Behind the Steel Curtain
It’s the most wonderful time of the year for football fans. As the NFL regular season starts to wind down and gears up for the playoffs, the college football playoffs are in full swing and highlight several players who will go on to become highly touted draft prospects in just a few months. Consider that it was in the quarterfinals one year ago that running back Cam Skattebo became part of college football folklore with his performance against Texas. It was also a large stage for the eventual champions, Ohio State, who would have 14 players drafted, including Pittsburgh rookie Jack Sawyer.
These games won’t fully make or break a prospect’s draft stock, but it’s our last chance to view some of these prospects in live game action. With that in mind, here’s a comprehensive breakdown of the players worth keeping an eye on.
It should come as no surprise that this game features a boatload of draft prospects. The Buckeyes are a football factory that practically serves as an NFL minor league team at this point. Miami is no slouch either, even if they aren’t as prolific as they were a few generations ago.
The big name to watch for the Buckeyes’ offense will be 6’3 wide receiver Carnell Tate. The junior wideout was an overqualified third option a year ago during Ohio State’s national title run, when he chipped in over 50 catches, but it was easy to forget about him with the other talented wide receivers and two NFL-caliber running backs on the roster. This year, he’s still second fiddle to sophomore mega star Jeremiah Smith, but he’s already set career highs in yards (838) and touchdowns (9), and should eclipse his mark for receptions in this game or the next, should Ohio State advance. Tate finds himself in what is likely a four-man race to be the first wideout taken in April, and he gets the benefit of being the only one to appear in the CFB Playoffs — Arizona State’s Jordyn Tyson, USC’s Makai Lemon, and Washington’s Denzel Boston are the others in the running.
Much like his former teammate Emeka Egbuka, Tate isn’t likely to blow anyone away with his testing at the NFL Combine, but he’s a smooth route runner with reliable hands who gets open with smarts and technique.
And it doesn’t hurt that he’s converted 85.7% (12-14) of his contested catch opportunities into receptions this season. Egbuka was selected at pick 19 last April. If there is no path for a quarterback for the Steelers, and Tate is on the board, could the Steelers draft a wide receiver in the first round for the first time since selecting fellow Buckeye Santonio Holmes in 2006? They could certainly do worse than Tate.
Another player to keep an eye on is tight end and redshirt junior Max Klare. Klare has another year of eligibility left and could elect to go back to...
