5 Takeaways from Day 2 of Senior Bowl Practices

by Zachary Somma

The 2025 Reese’s Senior Bowl continued their week of practice on Wednesday, which was hosted in Mobile, Alabama at the University of South Alabama. The first practice session saw the National team roster take the field, before the American team roster finished off the day. Here are 5 takeaways from the second day of practice at the 2025 Reese’s Senior Bowl.

1.) The DL came back with a vengeance

Yesterday, we saw the offensive line group surprisingly take the early advantage in one-on-one drills. However, given the talent level of the defensive tackles and EDGEs here at the Senior Bowl, it was not a shock to see them rebound in a big way on day two. On the National side, Marshall EDGE Mike Green probably solidified himself as a first-round pick with his work today. He had one of the most incredible reps I’ve ever seen at the Senior Bowl, with a nasty bull rush that completely flattened Oregon OT Josh Conerly Jr, a legitimate potential 1st rounder in his own right. I wouldn’t be surprised to see his week in Mobile be over since his week has gone so well. Boston College EDGE Donovan Ezeiruaku and UCLA EDGE Oluwafemi Oladejo have also put in great days across both practice sessions, 

On the American side, eyes continue to be focused on Ole Miss DT Walter Nolen and Texas A&M EDGE Shemar Stewart, who continued to look the part of potential first rounders with their work so far in Mobile. A personal favorite player of mine, South Carolina EDGE Kyle Kennard had himself a much better performance today, with a couple of nice one-on-one wins, as well as being a force in team drills. A few other players with strong days today: LSU EDGE Sai’vion Jones, Kentucky DT Deone Walker, and Minnesota EDGE Jah Joyner.

2.) Risers and fallers amongst the OL

With the defensive line coming back strong on day two, a few of the standout offensive linemen from yesterday ended up taking their lumps today, while others weathered the storm and continued to look strong. North Dakota State IOL Grey Zabel continued to look like the best lineman in Mobile. He took a couple of losses for the first time this week today, but even those reps still looked impressive. The fact that he has done this across 3 positions all week has been a true joy to watch. Another IOL who has put together great back-to-back sessions is USC’s Jonah Monheim. Even when it looks like he may take a loss, he has managed to re-anchor and hold his ground nearly every time. Other OL with strong Day 2’s: Purdue’s Marcus Mbow, Iowa State OT Jalen Travis, LSU T/G Miles Frazier, UNC G/C Willie Lampkin and Sac State’s Jackson

Slater.

However, as mentioned before, some players had a rough go of it on day two. Oregon OT Josh Conerly Jr. suffered that viral loss to Mike Green as mentioned above but also took a few other losses. It should be noted that he played a good bit of his snaps at right tackle instead of his natural left tackle, which likely played a role in his weaker performance today. Another player who had a great day 1 of practice but really struggled today was Miami’s Jalen Rivers. He held up very well yesterday, and had some great counters to strong pass rush moves, but that was absent today.

3.) Clear separation between the DBs in the one-on-ones

Given the nature of the drill, it can be extremely difficult for the defensive backs to truly find a lot of “wins” in the one-on-one period against the WRs. Sometimes, it is more important to see the players that can stay in phase and keep with their opponent, even if they don't necessarily prevent the completion from being made. Florida State CB Azareye’h Thomas is a great example of this. He has had no PBUs to my knowledge to this point but has looked the part of a sticky press man corner across both practice sessions. His movement skills are incredibly impressive for one of the larger DBs in Mobile. Louisville CB Quincy Riley has also put together back-to-back strong days of practice. A few safeties have also begun to separate themselves from each other to this point. Georgia’s Dan Jackson and Oklahoma’s Billy Bowman Jr. both were highly effective today, especially with being in and around the football.

4.) Small WRs have the advantage so far

Despite this wide receiver class being a lot bigger overall than the past few in terms of height and size, it has been many of the smaller players in this class who have had the strongest days in Mobile to this point. Oregon WR Tez Johnson has been essentially unguardable on both practice sessions, especially important for him given he weighed in at a shockingly low 156 pounds. Miami’s Xavier Restrepo and Washington State’s Kyle Williams, both likely slot receivers at the next level, have been the next receivers in line in terms of performance this week. When it comes to the true large and outside receivers, Iowa State’s Jayden Higgins has been a step ahead of everybody else. He’s been a favorite and projected riser throughout the early portions of this draft process, and his performance in Mobile to this point has not disappointed. Other WRs who have impressed: Arkansas’s Isaac TeSlaa, Florida’s Chimere Dike, Utah State’s Jalen Royals, and Maryland’s Tai Felton.

5.) RBs finding ways to stand out

It’s potentially a historically deep running back class this year, and that has so far been reflected in the play of the RBs in Mobile. Nearly every player here has had their moments, with none of them being considered a “faller” with any particularly bad performance. However, some have still impressed me more than others. For the National squad, I’m a big fan of Miami’s Damien Martinez. He is one of the most impressive runners of the football in the class, and that was apparent in team drills today. His “wiggle” and shiftiness are evident, especially notable given he is a bit of a bigger back. The biggest question for him is if he can provide any sort of value in the passing game, and I think he’s done a decent job so far in Mobile. USC’s Woody Marks and Virginia Tech’s Bhayshul Tuten have also put in 2 good days of practice.

For the American side, Kansas’s Devin Neal has been extremely impressive, especially in the team drill periods of practice. He’s a shifty, slippery back with true 3-down potential if he can hold up health-wise. Georgia’s Trevor Etienne, a bit of a surprise entrant into the Draft this year, has looked the part of an SEC back. He is a truly impressive athlete, very similar to his brother and current Jaguars RB Travis Etienne.