It’s a packed schedule of top-quality college football action in Week 10, with a multitude of 2023 NFL Draft prospects battling it out on the national stage. Who are some of the top NFL draft prospects you should be watching out for this week?
Top 2023 NFL Draft Prospects To Watch in Week 10
Harrison Mevis, K, Missouri
While we like to shine a light on emerging 2023 NFL Draft prospects or under-the-radar prospects from smaller schools, sometimes you have to return focus to the players who are at the very top of their position. And there simply isn’t a better kicker in this upcoming class than Harrison Mevis.
With the eyes of the scouting community on Kentucky quarterback Will Levis, the Missouri maestro has the opportunity to showcase his sensational skill set in the all-SEC matchup.
Although this year hasn’t been the most statistically successful — Mevis has hit 75% of his field-goal attempts — the Missouri kicker has the most powerful leg of all 2023 NFL Draft kicker prospects. He leads the nation with a career-high tying 56-yard field goal this season, and he’s nailed four of his five attempts from 50+ yards. Additionally, Mevis has never missed an extra-point attempt in his career.
Keylon Stokes, WR, Tulsa
A top-five college football wide receiver in several statistical metrics, Keylon Stokes leads the Tulsa Golden Hurricane with 924 receiving yards and five touchdowns. He currently averages 115.5 yards per game, coming in behind fellow 2023 NFL Draft prospects Ali Jennings III and Rashee Rice. In addition to impressive numbers, the productive pass catcher has an alluring skill set that could command attention next April.
MORE: 2023 NFL Draft Big Board
A matchup with a talented Tulane team, who is on a collision course with the Cotton Bowl, is a great shop window for the highly skilled Stokes. Boasting impressive speed, savvy route running, and the ability to extend at the catch point beyond his 5’10” height, Stokes has been a big-play threat out of the slot. He adds significant after-the-catch value, with special-teams experience and excellence as well.
Nick Saldiveri, OT, Old Dominion
There’s a small Group of Five gathering at 2 p.m. ET, with several 2023 NFL Draft prospects expected to play a prominent role. We mentioned Old Dominion wide receiver Jennings above, and gargantuan tight end teammate Zack Kuntz is another prolific playmaker. However, offensive tackle Nick Saldiveri has been garnering significant attention for his role in multiple shock wins by the Monarchs this season.
At 6’6″ and 315 pounds, he has great size for the position and appears to have decent functional length. He’s flashed a strong lower body that, combined with good footwork and hand usage, helps him to be a reliable pass protection. Saldiveri has the footwork and a relatively strong athletic profile that enables him to be a force in the ground game. Experience on the interior of the offensive line could help him secure an NFL spot next April.
Christopher Smith, DB, Georgia
Tennessee’s trip to Athens to take on Georgia is the game of college football Week 10. It has dramatic permutations for the destination of the SEC Championship, the College Football Playoff, and ultimately the CFB National Championship.
It might sound hyperbolic, but there isn’t a bigger game in the college football season, and you can watch it with a free trial of fuboTV. There’s also a plethora of 2023 NFL Draft prospects to watch out for when the No. 1 ranked Volunteers face the reigning national champions.
MORE: College Football Playoff Predictions Week 10 2022
No player has a greater opportunity to catapult their draft stock in this game than Georgia defensive back Christopher Smith. The Vols’ free-scoring offense, led by Hendon Hooker and Jalin Hyatt, has been unstoppable this year. The ground game starring Jabari Small has been an underrated component of their success. Halting the Vols’ seemingly inevitable march toward the playoffs would be a feather in the cap of the Bulldogs’ strong safety.
While he might be considered on the small size at 5’11” and 190 pounds, Smith plays the game with a brutal physicality that allows him to make plays down in the box. Bolstering a bravado that is becoming of elite defensive backs, Smith has the athletic profile to be an efficient playmaker in multiple alignments and phases of defense. A fast and fluid athlete, he also has the football instincts to ensure he’s in position to frequently impact the play.
Daiyan Henley, LB, Washington State
An all-Pac-12 matchup in the 3:30 p.m. ET slate is something to be celebrated. Usually reserved for the late-night crowd and resulting in analysts (literally) sleeping on prospects, players from both Washington State and Stanford will hope to elevate their national standing. While the Cougars have quarterback Cameron Ward as an offensive standout, the performances of linebacker Daiyan Henley is not going unnoticed in scouting circles.
The 6’1″, 220-pound former Nevada linebacker has adapted to the Power Five level with impressive comfort. He leads the Cougars with 80 tackles, 11 for loss, and four sacks. An explosive downhill threat who flies to the football with unerring ferocity, Henley is equally potent as a pass rusher or force against the run. The Washington State standout also has the ball skills and fluidity of movement to be an impactful coverage player in the NFL.
Julius Brents, DB, Kansas State
The Kansas State defense flexed its muscle last week with a 48-0 shutout of a previously impressive Oklahoma State offense. The Wildcats are led up top by relentless pass rusher Felix Anudike-Uzomah, but there are 2023 NFL Draft prospects laying in wait in the secondary for any offense that dares to challenge them.
After snagging an interception against the Cowboys, this week’s matchup with Texas gives defensive back dynamo Julius Brents a further opportunity to impress.
Brents is cut from a similar cloth to former UTSA cornerback Tariq Woolen, the current NFC Defensive Rookie of the Month. He stands at 6’4″, 202 pounds, with a reported 33 ⅞” arm measurement with a 6’10” wingspan.
Like Woolen, the Kansas State cornerback is a twitchy athlete who is explosive out of his breaks and possesses impressive hip fluidity. Furthermore, Brents can elevate himself at the catch point with impressive vertical athleticism.
Jayden Daniels, QB, LSU
One SEC headline rolls into another in college football Week 10 as Alabama’s trip into Death Valley to face LSU comes hot on the heels of the Georgia and Tennessee tussle between the hedges in Athens.
Bryce Young and Will Anderson Jr. are the obvious headliners when it comes to 2023 NFL Draft prospects to watch in this game. However, Jayden Daniels has put some early season difficulties behind him and is developing his game as a legitimate QB prospect.
The joke with Daniels has been that he’s just a skinny running back, tucking and running at the slightest sign of pressure. With 30 runs of 10+ yards this season, he certainly does possess that dual-threat ability.
Yet, he’s taken significant strides as a passer in recent weeks. His timing has been better. His footwork has been better. Subsequently, he’s been more accurate. If he can stress the Alabama defense in the same way Hooker did for Tennessee, Daniels can rekindle a draft stock that had once dissipated.
K.J. Henry, EDGE, Clemson
When you’re playing on a defensive front that contains top-tier talent like Myles Murphy and Bryan Bresee, it can be hard to assert your own dominance. It’s easy to go under the radar. However, K.J. Henry is a dominant playmaker in his own right and deserves to be in the conversation with the rest of the Clemson prospects in the 2023 NFL Draft. With 6.5 tackles for loss through eight games, Henry has the production and skill set to garner attention next April.
MORE: 2023 PFN Mock Draft Simulator
At 6’4″ and 260 pounds, the Clemson EDGE has good size and combines it with long levers that he uses to punish at the point of attack. Henry uses his length to get off blocks, but often he doesn’t need to on account of an explosive first step that sees him penetrate the backfield.
When required, Henry packs a powerful punch that helps him to overwhelm his man and collapse the pocket for fun. More than just a violent monster, Henry also showcases some finesse to his pass-rush plan.
Zach Charbonnet, RB, UCLA
There are few players in college football who are running the rock with the same level of potency as UCLA RB Zach Charbonnet. The former Michigan man averages 7.5 yards per carry so far this season and is on pace to surpass his career-high 1,137 rushing yards of last season. Meanwhile, after finding the end zone three times against Stanford, Charbonnet has double-digit touchdown numbers to his name for the third time in his career.
With Charbonnet, you get exactly what you’d expect from a 6’1″, 220 pounds running back. He’s a tough and physical runner whose ludicrous contact balance helps him to barrel through opposing defenses. Yet, there’s more to him than that.
The UCLA RB has impressive lateral agility that allows him to cut with ease, often reducing his opponents’ ankles to dust in the place Charbonnet used to occupy. An effective pass catcher and blocker, he has an NFL future awaiting him.
Andrew Vorhees, G, USC
With the arrival of Caleb Williams, Jordan Addison, and Mario Williams — not to mention head coach Lincoln Riley — the USC offense has been a unit well worth staying up to watch this season. They have another 10:30 p.m. ET kickoff this week, welcoming California to the Coliseum as they look to keep the heat on UCLA at the top of the Pac-12. While you’re marveling at the array of offensive weaponry on display, make sure you pay attention to one of the Trojans’ top 2023 NFL Draft prospects — guard Andrew Vorhees.
Vorhees is a 6’6″, 325-pound run-game roadblock, who plays the game with incredible physicality and a mauler’s mentality. His sheer size and lower body strength enable him to pass protect with a strong anchor. For his size, however, the USC guard has impressive athleticism, possessing light feet that helped him succeed on an island at left tackle last season. Physical, versatile offensive linemen might not excite late on a Saturday night, but they’re a stable of Sundays, which is exactly where Vorhees is headed next.
