The college football season is a drama primarily centered around the question of which four teams will make the College Football Playoff. Another main drama is the Heisman Trophy race. The third main source of intrigue during the fall is how various college stars have helped or hurt their NFL Draft stock. We are at the point where the speculation is about to end, and the draft selections will be made beginning Thursday with the first round. Which school will have the most picks? It’s not a trick question – it’s the answer you’d expect.
Alabama Crimson Tide
The Crimson Tide have four projected first-round selections according to many outlets. This is not surprising when one realizes how deep the Tide’s defense was last season, and how many players from that defense either ran out of eligibility (necessitating a move to the pros) or opted out of college and moved early to the NFL. A wild card is where Reuben Foster, a troubled young man, will fall after a number of off-field controversies. He could be this year’s version of Laremy Tunsil, the offensive lineman whose draft position plummeted for off-field reasons. Nevertheless, Alabama’s collection of talent eclipses every other school.
Ohio State Buckeyes
There are a number of realistic choices for a second-place team behind Alabama, and Ohio State is naturally at the forefront of the list. Urban Meyer’s offense fell on hard times, but the Buckeyes’ defense has top-rated cornerbacks and other defensive prospects who fill specific needs so fully that the Buckeyes should be able to get three players in the first round. Even when Ohio State lost to Clemson in the College Football Playoff semifinals, the defense really wasn’t at fault – it kept the game close for a few quarters and made lots of plays on a night when the offense did absolutely nothing. Lesser defenses would have allowed more than 50 points to Clemson on that night, and it’s worth noting that Ohio State allowed fewer points to Clemson (31) than Alabama (35) did in the College Football Playoff last season. That’s a detail which got overlooked, as is understandably the case when an offense gets shut out and a team absorbs a 31-point beatdown.
Stanford Cardinal
The Cardinal pride themselves on having rugged linebackers and extremely tough linemen on both sides of the ball, and that’s what Stanford will bring to the table in the draft this spring. Solomon Thomas is an elite pass rusher who leads the Cardinal’s class into draft day. He’s one of the top prospects in the draft and is expected to go as early as No. 2 to the San Frnacisco 49ers. Running back Christian McCaffrey could also find himself inside of the Top 10 based on a number of projections. The hot rumor is that the Carolina Panthers would like to upgrade their running back position.
Stanford players are so physical that they simply aren’t to be discounted in the world of measurements and intangibles that the NFL Draft obsesses about all the time.
Clemson Tigers
The Deshaun Watson selection is a lock for the first round, and the Tigers join Ohio State and Stanford with three prospects projected in the first round. The other players expected to go in the first round is wideout Mike Williams. Cornerback Cordrea Tankersley is viewed mostly as a Friday pick but he could end up in the first round too (according to some mock drafts).
Watson could go as high as No. 6 to the New York Jets (according to FOX Sports) but he’s more likely to end up going at the end of the first round. As for Williams, there are a lot of teams that need a playmaking wide receiver and he’s frequently been linked with the Tennessee Titans at No. 18.
Clemson players come to the NFL with a complete foundation of coaching – the Tigers simply were not out of position or soft or otherwise deficient in their roll through the College Football Playoff. They have many next-level players, and the first round will confirm this.
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