College Football

NFL scouts will be watching Dillon Gabriel, Tommy Eichenberg, more in Week 4

Published Sep. 20, 2023 2:34 p.m. ET

Watch Week 4 of the college football season like a professional scout with this handy viewing guide.

With all due respect to the quality football that has already been played this season, it’s all a bit of window dressing until the conference schedules start.

That magical time of year arrives in full force Saturday, with a fantastic Week 4 slate highlighted by a season-high seven games pitting teams currently ranked in the Top 25.

There are so many tantalizing matchups this weekend, in fact, that even pro scouts will be challenged to keep up with all the action. That is precisely why we’ve compiled the individual names and matchups below to focus on.

No. 16 Oklahoma at Cincinnati (Noon ET on FOX and the FOX Sports app)

Needless to say, NFL scouts prefer prospects with ideal measurables like size, speed and strength. Sometimes, though, the best players are atypical, rather than prototypical in this regard, which is the case with two of the most intriguing talents in this key Big 12 showdown.

Perhaps the "biggest" reason for Oklahoma’s 3-0 start to this season has been the stellar play of quarterback Dillon Gabriel, who may not look the part of an early NFL draft pick at just 5-foot-11 and 204 pounds, but he’s certainly playing like a future pro.

The one-time Central Florida star is completing passes at an extraordinary 82.5% clip with 11 touchdowns (he also has a rushing score) against just one interception. And while quarterback numbers can be inflated by today’s up-tempo schemes, the left-hander’s poise and accuracy are turning critics into believers this season. After all, Oklahoma asks Gabriel to make a lot of downfield throws, and he is still completing them at a historic rate. Consider this, through the first three games of the year, Gabriel has only thrown three more incompletions than he has touchdowns.

Cincinnati has an undersized star in their own backfield in running back Corey Kiner, an LSU transfer averaging a gaudy 6.1 yards per carry so far this season.

As one might expect of a back listed at 5-foot-9 and 215 pounds, Kiner has excellent contact balance. His naturally low center of gravity helps him bounce off would-be tacklers, and he shows burst, elusiveness and explosive leaping ability to vault defenders, as well.

Are the Oklahoma Sooners Big 12 championship contenders?

No. 4 Florida State at Clemson (Noon ET)

Speaking of running backs, while a disappointing loss to Duke in the season opener has stolen some of Clemson’s luster, there is plenty of shine in the Tigers backfield, where fellow juniors Phil Mafah and Will Shipley provide a classic Thunder and Lightning attack.

At a chiseled 6-foot-1 and 230 pounds, Mafah runs with greater power and authority than most of the backs we’ve seen out of Clemson during the Dabo Swinney era. He looks like a downhill sledgehammer but exhibits exciting lateral agility and burst to project as more than "just" a complementary piece.

Similarly, Shipley will also be typecast, and not just because many view him as undersized for a full-time role in the NFL at "only" 5-foot-11 and 200 pounds. There are only a handful of white running backs in the NFL, but Shipley certainly has the dynamic athleticism needed to succeed at the next level. He is a darting jitterbug of a back with vision, elusiveness, and soft hands. He’s the sizzle to Mafah’s steak, which might explain why the restaurant Chipotle has recently signed him to a unique NIL deal which will temporarily rename the branch at Clemson, "Shipotle" in his honor.

Meanwhile, at Florida State, if wideout Keon Coleman’s spectacular debut season in Tallahassee continues, there will be all sorts of NFL teams lining up to sign him, along with potential NIL companies. The 6-foot-4, 210-pound Coleman has emerged as FSU’s go-to weapon, turning four of his 12 receptions into touchdowns, thus far.

Coleman hauled in seven touchdowns a year ago at Michigan State, flashing the combination of size, speed and natural playmaking ability we haven’t seen in East Lansing since Plaxico Burress. Scouts knew he could play, but he’s been even better than advertised, thus far, emerging as a possible first-round pick — and an early one at that.

No. 22 UCLA at No. 11 Utah (3:30 p.m. ET on FOX)

Averaging more than 40 points per game, UCLA is undefeated in large part due to Chip Kelly’s dynamic offense. But make no mistake, the Bruins’ top NFL prospect is edge rusher Laiatu Latu.

The 6-foot-5, 265-pound senior has dominated the competition to this point in the season, filling up the stat sheet in every conceivable way. He leads not only the Bruins, but the entire Pac-12 in both tackles for loss (5.5) and sacks (four), and also has a forced fumble and interception (which he returned 25 yards) on his résumé as well.

While Latu has the size to play a traditional 4-3 defensive end role, the Bruins have featured him this season as a stand-up outside linebacker — which might be the only reason he doesn’t run away with the Morris Trophy this year as the conference’s best defensive linemen. It has been 20 years since the last Bruins defender — Dave Ball — won the award, and UCLA has not had a defensive lineman go in the first round of the NFL Draft since Takk McKinley and Kenny Clark cracked the Top 32 in 2017 and 2016, respectively.

For a big man, Latu generates incredible initial burst and closing speed off the snap. His speed rush alone is enough to beat most offensive tackles, and he pairs it with forceful, active hands.

The Utes know a little something about the Morris Trophy, with six winners (four on defense and two on offense) since joining the Pac-12 in 2011. The Bruins would be wise to keep Latu attacking off the left side, where he’s expected to face freshman Spencer Fano, rather than right tackle Sataoa Laumea, a Morris Trophy and NFL prospect, himself.

But like the Bruins, the Utes’ top NFL prospect may very well prove to be on the defensive side of the ball, where safety Cole Bishop looks like the next in a long line of talented Utah defensive backs.

The 6-foot-2, 205-pound junior is a heat-seeking missile, capable of making big plays in coverage and absolutely feasting near the line of scrimmage. Like Latu, it almost appears that Bishop is shot out of a cannon with the speed and ferocity with which he attacks opponents, and he ranks as one of the better, more reliable open-field tacklers in the country, currently checking in with 17 tackles, overall, including a team-high four for loss and two sacks, as well as a forced fumble and interception.

No. 19 Colorado at No. 10 Oregon (3:30 p.m. ET)

Understandably, most of the attention in this battle of Pac-12 unbeatens is going to focus on the star quarterbacks, Colorado's Shedeur Sanders and Oregon's Bo Nix. Given that we’ve highlighted both in this space in prior weeks, however, let’s focus instead on the top pass rushers hoping to corral those quarterbacks.

For the visiting Buffaloes, that would be speed rusher Jordan Domineck, a 6-foot-3, 250-pounder already on his way to setting a career-high in tackles for loss, with 4.5 through just three games this season.

Domineck is no stranger to creating big plays in a new setting. He starred at Arkansas a year ago, setting career-highs with 7.5 sacks and 9.5 tackles for loss. That came on the heels of four years at Georgia Tech, where he led the Yellow Jackets with four sacks and ranked second in TFLs with 8.5 in 2020. Complementing his initial burst, bend and explosive closing speed, Domineck shows impressive instincts and hand-eye coordination to knock the ball free, forcing seven fumbles over the past three seasons.

As productive as Domineck has been, Oregon is seemingly well-suited to stop him. The Ducks boast a stout offensive line, a highly athletic quarterback and, of course, are playing at home.

Meanwhile, Sanders and the visiting Buffs might be facing the most gifted defensive lineman of their young season in Oregon’s Brandon Dorlus, a 6-foot-3, 290-pound senior out of Fort Lauderdale.

Dorlus only has seven total sacks in 4-plus seasons in Eugene, but the flashes are as bright as some of the Ducks’ various yellow and green jerseys. He set a career-high with 9.5 tackles for loss a year ago and offers rare speed for a big man. The Ducks wisely move him all over the field, including on the interior at defensive tackle, outside at defensive end and even as a standup outside linebacker. It has not yet generated flashy statistics for Dorlus (just four tackles this season) but his presence creates opportunities for teammates. This is the kind of stage that could allow Dorlus to send his stock skyrocketing, as NFL scouts are enamored with his traits.

Is Colorado's Shedeur Sanders already a top-5 NFL pick?

No. 15 Ole Miss at No. 13 Alabama (3:30 p.m. ET)

Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin is too creative to not have some unique wrinkles for his return to Tuscaloosa to face his former boss, Nick Saban, but there will be moments in this SEC showdown where the stars align and SEC’s leading touchdown scorer — Tre Harris — lines up one-on-one opposite Alabama’s star cover corner, Kool-Aid McKinstry.

Turning five of his eight receptions this season into touchdowns, Harris has proven the most efficient wide receiver in college football. The 6-foot-2, 205-pound transfer from Louisiana Tech is a sharp route-runner with good speed, but it has been his size and physicality after the catch that has helped him score a staggering 19 times over his past 25 games.

That fact makes him a fascinating matchup for McKinstry, whose combination of size (6-foot-1, 195 pounds), agility and acceleration could have him on the well-worn Alabama pipeline to the first round. For as gifted as McKinstry is, however, he missed a couple of tackles in Alabama’s loss to Texas and scouts want to see him shore up those mental errors.

No. 14 Oregon State at No. 21 Washington State (7 p.m. ET on FOX)

There is an old saying in boxing that differing styles make for great fights, and the slugfest brewing this weekend in the Palouse has all the makings of a heavyweight bout between star (but polar opposite) quarterbacks poised to trade haymakers.

In one corner, is the Beavers’ DJ Uiagalelei, a 6-foot-4, 253-pound junior who previously played at Clemson, where he signed as a five-star recruit after starring at perennial prep powerhouse St. John Bosco in California.

The Cougars, meanwhile, counter with Cameron Ward, generously listed at 6-foot-2 and 223 pounds, who began his career as lightly recruited quarterback for Incarnate Wood, about a three-hour drive west from his hometown of West Columbia, Texas.

In the tale of the tape, Uiagalelei and the visiting Beavers seemingly have a literally huge advantage in this contest. NFL scouts are enamored with his size, bulk and arm strength. While he struggled at times, with decision-making at Clemson, the reality is he tossed 22 touchdowns against just seven interceptions in 2022 prior to transferring to Oregon State, where so far this season he’s averaging a career-high 9.3 yards per attempt and has six touchdowns against just two interceptions. He remains a bit raw, but the talent is undeniable.

Ward was dominant at Incarnate Wood, winning the Jerry Rice Award as the top freshman in the FCS and a second team All-American as a sophomore prior to his signing with WSU as a four-star transfer. Ward has a relatively spindly frame that looks better suited to a wide receiver but he’s tough, a creative scrambler and throws with impressive touch downfield.

No. 6 Ohio State at No. 9 Notre Dame (7:30 p.m. ET)

Speaking of transfer quarterbacks, perhaps the most celebrated of the bunch this offseason was Notre Dame’s Sam Hartman, who it feels like has been playing quarterback at the college level since the Kennedy administration.

All kidding aside, Hartman signed with Notre Dame after five starting seasons at Wake Forest, taking advantage of a redshirt campaign in 2019 in which he only played four games, and an extra year afforded players due to the pandemic. He enters Saturday’s showdown with Ohio State having already thrown for an eye-popping 14,028 yards and 123 touchdowns against 41 interceptions.

With that type of track record, one might think that Hartman has little to gain in this contest — at least from a scouting perspective. After all, scouts already know that he is a gritty competitor with good vision and mobility in and around the pocket, as well as excellent touch on the deep ball.

They also recognize that at 6-foot-1 (and a 1/8", according to his official Notre Dame bio) and 212 pounds, he lacks ideal bulk for the position, saw his statistics inflated due to Wake Forest’s shotgun-heavy offense and will be 25 before he takes an NFL snap.

With all due respect to the significant success that he enjoyed with the Demon Deacons in the ACC, however, Hartman never faced the pressure of a potential title run, which is what Notre Dame could be entering if it manages to beat Ohio State. To his credit, he’s been brilliant for the Irish thus far this season, completing an absurd 71.1% of his passes with 11 touchdowns without a single interception.

Notre Dame boasts one of the nation’s top offensive lines and a formidable running game. The Irish have run for nine touchdowns (two by Hartman) with primary ballcarrier Audric Estime averaging 8.3 yards per attempt.

The Buckeyes, of course, feature plenty of their own All-American candidates, with middle linebacker Tommy Eichenberg serving as its quarterback on defense.

The 6-foot-2, 235-pound Eichenberg currently leads the Buckeyes with 20 tackles this season, showing not only ideal size and physicality for the position but good speed to the flanks, enhanced by terrific diagnostic skills.

His ability to clog running lanes could put the onus on Hartman to make big plays downfield, making for a fascinating chess match.

And, as if this game of college football blue bloods needed any more seasoning, Eichenberg is the younger brother of Liam Eichenberg, who starred on the offensive line for Notre Dame, prior to the Miami Dolphins selecting him 42nd overall in the 2021 NFL draft.

What would a win over Ohio State look like for Notre Dame?

No. 24 Iowa at No. 7 Penn State (7:30 p.m. ET)

There are very few guarantees in life, but one is that Kirk Ferentz’s Hawkeyes are going to produce quality NFL blockers. After all, 24 of his proteges along the line of scrimmage have been drafted since the former NFL offensive line coach took over at Iowa back in 1999, with four of the past five selected going in the top 40.

Multi-year starters at left tackle from Iowa have been especially popular with the NFL, with four earning first-round selections since Ferentz arrived. Next to earn an NFL paycheck may very well be the appropriately named Mason Richman, who enters Saturday’s showdown with Penn State having started 28 games at the blindside position.

Despite measuring in at 6-foot-6 and 312 pounds, the hulking Richman is very quick off the snap and shows impressive lateral agility in pass protection. As we’ve grown to expect from Ferentz’s pupils, Richman is also technically sound, showing quick, active hands that match his feet, tying up would-be pass rushers.

A varied Penn State pass rush and raucous Happy Valley crowd, however, will easily be Richman’s toughest challenge of the young season. Senior Adisa Isaac and junior Chop Robinson are among Penn State’s deep and speedy stable of pass rushers — a group that has already registered 10 sacks in just three games.

Robinson does not technically have a sack yet (though he has two tackles for loss), but he explodes out of his stance and possesses the core flexibility to get skinny through creases in the line, creating easy big-play opportunities for teammates that scouts will not overlook.

No. 5 USC at Arizona State (10:30 p.m. ET on FOX)

It is difficult to watch the Trojans and not focus on presumed 2024 No. 1 overall pick Caleb Williams, but No. 5 USC is more than just their quarterback. Head coach Lincoln Riley has smartly surrounded his dynamic signal-caller with playmakers, including former Memphis wideout and kick returner, Tahj Washington – who leads USC with 233 receiving yards on just nine catches this season.

The 5-foot-10, 175-pound redshirt senior matched his previous career-high of six touchdown receptions with Williams at USC a year ago and he has half that many through the first three games of this season. He boasts the kind of electric speed that can keep cornerbacks (and their defensive coordinators) up at night, which is appropriate considering that by the time this game ends, it will likely be well past midnight for many viewers.

Frankly, the Sun Devils do not have the secondary to effectively blanket Washington and the Trojans’ many "other" receiving options. What they do offer, however, is an effective pass rush, including their own undersized speed "demon" in Prince Dorbah.

At just 6-foot-2 and 230 pounds, Dorbah looks out of place lining up in the three-point stance, but his burst and bend make him quite effective. Arizona State moves him all over the line to create difficult matchups for would-be blockers and he possesses the speed to harass Williams, who makes a lot of his most exciting plays while improvising.

Rob Rang is an NFL Draft analyst for FOX Sports. He has been covering the NFL Draft for more than 20 years, with work at FOX, Sports Illustrated, CBSSports.com, USA Today, Yahoo, NFL.com and NFLDraftScout.com, among others. He also works as a scout with the BC Lions of the Canadian Football League. Follow him on Twitter @RobRang.