach for the big-play weapon, and it’s just what Brooks needed to set the stage for himself as an NFL Draft prospect.

Brooks routinely wins vertically and offers an explosive release and first step off the line of scrimmage. He’s come down with some hero catches in big moments, and that was no different on Friday night against Boston College. Brooks will be drafted. It’s just a matter of where he slots at this point.

Arizona WR Tetairoa McMillan not giving up WR1 easily

The WR1 debate has been mostly consistent between Colorado WR/CB Travis Hunter and Arizona wideout Tetairoa McMillan as the season’s progressed. McMillan has lost some in-season buzz due to the overarching performance of the Arizona team in 2024. But McMillan is a steady presence who continues to perform.

McMillan is smooth and feels like a relatively safe prospect with a legit 6’4” frame. You won’t see many players his size move like he does. He also just engulfs the football and appears to have massive hands for easy off-frame ability. He’s also able to create after the catch more than you’d expect. Is he the best WR1 we’ve ever seen in a draft class? Probably not. But he produces and the traits pop off the screen. It was a 10-reception, 200-plus yard day for McMillan despite another team loss.