Prospect

Last night gave us a taste of college football, but there was a good chance that you spit it out since the games were rather sloppy. For most of you, once the sunshine hits fields across the country tomorrow afternoon, the season truly begins.

Since we have one more week until the Sundays are dominated by the NFL, we actually have a weekend full of the youngins running around and attempting to drop a 70 spot on some unsuspecting squad just happy for the payday. For some folks, it's all about rooting on the alma mater or representing local pride in the biggest attraction in town. For others, it's about seeing who will get to play on Sundays next season.

What I have always appreciated is that when it comes to football, there’s a seamless relationship between the college and NFL arenas. College offenses have grown far more sophisticated over the years because so many coaches have navigated between both levels of play. Unlike other college sports (well, truthfully, basketball), you can see which players have pro potential because the schemes are more aligned with the NFL. So, for those NFL fans who don’t have a collegiate rooting interest, the mere mention of ‘prospect’ will have them watching.

The NFL fans certainly know which schools are essentially pro factories (seemingly every college from Texas, Florida and California) and which players are putting up absurd numbers regardless of school (WAC and MAC schools, anyone?). While quarterback and wide receiver are the ultimate boom-or-bust positions, the running back that is setting school and conference records or the tackling machine at linebacker will certainly find his spot in the NFL to these fans.

This leads to the question: who are the players that you are paying attention to as prospects for the next level? Here’s the twist: they cannot be Tim Tebow, Colt McCoy or Sam Bradford.

Seems a bit harder this season, does it?

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