By: John Toth · 4mo
Photo: Sports Illustrated
Each week during the 2024 college football season Draft Nation will take a look at six players who helped their draft stock with solid performances. As the season progresses, Draft Nation will start to zoom in on first round talent.
Here is the six pack from this past week:
Arkansas- Quarterback, Taylen Green
Taylen Green transferred to Arkansas after playing parts of three seasons for Boise State. Green is 6-foot-6 and has dual-threat ability. In a 58-25 win over Mississippi State this past weekend, Green showed off both his arm and his legs. He completed 23 of 29 passes for 314 yards and five touchdowns, while rushing for 79 yards and one touchdown. At this point in his development, the redshirt junior is still a work in progress and has a lot to clean up with his throwing mechanics. He likes to fade off his back foot when throwing instead of driving through the ball. However, ,he is definitely worth keeping an eye on for next season to see if he can combine better mechanics with his elite size and athleticism and move up draft boards.
Auburn- Running Back, Jarquez Hunter
Coming off a pedestrian four game stretch, senior running back Jarquez Hunter exploded against the Kentucky Wildcats for 278 yards on 23 attempts and scored two touchdowns, in Auburn’s 24-10 victory.
Hunter is a late round running back looking to improve his stock in 2025. He has excellent vision and has a second gear that he used several times against Kentucky. He is considered a home run threat each time he carries the ball.
Some may question his consensus rankings on the 2025 draft boards but the reason he isn’t ranked higher is due to his inconsistent play and his lack of production out of the backfield as a pass catcher. He currently has 863 yards rushing on the season and may be a late bloomer with the body and athleticism to shine at the combine.
BYU- Quarterback, Jake Retzlaff
BYU is off to a surprising 8-0 start in the Big 12. The Cougars are led by senior quarterback Jake Retzlaff who completed 16 of 24 passes for 228 yards and two touchdowns, while rushing for another score in BYU’s 37-24 victory at UCF.
Retzlaff transferred from Riverside City College before the 2023 season and was ranked as the No. 1 junior college quarterback in the portal. He has only played 12 games at BYU and is nowhere near being ready for the NFL. On the season he has thrown 18 touchdown passes but has also thrown seven interceptions.
Retzlaff is undersized at 6-foot-1, but has dual-threat ability. Although he may never get drafted in the NFL, he is the starting quarterback on an undefeated Big 12 team that is ranked No. 9 in the nation.
Arizona- Wide Receiver, Tetairoa McMillan
Arizona lost this past weekend to West Virginia 31-26, but star wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan almost brought the Wildcats back on his own. He ended the game with 10 receptions for 202 yards and one touchdown.
McMillan, considered one of the top receivers in the 2025 class, has a 6-foot-5 frame and hands that seem to grab anything thrown in his general vicinity. The junior receiver has an elite burst off the snap and has good long speed that puts the defensive backs on their heels. McMillan has exceptional body control and will definitely be a favorite targe in the NFL next season.
On the downside, McMillan sometimes will rely on his size and strength and becomes lazy in his breaks and cuts. This will not translate as easily to the NFL.
McMillan is a first round talent and could go as high as top 10.
Pittsburgh- Linebacker, Rasheem Biles
The Pitt Panthers defense had an historic game this past weekend against Kyle McCord and the Syracuse Orangemen. The Panthers had five interceptions, returning three of those for scores in a 41-13 win to bolster the Panthers record to 7-0 on the season.
Pitt’s defense was led by sophomore linebacker Rasheem Biles who led the team in tackles with seven while adding a sack and a pick-six that started the scoring for the Panthers in the first quarter. On the season Biles has been stellar, collecting 52 tackles, four sacks and an interception.
While being undersized at 6-foot-1 and only 215 pounds, Biles was a running back and wide receiver in high school, who will likely project as a hybrid safety/linebacker as he gets bigger. Last season as a freshman, Biles tied the Panthers special teams record with three blocked kicks in a season.
Rasheem Biles is still only a sophomore, but he is definitely a player Draft Nation will keep our eye on as he continues to mature.
Washington State- Defensive Lineman, Ansel Din-Mbuh
Washington State defensive tackle Ansel Din-Mbuh helped the Cougars hold on to a 29-26 victory over San Diego State by collecting four tackles and three sacks. He's is 6-foot-3 and 291 pounds and now has 4.5 sacks in the past two weeks for Washington State.
Din-Mbuh has worked his way into the starting lineup and he has the ability to anchor down against larger offensive lineman which also helps out the linebacking corps. He has strong hands and will beat opponents with a bull rush or a spin move. He is still very raw and is another underclassman to keep an eye on going for 2026.
Bonus—Ashton Jeanty
Since we don’t want to keep having Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty as a member of our six-pack every week, we are going to show you his stats. This past Saturday, Jeanty “only” ran for 128 yards on 33 attempts and one touchdown. This was Jeanty’s lowest total in over five weeks.
In seven games, Jeanty has already ran for 1,376 yards and 18 touchdowns, he is on pace to break Barry Sanders’ record of 2,628 yards.
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